EVANSVILLE, Ind. – Junior Mildrelis Rodriguez notched 13 kills, 12 digs and three service aces, but three Drake players recorded double digit kills as the Bulldogs took a 3-0 win over the University of Evansville volleyball team inside the Knapp Center on Saturday night.
Rodriguez led the Aces (10-16, 4-10 MVC) with 13 kills while Rocio Fortuny had 12. Allana McInnis posted 21 assists while Taylor Jones added 16 to lead the offense. Cassie Brooks was the top defensive performer with 21 digs.
Box Score (PDF)
Emily Plock topped the Bulldogs (23-6, 12-3 MVC) with 15 kills as Natalie Fry and Kyla Inderski notched 12 apiece.
Mildrelis Rodriguez opened the night in impressive fashion, notching back-to-back service aces as UE took a 4-0 lead in game one. Drake came back to tie it up at 8-8, but the Aces had the answer as Rodriguez posted a kill to put UE back in front. Rocio Fortuny helped the team push its lead to four at 22-18. Facing its largest deficit of the set, the Bulldogs rallied back with seven in a row to take game one, 25-22.
In the second frame, it was the Bulldogs who had a strong start as an Emily Plock kill gave them a 6-1 advantage. The Aces clawed their way back with a 9-3 run, capped off by an Erlicia Griffith kill, to take their first lead at 10-9. The action was back-and-forth before Evansville wrestled away a 19-16 edge as Cathy Schreiber had two kills. Just as they did in the opening set, Drake used some late magic to pull off a win. They retook the lead at 23-22 and were able to finish the game off with a 30-28 triumph.
Rodriguez continued her strong night with an early kill as the Aces took a 3-1 advantage to open the third set. The lead reached as many as five points at 12-7 when Gabriela Dos Santos notched a kill. A 4-0 run by the Bulldogs cut the deficit to one before they took the lead at 15-14. From there, they pulled away for a 25-20 win to clinch the match.
Meeks Family Fieldhouse will be the scene of the next two contests for UE as they welcome Valparaiso on Friday night before playing host to Loyola on Saturday. Both matches will have 7 p.m. start times.
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