The University of Southern Indiana volleyball team dropped its Great Lakes Valley Conference home opener to Drury University Friday night in three sets, 20-25, 23-25 and 18-25. The Screaming Eagles (7-8, 1-2 GLVC) return to the Screaming Eagles Arena Saturday to host Southwest Baptist University at 3 p.m.
USI was held to a hitting clip of .039, though 19 of the Eagles’ 27 errors on the attack were self-inflicted. Conversely, the Panthers (9-7, 3-0 GLVC) scraped together a .216 hitting percentage en route to 40 kills to USI’s 32.
Three Eagles reached double-figures in digs to slow down the Drury attack: freshman outside hitter Leah Anderson (Bloomington, Illinois), senior outside hitter Lindsey Stose (Elkhart, Indiana) and freshman libero/defensive specialist Audrey Crowder (Avon, Indiana).
First Set: Drury 25, USI 20
Junior setter Casey Cepicky (St. Louis, Missouri) and senior middle hitter Elexis Coleman (Joliet, Illinois) kept the Panthers’ attack at bay posting three and two blocks, respectively. Anderson led the back row effort with seven of USI’s 22 digs in the frame. Drury was held to just a .114 attack rate thanks to the combined effort.
The Eagles opened the match with their lowest hitting clip of any set, negative .065, after mustering only eight kills as a unit. Anderson led the way with three kills in the frame, followed by Coleman and freshman right side hitter Katherine Koch (Belleville, Illinois) with two each.
Second Set: Drury 25, USI 23
Coleman took a step forward in the second frame to keep things tight, posting four kills, a service ace, and a solo block. Koch’s three kills supplemented the push while making her the fourth Eagle to reach 100 kills so far this season.
The Panthers attack captured the momentum in large part to an eight-kill effort from Regan Dennis in the second set while also committing just one error.
Third Set: Drury 25, USI 18
Stose righted the ship in the third frame to lead USI with three kills on eight attempts after posting a negative .176 hitting clip through two. She also led the Eagles with five digs, followed by Crowder and Anderson with four each.
Three Eagles closed the contest with three blocks each: Coleman, Cepicky and senior middle blocker Amanda Jung (Belleville, Illinois). USI, however, was out-blocked as a unit 8-7.
Koch wound up leading the USI attack with eight kills in the match after keeping pace with Stose in the third frame. Coleman and Anderson followed with six apiece.
Anderson’s 16 digs fell one short of tying her season high from her collegiate debut; Crowder’s 10 digs come just two matches from her season-high 13 digs at William Jewell College last weekend.
Up Next
USI Volleyball returns to the Screaming Eagles Arena Saturday at 3 p.m. to take on the Bearcats of Southwest Baptist.
The Eagles will then hit the road to face GLVC travel partner McKendree University Tuesday before returning to Evansville to host another conference weekend.
