Evansville heads to Cape Girardeau, Mo.
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With their first weekend of play at the Puerto Rico Clasico canceled due to Hurrican Dorian, the University of Evansville volleyball team travels to Cape Girardeau, Mo. for the Redhawks Invitational.
The Opening Serve
– The Purple Aces open with Western Illinois on Friday at 10 a.m. and finish the day against Jackson State at 4:30 p.m.
– UE faces host Southeast Missouri State on Saturday in a 2 p.m. match
Taking it to a new level
– Senior Rachel Tam is coming off of one of the top seasons in program history as she recorded a total of 492 kills, an average of 4.21 per set
– Her total of 4.21 per frame saw her rank 31st in the country and third in the Missouri Valley Conference; her 492 kills finished with the same ranks
– With a tally of 538.5 points, she finished the year 34th in the NCAA and third in the league
Trending Upward
– At the end of the 2018 campaign, the Purple Aces were playing some of the best volleyball in the MVC
– Despite five losses in the last seven matches, UE forced four of those contests to go five sets
– On November 16, 2018, Evansville picked up its second-ever win over UNI, earning a 3-2 win inside Meeks Family Fieldhouse
– The Aces clinched the win with a 15-9 decision in the fifth and decisive frame
All-Freshman Performer
– Alondra Vazquez enjoyed a nice 2018 campaign that culminated in her being named to the MVC All-Freshman Team
– She tallied 2.56 kills per set while contributing 3.08 digs per game; both ranked third on the UE team
– Vazquez missed the opening portion of the season, but bounced back in a big way, registering at least eight kills in each match from October 5 through the end of the season
– Her top effort came in one of the biggest victories in program history as she totaled 25 kills and 25 digs in the win over Northern Iowa; both were career highs
Scouting the Opponents
– Evansville opens against the Leathernecks on Friday morning in a 10 a.m. contest
– This marks the fourth meeting over the last five seasons between the programs; Evansville is a perfect 3-0, picking up 3-2 wins over WIU in each of the last two seasons in Macomb, Ill.
– Western Illinois went 1-2 in the Starkvegas Classic as they swept Mississippi Valley State in the opener before falling to Chattanooga and Mississippi State
– Jackson State got off to a 3-0 start at the SWAC/MEAC Tournament in Montgomery, Ala.
– After earning a 3-1 win over Delaware State in their first match, the Tigers swept South Carolina State and held on for a 3-2 win over Florida A&M
– Evansville faced JSU in the 2015 Dunn Hospitality Tournament, picking up a 3-0 win
– Southeast Missouri State went 1-2 in their first tournament – the Dr. Mary Jo Wynn Invitational in Springfield, Mo.
– The Redhawks dropped a hard-fought 3-2 match against DePaul, falling 15-13 in the fifth set, before earning a 3-1 win over Jacksonville
– SEMO finished the weekend with a 3-1 loss to host Missouri State
