Aces win Dunn Hospitality Tournament Championship
UE wins 10th match of the season
 EVANSVILLE, Ind. – Freshman Madisyn Steele had the top outing of her college career, recording 10 kills and two block assists to help the University of Evansville volleyball team earn a 3-0 win over Murray State to earn the Dunn Hospitality Tournament Championship.
Alondra Vazquez was named the Most Valuable Player of the event and finished Saturday’s match with 19 kills andf 14 digs. Steele and Melanie Feliciano earned All-Tournament accolades. With the win, UE moves to 10-1 on the season with Missouri Valley Conference play set to begin on Friday at Indiana State.
Blakeley Freeman added 10 digs while Feliciano added eight to complement nine kills. Taya Haffner had 43 assists, Kate Tsironis picked up five block assists and Giulia Cardona led all players with three service aces. Alexa Harris and Brooke Watts led the Racers with 16 and 15 kills, respectively.
Set 1
With the score tied at 7-7 in the first set, Evansville tallied three points in a row and would lead for the remainder of the frame. Feliciano and Vazquez recorded kills during the stretch. Cardona added a kill of her own to push the lead to five at 15-10. The Racers cut the deficit to three points before two more Vazquez kills capped off a 25-17 win.
Set 2
UE had the early momentum in game two, grabbing a 10-5 lead thanks to a Vazquez kill. Murray State chipped away at the lead and tied it up at 13-13 before going in front at 18-17. A back-and-forth battle ensued with the Purple Aces going back in front at 20-18 with Cecilia Thon adding an ace. Two in a row by MSU tied it up before a Steele kill gave UE a 21-20 edge. With Evansville continuing to lead by a 22-21 tally, the Racers stormed back with three in a row to bring up set point.
Facing a deficit in crunch time, the Aces responded in a big way with Alondra Vazquez taking control. Her kill got the Aces within one before a Racer error tied it up. The senior added a service ace to put the Aces in front before Murray State tied it up. The teams exchanged points leading to a 31-31 score. That is when Vazquez took over once again, registering a kill and an ace to clinch the set. Evansville did a great job of keeping control in the final rallies, never letting the Racers take the lead.
Set 3
In the third set, the Aces put everything together to finish off the day. While the set was close early on, UE never let Murray State gain the lead. With the score knotted at 7-7, the Aces picked up six of the next seven tallies to go up 13-8. Haffner had an ace while Cardona notched a kill to extend the advantage. The Racers cut the gap to a pair (17-15) before an 8-2 rally capped off the 3-0 match victory on the strength of a 25-17 decision in the set. Thon picked up another ace in the late stages while Vazquez had two more kills to finish the day with 19.
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