EVANSVILLE, Ind. – Junior Cathy Schreiber was one of three University of Evansville volleyball players to notch double figure kills as the Purple Aces took on the top squad in the Missouri Valley Conference – Missouri State – on Friday in Meeks Family Fieldhouse.
Evansville (9-14, 3-8 MVC) put its best foot forward against the Bears (19-5, 11-0), but MSU overcame UE's strong night to take a 3-0 win. Schreiber paced the Aces with 13 kills while Rachel Tam posted 11 and Mildrels Rodriguez had 10. Cassie Brooks registered 21 digs to lead all players while Taylor Jones notched 21 assists. Lily Johnson was the top performer for MSU, totaling 23 kills and 12 digs.
"Tonight, we showed that we can battle against anyone in this conference. Although it was not the result that we wanted, it gave is even more fire to continue to work hard and believe in our end goal," Aces head coach Manolo Concepcion said. "The fight that we carry inside us will continue to carry on, along with our ambition to get better and close matches. It is time to learn from tonight and focus on tomorrow's opponent."
Box Score (PDF)
Evansville got off to a 4-1 start in the contest but Missouri State rallied back, tying it up at 8-8. Erlicia Griffith put the lead back in the Aces' hands with a kill to make it 9-8, but once again, MSU had the answer as they tied it up at 12-12. UE grabbed the lead right back, scoring four in a row, including a Gabriela Dos Santos service ace.
An error by the Bears gave UE their largest lead at 19-14. The lead remained at five (21-16) before Missouri State made its run. Two stellar defensive plays went the Bears' way as they got back within one at 22-21. They would tie it up at 23-23, but Schreiber posted two late kills to give the Aces a 24-23 advantage, but the Bears were able to finish off with a 27-25 decision to take a 1-0 lead.
Despite falling into a 3-1 hole in game two, the Aces tied it up at 3-3 before taking a 5-4 lead on a block by Erlicia Griffith and Schreiber. UE's run continued as they pushed the lead to 10-5 as Mildrelis Rodriguez notched her fourth kill of the night. Rachel Tam helped UE extend its lead to four at 15-11 but MSU fought back once again, knotting the score at 19-19 before retaking the lead at 23-22 and extending it for a 25-23 win.
Missouri State opened game three on a 5-1 run and extended the lead to as many as seven at 17-10. The Aces never gave up, showing the fight they had all night to get back within four at 19-15. MSU was able to rebound, earning a 25-18 win to finish off the 3-0 match victory.
Tomorrow night, the Aces are right back in action as they take on Southern Illinois in the annual pink game at Meeks Family Fieldhouse. Match time is set for 7 p.m.
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