Feliciano paces the MVC in kills once again

 

ST. LOUIS – A great start to Missouri Valley Conference play saw Melanie Feliciano earn MVC Freshman of the Week honors for the third time in four weeks when she averaged 5.75 kills per set to lead the University of Evansville to a weekend split.

“Melanie does not act or play like a freshman,” Purple Aces coach Fernando Morales said.  “She keeps getting better and better every day and it is not by chance – she has worked for it.”

Aside from her kill tally, Feliciano led the team hitting.279 in the two matches in Iowa.  In the opener against the Panthers, Feliciano led the team with 22 kills and two block assists.  She added 14 digs as the Aces gave the Panthers all they could handle in a 3-1 match.

On Saturday, Feliciano hit an impressive .389 with 24 kills in 54 tried to lead Evansville to a 3-1 road win over Drake.  She added nine digs, an ace and block.  Her season total of 4.84 kills/game has her back in front in the MVC ahead of a tie between teammate Rachel Tam and Karlie Taylor of UNI.

Feliciano was the league’s Freshman of the Week on two other occasions in 2019 – September 9 and 16.

Aces improve to 11-3 and 2-1 in the Valley

In an epic matchup inside Meeks Family Fieldhouse, the University of Evansville volleyball team took down Illinois State by a 3-2 final on Monday evening.

With the score tied at 13-13 in the fifth set, Evansville (11-3, 2-1 MVC) scored the final two points to clinch one of the top wins in school history.  It marked UE’s fourth win against Illinois State (9-6, 2-1 MVC) in 51 tries and was the Aces first triumph against the Redbirds since October 8, 2010.  Evansville’s 11-3 start to the year is its best since 2011 and the 2-1 Valley start is the best since 2010.

“This is a great victory for our girls, we have talked so much about playing the MVC schedule and beating two teams in a row that make it to the conference tournament almost every year,” Aces coach Fernando Morales said.  “Illinois State is a team that was fighting for a spot in the top 25, so this is a big win for us.  This team keeps amazing me and they want to keep getting better.  They know they have a lot more work to do and that is good news.”

For the third time in as many league games, Melanie Feliciano had a 20-kill outing.  She recorded 20 along with nine digs and four block assists.  Alondra Vazquez had 13 while Rachel Tam finished with 10.  The Valley’s leading libero Gabriela Macedo posted 21 digs while one of the top setters in the nation – Allana McInnis – tallied 41 assists and nine digs.  Freshman Hannah Watkins played a pivotal role, adding seven block assists and one solo block.

Evansville took its first lead in the opening set on an Allana McInnis kill that made it a 4-3 game.  The Redbirds would respond with a 6-0 stretch that gave them a 10-5 advantage.  They extended their lead from there and finished with a 25-13 win.

Melanie Feliciano opened the second set with a pair of kills to give UE an early 2-0 edge, but the Redbirds took their first lead at 3-2 before pushing it out to 11-8.  The Aces fought right back, tying it up at 11-all on a Gabriela Macedo ace before opening up a 15-13 lead on consecutive ISU errors.  Illinois State tied it back up, but it was another ace that put UE back in front when Alondra Vazquez had her first of the night to give UE a 19-17 lead.  Feliciano added a kill as the lead extended to four at 21-17.  Illinois State made one more run, getting within one before Evansville rebounded to tie the match on the strength of a 25-22 win.

“We knew we played our worst set of the season in the first.  If they would beat us with us playing our game, we will hold our heads up,” Morales explained.  “Once we got through that set and felt like we could win the match, everything changed.”

Building off the momentum from their win in the second set, the Aces jumped out to a 7-1 lead in the third.  A Macedo ace made it a 3-0 game before an ace by Cecilia Thon capped off the run.  After ISU reeled off three in a row, the Aces showed their muscle once again, notching three in a row of their own with Hannah Watkins posting a kill and block to make it a 10-4 game.

The Aces did not stop there.  An ace from Feliciano and double block by McInnis and Watkins pushed the lead out even more to 12-4.  Evansville’s lead reached as many as nine points (15-6) before the Redbirds rallied to get within five at 21-16.  That is as close as it would get as UE fended off the challenge for a 25-19 win and a huge 2-1 lead in the contest.

Gabriela Macedo helped the Aces take another early lead when her back-to-back service aces made it a 5-2 game.  Illinois State regained its composure and picked up their first lead at 9-8.  Evansville quickly came back and took a 14-12 lead on consecutive Tam kills, but ISU wrestled the lead back, going up 21-16 on a big 6-0 run.  McInnis ended the stretch with a kill, but ISU tied the match, winning by a 25-21 score.

In the fifth game, ISU jumped out to a 4-1 lead, but the Aces cut the deficit to 5-4 on a block assist by Hannah Watkins and Vazquez.  Illinois State retook a 3-point edge at 7-4 before the Aces rallied once again.  Kills from Tam and Vazquez knotted it at 7-7 before ISU jumped back in front, 10-7.  The resilient Aces squad never gave up.  An amazing rally that saw 12 possessions saw UE pick up a hard-earned point.  Their efforts paid off when an ace by Vazquez put UE in front, 11-10.  With the score tied at 13-13, an ISU error put the Aces in front before the Aces clinched on another Redbird attack error, clinching the evening with a 15-13 triumph.

“The rally in the fifth set was a lot of fun to watch,” Morales continued.  “Before the match, I told our team we will win the long rallies.  If we keep rallies long, we will be in best position to win and that is what happened.”

This weekend, the Aces remain at home beginning with a match against Valparaiso on Friday at 6 p.m.  On Saturday, UE welcomes Loyola to Meeks Family Fieldhouse for a 5 p.m. contest.

The University of Southern Indiana women’s soccer team scored four times in the first half and cruised to a 6-0 victory over the University of Missouri-St. Louis Sunday afternoon at Strassweg Field. The Screaming Eagles go to 5-2-0 overall and is 3-2-0 GLVC, while UMSL is 1-6-0 overall, 1-4-0 GLVC.

USI junior forward Taylor McCormick (Rapid City, South Dakota) started the scoring early for the Eagles, heading in the first tally of the match at 6:45. McCormick picked up her first goal off a cross from junior forward Audrey Andrzejewski (St. Charles, Missouri).

The Eagles scored their next three goals within five minutes, beginning junior defender Madelyne Juenger (Columbia, Illinois) converting a penalty kick at 21:42 for a 2-0 lead. Junior midfielder Sunny Lehman (Evansville, Indiana) increased the lead to 3-0 two minutes later at 23:39 with her second goal of the season off of a pass from senior midfielder Emilie Blomenkamp (Smithton, Illinois).

USI finished its scoring barrage at 28:30 sophomore midfielder Lyndsee Monac (New Brighton, PA) posted her first tally of the season off of a double-assist by Blomenkamp and Lehman.The 4-0 advantage would roll through the intermission.

In the second half, USI would wait until the 78:39 mark to increase the lead when junior forward Maggie Winter (St. Louis, Missouri) and freshman midfielder Jill DiTusa (St. Charles, Illinois) converted penalty kicks one minute apart. Winter picked up USI’s fifth goal at 78:39, while DiTusa finished the scoring at 79:39.

Between the posts, freshman goalkeeper Maya Etienne (Midland, Michigan) and junior goalkeeper Skylar Brant (Plymouth, Michigan) combined for the shutout. Etienne got the win after making six saves, while Brant made two saves in her season debut.

The Eagles are on the road next four games, beginning with Southwest Baptist University Friday at 3:30 p.m. in Bolivar, Missouri, and Drury University October 6 at noon in Springfield, Missouri. The USI-Southwest Baptist match-up will be the first meeting between the two programs all-time and in GLVC play.

Drury holds an 8-6-0 advantage in the all-time series, but USI has won the last three matches, including the last two at Strassweg Field, 5-0 in 2017 and 3-1 in 2018.