Box Score (PDF)

PEORIA, Ill. – For the second match in a row, University of Evansville sophomore Genesis Miranda registered 20+ kills, but four Bradley players recorded double-digit kills as the Braves earned a 3-2 win over the Purple Aces volleyball team on Friday evening.
 
Bradley (6-17, 1-10 MVC) picked up its first Missouri Valley Conference win of the season as Erica Haslag had 22 kill and Afton Sobasky notched 64 assists.  Evansville (8-17, 2-9 MVC) was led by Miranda's 23-kill performance.  Stephanie Cerino notched seven.  Freshman Rocio Fortuny had a strong night on the defensive side, posting a career-best 10 block assists.
 
The Aces got off to a strong start in the first game as a late run gave them a 26-24 win.  UE took its first lead at 4-3 before a Genesis Miranda kill gave them a 10-7 advantage.  Bradley reeled off the next three points to tie it up and took a lead of their own at 17-15.  With the game knotted at 20-20, the squads would tie each point leading to a 24-24 score.  At that point, it was the Aces' top offensive weapons who finished off the set as Miranda and Stephanie Cerino helped UE take the win.

"We had a tough battle tonight against Bradley," head coach Manolo Concepcion said.  "It is time for us to watch film, learn from our mistakes and study for tomorrow's match."
 
Bradley earned a dominant win in the second frame.  Already up 10-5 in the early moments, the Braves reeled off five in a row to go up 15-5 before handing the Aces a 25-16 loss as they tied up the match at 1-1.
 
It looked as if the Braves were going to run away to another win in the third game, scoring five of the first seven before going up by an 11-5 score.  Evansville cut the gap to three points at 13-10 before BU would open up a 5-point lead at 17-12.  That is when the Aces roared back.  Mildrelis Rodriguez notched a pair of kills as UE went on a 7-1 stretch to take a 19-18 lead.  After the Braves knotted it up at 22-22, Evansville would go on to score the final three and take a 25-22 win.
 
With the score tied up at 6-6 in the fourth set, the Aces posted five of the next six tallies to go up by an 11-7 score.  Freshman Olivia Goldstein capped off the stretch with a service ace.  The Braves responded with a 9-2 run as they went from down four to up three at 16-13.  BU continued to lead at 21-20 and an Erica Haslag kill finished off a 25-23 win to send the game to a fifth and deciding set.
 
The Braves set the tone early in the decisive game, scoring the first four points as Allison Turner had back-to-back kills.  Evansville fought back to get within one on four occasions, but they could not get that one point to tie it up as the Braves clinched the match with a 15-13 win.
 
Tomorrow, the Aces head to Chicago where they will play Loyola at 5 p.m.
           

• INFO: For all of the latest information on University of Evansville volleyball, log on to the sport page on GoPurpleAces.com or follow the program on Twitter via @UEAthletics_VB.

 

• DONATE: For information on giving to UE Athletics or its individual athletics programs, visit the DONATE tab on the top of GoPurpleAces.com. 

 

• TICKETS: To purchase tickets for University of Evansville athletics events, log on to GoPurpleAces.com and click on the TICKETS tab on top of the page.