Match 1 Box - Match 2 Box
MOUNT PLEASANT, Mich. – University of Evansville sophomore Genesis Miranda tallied 28 kills in a pair of matches on Saturday as the Purple Aces finished up the Chippewa Challenge in Michigan.
In the opener, the Aces (6-8) fell to Omaha in five sets before dropping the late game to San Jose State by a 3-1 final.
"We grew through good and bad moments this weekend. A young team like ours, needs these kinds of adverse situations to develop," UE head coach Manolo Concepcion said. "Our "best" this weekend was a very high level, so that is encouraging. Now, its about working on the low points, our weakest links, and training specificity in preparation for our first week of Conference."
"We went through Pre-Season where we played similar levels of what we will see in the conference, so our team could learn create comfortability in uncomfortable scenarios. I look forward to lead a team full of long-term potential."
Highlighting the day was an 18-kill effort by Miranda against the Mavericks with Mildrelis Rodriguez had 11 and Stephanie Cerino totaled 10. Miranda led the way for UE in the second match, tallying ten. Lorena Marquez tallied 59 assists on Saturday while Kim Deprez had an impressive pair of efforts with 53 digs. Included in that was 35 versus Omaha.
Evansville picked up a win the first set, defeating the Mavericks, 25-21. A good start saw the Purple Aces score the opening three points before Omaha found its rhythm, tying it up at 8-8. The Aces had a big answer as Stephanie Cerino and Elizabeth Giller recorded two kills apiece as UE reeled off the next seven tallies before earning the 25-21 win.
A 5-1 run to begin the second game was all Omaha needed to take a 25-20 win and tie up the match. Evansville got within one at 16-15, but the Mavericks rallied back to finish off the set.
In the third game, a pair of Lorena Marquez service aces saw UE jump out to a 4-0 lead. The lead extended to 13-7 before Omaha made its way back, utilizing a 6-1 stretch to cut the UE lead to just a point at 14-13. A 5-1 run by Evansville put momentum back in their favor as back-to-back service aces by Miranda pushed UE to a 25-19 win.
The Mavericks started game four on a 5-1 run before Evansville took advantage of a Cerino kill to get back in the game and take a 10-9 lead. Just as fast as the Aces got back into the game, Omaha tied it up at 10-10 and with the score tied at 12-12, they scored 12 of the next 14 points to push their edge to a game-high 24-14 before winning by a 25-18 final. They were able to capitalize on that momentum in the deciding game, taking the match with a 15-8 victory.
Set #1 against San Jose State was an all-out battle. Eight ties led to an 11-11 score before the Aces scored three in a row on kills by Miranda and Fortuny. Down 14-11, San Jose State went on an 8-1 stretch as they opened up their largest lead at 19-15. The Aces did not let the deficit deter them as a Marquez service ace highlighted a rally that saw UE tie it up at 21-21 before two more Miranda tallies gave UE a 25-23 win.
Early in the second frame, it looked as if UE had momentum on its side, taking a 3-1 lead. With the score tied at 7-7, though, the Spartans extended their muscle as an unbelievable stretch pushed them to a 25-13 win to knot the match at 1-1. San Jose State was able to keep its momentum rolling in the third and fourth sets, clinching the match with finals of 25-11 and 25-17.
Missouri Valley Conference play commences next weekend for UE as they travel to Iowa to take on Drake and UNI.
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