EVANSVILLE, Ind. – Despite winning the second set, University of Southern Indiana Volleyball (1-24, 1-13 OVC) ended the night with a 3-1 loss (16-25, 27-25, 10-25, 14-25) to Tennessee State University (13-15, 7-8 OVC) at Screaming Eagles Arena Friday night. This is the third-straight match the Screaming Eagles have earned 35 kills or less.
 
A strong offensive outing from the Lady Tigers cost USI the 25-16 opening-frame loss. The game started with three straight offensive points from TSU before a bad set gave the Eagles their first point. Down 7-3, sophomore outside/right side hitter Abby Bednar (Chagrin Falls, Ohio) struck down a kill right before junior outside hitter Leah Anderson (Bloomington, Illinois) nabbed a service ace to cut the deficit to two. The Lady Tigers returned the favor by scoring six of the next eight points to extend their 13-7 advantage. After a pair of attacking errors from TSU, the Eagles pulled within four until the Lady Tigers put on 10 of the final 16 points to capture the 1-0 match lead. TSU tallied a match-high 16 kills and a .462 hitting percentage in the first set. USI was able to record 10 kills and their match-best .214 hitting percentage.
 
The Eagles found the most luck in the second set, earning a 27-25 victory. Down 4-3 early, USI retaliated and took their first lead of the match by going on a 7-0 run that gave them the 10-4 advantage. The surge was highlighted by three Anderson aces along with a pair of kills from Bednar and sophomore outside hitter Abby Weber (Fishers, Indiana). With a 14-9 lead, the Eagles watched the Lady Tigers come within one after a short 4-0 stretch. Things got dicey after another 4-0 run by TSU took away USI’s lead, 20-18. However, the Eagles stormed back to regain the lead at 23-22 before the Lady Tigers stole it back at 24-23. USI ended the set on a 4-1 stint that tied the match at 1-1. The Eagles earned a match-best 12 kills off 43 total attacks, the most in one set between the two sides.
 
A tough outing for USI gives TSU the 25-10 third-frame win. The Eagles held a 4-3 early lead before the Lady Tigers went on a ridiculous 10-0 run to take the 13-4 advantage. TSU went on to score 12 of the final 18 points to cap off the big victory. The Lady Tigers’ defense held the Eagles to just six kills and only 29 total attacks. Junior outside/right side hitter/setter Katherine Koch (Belleville, Indiana) led the frame with a pair of kills.
 
The final frame ended the same way as the third set with a 25-14 TSU match-sealing victory. The set started with a quick 6-0 Lady Tigers run before a kill from Bednar stopped the surge. After going up 7-2, TSU went on another 6-0 stint that made it a 13-2 advantage. USI was able to get a short 3-0 run off a pair of attacking errors and a Bednar kill before the Lady Tigers tallied five of the next six points to double up on the Eagles, 23-11. USI tallied three straight points before the Lady Tigers ended the night by earning the final two points. The Eagles’ offense struggled in the last set, earning just seven kills and 10 errors off 39 total attacks to make it a negative .077 hitting percentage.
 
Bednar and Anderson led the team with 13 kills each with Weber and sophomore setter Carly Sobieralski (Indianapolis, Indiana) tallying 13 digs each. Koch recorded a team-high three blocks while Anderson earned a match-high four aces. Sobieralski also had a team-high 27 assists to capture her eighth double-double this season and her fourth in the last six matches.
 
USI produced 35 kills, 32 assists, and four aces with 51 digs and five blocks. TSU ended the night with 55 kills, 46 assists, and 12 aces along with 69 digs and 16 blocks. The Lady Tigers’ 16 blocks are the most allowed by the Eagles this season.
 

EVANSVILLE – Following a win in its lone preseason exhibition last Saturday, the University of Evansville women’s basketball team begins the 2022-23 regular season against Eastern Kentucky on Monday evening at 4 PM (CT) in Richmond, Ky.

Evansville and Eastern Kentucky open the 2022-23 season with their fifth meeting in series history with the all-time series tied at two wins each. The Aces and Colonels met last season inside the Ford Center in Evansville as the Aces earned a 67-57 win on Nov. 17, 2022. The Aces opened the 2022-23 campaign last Saturday in the team’s lone exhibition against Roosevelt, capturing a 101-57 win over the Lakers. Six Aces finished in double-figures, led by seniors Abby Feit with 15 points and nine boards and A’Niah Griffin with 15 points and six rebounds.

The Aces opener at EKU starts a string of road games to open the regular season for UE. In its first seven games, Evansville will play five on the road, beginning with EKU on Monday and a trip to No. 4 Iowa on Thursday night in Iowa City.

Evansville returns more than 75% of this scoring from last year, including all-MVC first-team and all-MVC preseason team selection Abby Feit, who led the team in points, rebounds, and minutes per game, three pointers made, steals, and blocks. Joining Feit are returning starters Myia Clark, Anna Newman, and Celine DuPont, while key members Jossie Hudson, A’Niah Griffin, Elly Morgan, and Kodie Myszka also are back for the 2022-23 season.

Aces get 4^th road victory in a row

 SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – Finishing with 19 kills each, Alondra Vazquez and Giulia Cardona led the University of Evansville volleyball team to a 3-1 road victory over Missouri State on Friday evening.  It was the fourth road victory in a row for Evansville.

Vazquez led the Purple Aces with 16 digs and hit .286 in the win while Cardona tallied 11 digs while hitting a solid .319.  Blakeley Freeman had a stellar outing, picking up 13 digs and a kill.  Madisyn Steele and Hannah Watkins recorded eight kills apiece.  Kora Ruff had 54 assists and 9 digs.

Set 1 – MSU 25, UE 23

Laura Ruiz recorded an early service ace to give the Aces a 3-0 at the start.  Missouri State took their first lead at 6-5.  Over the next sequence, neither team would lead by more than two before Evansville changed that pattern.  Up 14-13, UE extended the lead to by a pair and would remain up by three when a kill from Emilee Scheumann made it a 20-17 score.

Following a time out, the Bears stormed back into the thick of it.  Three service aces in a row highlighted a 5-0 run that gave them a 22-20 edge.  Alondra Vazquez picked up two kills to tie it back up at 23-23, but MSU scored the final two points to win the set.

Set 2 – UE 26, MSU 24

Up 1-0 in the match, the Bears came out swinging in game two, jumping out to a 7-2 lead.  Missouri State would extend the lead to 13-5 before leading by as many as nine points at 19-10.  Just when it looked like the Bears were going to cruise to a 2-0 lead, the Aces had other ideas.

Wrapping up the set on a 16-5 run, Evansville stormed back to take a 26-24 win to tie the set.  UE cut slightly into the gap, turning a 20-12 deficit into a 22-19 score with Cardona posting an ace and a kill.  Looking to regain the momentum, Missouri State used a time out but it provided only a temporary fix.  After scoring the first point out of the break to go back up by four, MSU saw Evansville reel off four in a row to tie the game at 23-23.

The Bears would have set point following a UE error, but a kill by Vazquez tied it right back up.  An error by MSU put the lead in the Aces hands before Hannah Watkins had the clinching kill in a 26-24 victory.

Set 3 – UE 25, MSU 20

Twelve ties led to an 18-18 score in the third frame.  Both squads took a 2-point lead with the other fighting back each time.  That pattern changed when Kora Ruff posted a kill that sent the Aces on a 4-0 run.  Cardona also had a kill during that stretch.  Missouri State got back within three at 23-20, but it was Vazquez putting the finishing touches on the set.  Two more kills capped off a 25-20 win that gave Evansville a 2-1 advantage.

Set 4 – UE 25, MSU 19

Three consecutive errors by the Bears turned a 3-3 tie into a 6-3 Aces lead before Cardona added a kill to make it a 9-4 game.  With contributions coming from everywhere, Blakeley Freeman posted a kill in a sequence that made it a 16-7 game.  The lead for the Aces reached as many as 10 points when Madisyn Steele picked up a kill.

MSU rallied late, getting within four points (22-18), but it was Steele coming up clutch once again.  Her perfectly placed service ace landed just inside the line to clinch the 25-19 set win and a 3-1 match victory.  Tomorrow, the Aces are in Carbondale to face Southern Illinois at 5 p.m.

VINCENNES, Ind. – The Vincennes University men’s basketball team picked up a big win Friday night at the P.E. Complex, defeating Malcolm X Community College 106-57 on the first day of the annual Kiwanis Classic.

VU got off to a quick start, grabbing an early four-point lead after sophomore guard Tasos Cook (Columbus, Ohio) scored the first seven points for the Blazers.

Malcolm X responded back in the hostile environment to grab the lead at 15-11.

Vincennes would then take the lead back for good aided by a 13-2 scoring run.

Vincennes would use another pair of double-digit scoring runs to extend their lead to 22 points at the break, heading into the locker room holding a 47-25 advantage.

The Trailblazers continued to build on this lead early in the second half, growing the lead to 34 points with a 14-0 run.

Malcolm X looked to battle back and cut into the deficit late, but a massive 18-0 scoring run put the Trailblazers ahead 93-46, as VU continued to add on to reach the final margin of 106-57.

“I thought we let them be the aggressor a little bit early,” VU Hall of Fame Head Coach Todd Franklin said. “Then Tasos got a little more aggressive going downhill. We stopped letting them play us and we started playing them. Really, once that happened, things turned.”

“I thought Malcolm X came out and played really well early,” Franklin added. “I thought our team kind of took them out of things, more than they were just not able to play. I didn’t think they were bad. The final score might indicate something different, but I think that was more indicative of how we played tonight. Then there is a point where they get broken because they are so far down and we can keep bringing in waves of guys to come at you.”

“But I thought Malcolm X gave us some good resistance early,” Franklin said. “I thought our guys had to take that and then fight it. But overall, I thought most guys played pretty well. We are going to have to play better tomorrow night. Tomorrow night is going to be an extremely physical game and it’s something that this young team has not been through. So, it will be very interesting to see how we handle that. How we handle that will probably determine the outcome.”

“Tonight, was similar to what we had to defend when we played Tuesday, in concept and I thought our guys did okay,” Franklin added. “We got better at handling the ball screen. We finally get some guys that are better at using their hands and pressing those ball screens and beat it instead of letting them play you. That’s just something they are not used to. It’s a whole different thing at this level. When we do it, we’re not bad. But we are going to have to be better than not bad tomorrow night.”

“I thought it was a good effort,” Franklin said. “It’s up and down and we are learning. We are a long way away from where we need to be, but we were able to cut our turnovers down tonight. We had 14 on the game, got a couple late. I thought we probably handled the ball better in the second half until the very end.”