Aces defeat Leathernecks, 3-2
 Rachel Tam was named the Most Valuable Player while Kerra Cornist and Gabriela dos Santos earned All-Tournament Team accolades as the University of Evansville volleyball team finished off a perfect weekend with a 3-2 win over Western Illinois in the finale of the Leatherneck Invitational.
Tam reset her career mark with 29 kills to lead all players. Mildrelis Rodirugez notched 14 while Kerra Cornist checked in with 10. Gabriela dos Santos clinched her spot on the All-Tournament Team with 26 digs while Rodriguez notched 16. Cecila Thon continued her strong weekend of play, leading the team in assists for the third match in a row, tallying 24. She also had 10 digs.
“We are proud of the fight and resilience of our girls,†Aces head coach Manolo Concepcion said after the match. “They put up a huge effort throughout the entire tournament. The best part is that we have a lot of room to improve and the team is determined to continue to do so.â€
Tonight’s victory did not come easy as Western Illinois opened the night with wins in the opening two sets. The Leathernecks earned a 26-24 win in game one before following it up with a 25-23 triumph in the second. Evansville looked to be in control of the first set, taking a 22-17 lead in a rally that featured a pair of Cornist kills. WIU fought back with a 6-1 run that tied the game at 23-23. A Tam kill put UE in position to win the set, but the Leathernecks punched back before taking the 26-24 win.
Western Illinois played their most dominant set in the second, jumping all the way out to a 16-6 lead. UE fought back with an unbelievable 16-4 run to take a 22-20 lead. Keying that was a 7-0 stretch that saw dos Santos post three service aces in a row. Trailing 22-21, WIU turned the tables with a 4-0 stretch that clinched the set.
The Purple Aces never hung their heads and their efforts paid off with a 27-25 victory in the third stanza. Down 15-14, Evansville scored three in a row thanks to a pair of Tam kills. The Leathernecks made their way back, tying it up at 21-21, but two more kills by Tam and one from Fortuny put UE in position to win the set, up 24-21. The Leathernecks had the answer once again, registering four points in a row to put themselves in position to win the match. Fortunately for UE, a WIU service error tied the set before a Tam kill clinched the 27-25 win.
Game four was another that came down to the final points of the day. Neither team led by more than three tallies and the competitive match led to a 21-21 game. A kill by Tam put the lead back in UE’s hands for good before her 26th of the night forced a fifth set and gave UE a 25-23 win.
The deciding game provided highs and lows for each team. WIU had the early advantage, jumping out to a 6-1 lead. Following a timeout, the Aces responded with five in a row to tie the set at 6-6. Two points later, two Leatherneck errors gave UE a 9-7 lead. The Aces cruised from there, pulling away for a 15-11 win to clinch the 3-0 start to the year.
