EVANSVILLE, Ind.- In a four-set thriller, University of Southern Indiana volleyball takes down crosstown rival University of Evansville to win its third straight between the two schools.
Set 1: USI 25, UE 20
The crosstown rivalry started in a back-and-forth fight between the Eagles and Aces, with 11 tie scores in the first set. Junior Ashby Willis led the court with six kills, followed by senior Bianca Anderson with four. The Screaming Eagles maintained a .371 hitting percentage in the first. In the back court, sophomore Audrey Small picked up six digs, followed by senior Keira Moore who had four.
Set 2: USI 25, UE 22
The Screaming Eagles took the lead by the 12th point and maintained it for the rest of the second set. Willis landed six more kills, followed by Anderson and junior Leah Coleman with three each. Freshman Aysa Thomas connected on 11 assists, adding to her 13 from set one. Small had her best set, picking up seven digs.
Set 3: UE 25, USI 23
The Aces started strong, making USI fight back from behind, with 13 tie scores for the third. Evansville took the final lead with two points left. Junior Leah Coleman had her most dominant set, putting down seven kills, while Willis found the court eight times.
Set 4: USI 25, UE 20
USI played their best defense to finish out the match in the fourth. The Eagles had 25 team digs, with everyone on the court picking up at least one, led by Small with five. At the net, USI’s defense put up four blocks, led by Anderson and Coleman, each with two. The offense put together the best hitting percentage of the match in the final set at .417, led by Thomas, who dished out 16 assists.
For the game, three Screaming Eagles finished in double-digit kills, Willis (24), Coleman (18), and Anderson (10). Willis and Coleman’s kills earned them new career highs. Thomas led her offense to a season-high hitting percentage at .349, recording a career-high 53 assists. In the back court, the Eagles out-dug the Aces 72-63, led by libero Small, who finished with 19.
Next up, the Screaming Eagles will take their turn to host Evansville in Liberty Arena on Saturday at 4 p.m. for the first annual “Battle for the Lloyd” match.
