EVANSVILLE, Ind. – A match that saw back-and-forth action all evening finished with Missouri State defeating the University of Evansville volleyball team by a 3-2 final on Saturday evening inside Meeks Family Fieldhouse.
Evansville (7-13, 1-6 MVC) was led by a 22-kill effort from Rachel Tam while Alondra Vazquez set her career mark with 21 kills. She also added 12 digs. Mildrelis Rodriguez posted 11 kills and 17 digs on the night while Kerra Cornist finished with 10. Olivia Goldstein registered a team-high 19 digs and Allana McInnis posted 52 assists. Amelia Flynn led Missouri State (10-9, 3-3 MVC) with 26 kills and 15 digs.
Box Score (PDF)
Tam got the night started for UE with a kill as the Aces took an early 2-1 lead in game one. Missouri State jumped in front by a 6-3 score before Alondra Vazquez tied it right up with three early kills. The Aces later went back in front at 9-8. Neither team led by more than a point until Evansville went up 19-17 on an error by the Bears. MSU came back to tie it up at 20-20 before two kills from Tam and Vazquez saw UE retake the lead at 24-20. Following an MSU point, Tam posted her ninth kill of the set to lift the Aces to the 25-21 win and a 1-0 match lead.
It was Tam and Vazquez starting off strong once again in the second set, posting kills to send UE out to a 4-1 lead. Missouri State came back to take their first lead at 9-8, but Evansville answered once again as two more Vazquez kills helped the Aces score the next six points on their way to a 14-9 advantage. MSU countered with three in a row before fighting back to tie it up at 17-17. UE scored the next to retake the lead, but Missouri State pushed back in front at 22-20.
The teams exchanged the lead in the early part of the third frame before MSU wrestled the lead away and pulled out to a 12-7 advantage. Their lead reached eight at 17-9 before they won by a 25-17 final.
After trailing 3-1 in the fourth set, UE used a kill by Kerra Cornist and an ace by Tam to go up 6-4. The second ace of the set for UE came off the hands of Vazquez as UE went up 8-5. Evansville led by four points at 14-10 before two by the Bears cut the gap to two. The Aces would not let them get any closer, forcing a fifth set with a 25-21 victory.
Missouri State scooted out to a 5-2 lead in the fifth game before Tam had a strong kill to get UE within a pair, but the Bears rallied right back, scoring the next three to extend their advantage to 10-4 before clinching the match with a 15-7 win.
A quick turnaround will see the Aces return to the floor on Monday evening at UNI in a 7 p.m. contest. UE is back home next Saturday (Oct. 13) as they welcome Indiana State to Meeks Family Fieldhouse.
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