Aces defeat Bears to even MVC mark

 

EVANSVILLE, Ind. – Playing on its home floor inside Meeks Family Fieldhouse for the third time in five days proved to be a good omen as the University of Evansville volleyball team made it a 3-for-3 homestand with a 3-0 shutout over Missouri State on Tuesday evening.

For just the second time since joining the Missouri Valley Conference in 1994, UE (13-4, 3-3 MVC) has earned three consecutive shutouts over conference opponents.  The other instance came in September of 2006 when Evansville defeated Drake, Illinois State and Indiana State by 3-0 scores.  With the win, the Purple Aces improved to 13-4 on the season, its best start since 2010 when the team won 16 of its first 19 matches.

“We knew since pre-conference about the level we can play,” Aces head coach Fernando Morales explained.  “When conference started, we were playing with too much pressure.  Coming back home gave us the confidence to get our rhythm back again.”

Reigning MVC Player of the Week Melanie Feliciano picked up right where she left off over the weekend, leading everyone with 19 kills.  She added 11 digs while hitting .586.  Giulia Cardona and Alondra Vazquez also finished in double figure kills.  Cardona recorded 17 while Vazquez finished the night with 14.  Another efficient effort saw Cardona hit .486 while Vazquez was excellent defensively, recording 11 digs.  Rachel Basinski and Kate Tsironis also made big-time contributions.  Basinski led the squad with 12 digs, marking her season high, while Tsironis picked up a career-high six block assists.  Taya Haffner continues to be among the top setters in the NCAA, picking up 39 assists in just three frames.

Missouri State (13-6, 4-3 MVC) was led by Azyah Green, who had 8 kills while Amelia Flynn led all players with 13 digs.

Set 1 – UE 25, Missouri State 21

Missouri State scored four of the opening six points of the night before Evansville got rolling to take a 7-6 lead.  With the Aces up by a tally of 11-10, Alondra Vazquez helped UE add to its lead, recording a pair of service aces in a 5-0 stretch that gave UE a 16-10 lead.  The Bears made it interesting down the stretch, cutting the deficit to 23-20 before Melanie Feliciano had the clinching kill in a 25-21 win.

Set 2 – UE 25, Missouri State 19

The Bears once again had some success early on, opening the set with a 9-6 advantage thanks to a Maddy Bushnell kill.  It was the serving for the Purple Aces that once again helped them jump in front.  This time it was an ace from Laura Ruiz that was part of a 7-1 run that gave UE a 13-10 lead.  Missouri State stayed within striking distance, trailing by just a pair (18-16) before Evansville pulled away late.  Three kills by both Giulia Cardona and Vazquez constituted the Aces final six points as they won by a final of 25-19 to grab a 2-0 lead.

Set 3 – UE 25, Missouri State 15

It was all Aces in the third set.  After falling behind by a 2-0 score, Evansville reeled off eight points in a row and never looked back.  Once again, it was thew serving of Vazquez that anchored the run.  Cardona added three more kills while Feliciano added a pair.  The run was capped off by Vazquez’ third ace of the match.  MSU got as close as three points, including a 13-10 score, but Evansville responded with a 4-0 run to go up 17-10.  From there, the Aces cruised to a 25-15 victory and a 3-0 match win.

Next up for UE is a weekend trek through Iowa.  The Aces take on UNI on Friday evening before traveling to Drake on Saturday.

 Aces finish in 16^th place

 

JONESBORO, Ark. – In the final day of the Bubba Barnett Intercollegiate, it was Carson Parking posting the low round for the University of Evansville to improve his spot in the final standings at RidgePointe Country Club.

Parker was the second-highest finisher for the Purple Aces, tying for 64^th place with a 3-round tally of 234.  He improved in each round of the tournament, going from an 84 to a 77 before a 73 on Tuesday.  His score was tied for UE’s second spot with Michael Ikejiani. He also had his low round of the event in the final 18, carding a 76.

Leading the way for the Aces was Henry Kiel.  Another solid day saw him post a 74 to finish the tournament in a tie for the 44^thspot.  His low round of the weekend was a 73 in Monday’s second round.

Isaac Rohleder and Dallas Koth rounded out the UE performers as each completed the contest with a 242.  Rohleder shot an 80 in Tuesday’s round while Koth posted an 86.  Evansville came home 16^th in the final standings.  The Aces finished seven strokes in front of Eastern Illinois while their march for a top 15 came up short, finishing nine behind Central Arkansas.

Arkansas State added to its lead, defeating its nearest competition in the team standings by 21 strokes.  ASU recorded an 858 with Oral Roberts taking second with a final tally of 879.  Loyola’s total of 881 strokes was good for third place.

Jack Madden, who played as an individual for Arkansas State, was the medalist.  He fired off a 6-under 66 in the second round on Monday and followed that up with a 3-under 69 on Tuesday to score a 211.  He defeated Dustin Hasley from ORU by one stroke.

On November 8-9, the Aces will complete the fall season with a trip to Huntsville, Alabama.

EVANSVILLE, Ind.—Pairings were released for the 2021 Midwest Region Volleyball Crossover, which takes place this Friday and Saturday at the Hammond Sportsplex & Community Center in Hammond, Indiana. This year’s conference seedings were based off the Division II Massey Ratings.

University of Southern Indiana Volleyball enters as the No. 4 seed from the Great Lakes Valley Conference and will take on the Great Midwest Athletic Conference’s No. 6 seed, Trevecca Nazarene University, and No. 3 seed, Ashland University, Friday at 11 a.m. and 6 p.m., respectively. The Screaming Eagles finish the weekend Saturday at 12:45 p.m. when they take on the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athlete Conference’s No. 4 seed, Grand Valley State University.

This year’s Midwest Region Crossover, which is the largest collegiate volleyball tournament in the nation, pits 15 GLVC teams against 12 institutions representing the GMAC and 11 programs from the GLIAC. The 2020 Crossover was not played due to COVID-19 and the cancellation of the NCAA II Volleyball Championship.

The Midwest Region Crossover was created in 2008 as a tournament between the GLVC and the GLIAC, with the GMAC joining the fray in 2015.

USI holds a record of 20-16 all-time at the Crossover, including a 14-4 mark in the last six years. GLVC teams went a combined 28-20 at the 2019 Crossover, while the GLVC holds a .605 winning percentage (316-236) since the Crossover’s inception, and a .615 mark (142-89) since the GMAC joined the competition.

The Eagles (11-6, 5-4 GLVC) enter this weekend’s competition looking to snap a two-match skid after falling in a five-set, three-hour-long marathon at Rockhurst University last Friday and a three-set upset at Southwest Baptist University the following day.

Trevecca Nazarene enter this week’s competition with an 11-7 overall mark and a 4-5 record in GMAC play, while Ashland is 9-9 overall and 8-1 in the GMAC. Grand Valley State is 9-7 overall and 5-3 in the GLIAC.

Following this week’s competition, which can go a long way in determining at-large berths into the NCAA Division II Midwest Region Tournament, the Eagles return to GLVC play October 22 when they visit the University of Illinois Springfield. USI returns to Screaming Eagles Arena October 29 to host William Jewell College.