ELON, N.C. – Rocio Fortuny and Rachel Tam posted 13 kills each while Mildrelis Rodriguez recorded 12 to help the Purple Aces volleyball team finish off the Phoenix Classic in style with a 3-1 win over North Carolina Central.
"Teamwork. That is what we continue to see with this group of girls. They compensate for each other," Aces head coach Manolo Concepcion explained. "We keep going deep in the roster presenting them with opportunities to contribute when needed and everyone keeps responding. They are used to playing with each other, knowing that the star of the team is the team itself."
Box Score (PDF)
"Now we have a couple of days to recover and study ourselves. The intent is to continue learning and growing."
Tam and Fortuny paced the University of Evansville with their 13 kills while Rodriguez notched 12. Cecilia Thon and Allana McInnis tallied 17 and 16 assists, respectively while Elena Redmond posted 12. Olivia Goldstein led the way with 24 digs. Patricia Joseph notched s0069 kills and seven blocks in the contest.
UE (5-2) set the tone early, with a 25-12 win in game one. Up 9-6, the Aces reeled off six in a row as Rodriguez notched two kills and Thon was perfect in her serving. NC Central got back within five at 15-10 before UE finished on a 10-2 run to take a 1-0 match lead.
After the Eagles took game two, 25-18, the Purple Aces were off to the races again with a pair of 25-17 wins in the third and fourth frames to earn a 3-1 win. Game three saw NC Central take a 12-9 lead before UE fought back. A service ace by Rodriguez tied it up at 14-14. That was part of a 6-0 run. Olivia Goldstein then did the serving in a 4-0 stretch that was capped off by a pair of Fortuny kills. That put UE up 22-15. Rodriguez later had the clinching kill to give UE a 2-1 edge.
Early in the fourth set, the Eagles jumped out to a 4-0 lead before UE battled back to tie it at 9-9. Allana McInnis did the serving while Rachel Tam posted three kills in a 10-0 run. McInnis also had an ace in the rally, which gave UE a 17-9 lead. From there, the Aces were able to clinch their second match of the day with a 25-17 win as Patricia Joseph had the winning kill.
Next Saturday, UE welcomes Austin Peay and Northern Kentucky to Meeks Family Fieldhouse for the Dunn Hospitality Tournament. The event will feature a total of three contests on Sept. 8.
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