Aces put up a fight against #15 Tennessee
UE drops a pair of contests in Nashville
 KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – Friday’s trip to Knoxville, Tennessee saw the University of Evansville volleyball team put up an impressive challenge before dropping matches against #15 Tennessee and Chicago State at Thompson-Boling Arena.
 Match 1 – Chicago State 3, UE 0
Giulia Cardona had a team-high 12 kills and Ainoah Cruz posted 10 digs in a 3-0 defeat to Chicago State in Friday’s opener. Kora Ruff finished the match with 24 assists while Madisyn Steele added two blocks.
Game 1 – Chicago State 25, UE 20
Brooke Springer opened the match with a kill before Cardona and Luana Gazda Kuhn added kills of their own to give the Purple Aces a 5-1 lead. The Cougars stormed back with four in a row to tie it up before using a 3-0 run to turn a 9-9 game into a 12-9 lead.
After CSU went up by four points (15-11), UE made a rally to cut the deficit to 16-15 before CSU retook control and clinch a 25-20 win.
Game 2 – Chicago State 25, UE 20
Set #2 followed a similar script to the opening one as Evansville had the early momentum with a Melanie Feliciano kill giving her team a 3-1 advantage. Chicago State responded with three in a row to take their first lead at 4-3. With the score tied up at 8-8, the Cougars wrestled away a 10-8 lead and would fend off multiple challenges to take a 2-0 match lead.
After CSU opened a 16-12 lead, a kill by Cardona highlighted a run that saw the Aces get within one (18-17), but once against, the Cougars put together a late run to finish the set.
Game 3 – Chicago State 25, UE 13
Another close set in the early going with six ties leading to a 7-7 score. The Cougars slowly opened a 14-9 lead and would cruise to a 25-13 victory to clinch the match. In total, they completed the set on a 16-5 run.
Match 2 – Tennessee 3, UE 0
Leading the way in the second match was Melanie Feliciano with 10 kills with Giulia Cardona adding eight. Cardona also led the way with eight digs while Kora Ruff tallied 27 assists. Jenaisya Moore paced the Volunteers with 14 kills while hitting .500.
Game 1 – Tennessee 25, UE 18
Helped by an early service ace, Tennessee jumped out to a 4-1 lead in the opening game. Emilee Scheumann picked up a kill to tie things up at 5-5 before the Volunteers jumped back in front at 11-8. Once again, the Aces fought back, taking advantage of a pair of UT errors to tie the score at 11-11.
Up 13-12, Tennessee scored six of the next seven on their way to a 25-18 win and a 1-0 match lead.
Game 2 – Tennessee 25, UE 13
With the set tied at 4-4 in the early moments of the second set, Tennessee went on a 14-3 run to open an 18-7 lead. The deficit was too much to overcome with UT taking the 25-13 victory and a 2-0 lead.
Game 3 – Tennessee 25, UE 23
Showing a great deal of fight, the Aces put up a strong effort in game three. Things were close for the duration of the set. An ace from Cardona put the Aces up 5-4 while Tennessee would retake the lead at 7-5 with an ace of their own.
Things looked to be going the Volunteers’ way when a kill put them up 17-14, forcing a time-out by Evansville. Madisyn Steele immediately registered a kill while Luana Gazda Kuhn posted an ace to get UE within one. With the score tied up at 18-18, UE reeled off four in a row as Maddie Hawkins picked up an ace to put the Aces in position for the set win. Unfortunately, Tennessee had other ideas, scoring six points in a row on their way to clinching the match with a 25-23 win.
Missouri Valley Conference play opens next weekend with UE on the road to face Murray State and Belmont.
