Aces pick up 20th win to advance to second round
 CHICAGO – The first trip to the National Invitational Volleyball Championship started off as an outstanding success for the University of Evansville volleyball team, who defeated Sam Houston by a 3-0 final on the campus of Chicago State University.
With the victory, the Purple Aces clinched win #20 of the season, the first such campaign since 1988 and the sixth time UE has done so in program history. Evansville advances to Friday’s second round, which will begin at 7 p.m. CT against the winner of tonight’s Bradley/Chicago State match.
“Our team played great tonight. Our message throughout the whole week was that we had to go back to our game; we were focusing too much on our opponents,†Aces head coach Fernando Morales said. “Clinching a 20-win season is a great step towards our long-term goals. We look forward to making a run in the NIVC.â€
MVC Freshman of the Year Giulia Cardona led the way with 21 kills while recording 9 digs and 3 aces. An efficient hitting effort saw her finish at .405. Alondra Vazquez earned 18 kills and 9 digs while Melanie Feliciano posted 7 kills and 9 digs. Taya Haffner totaled 42 assists and 8 digs while Blakeley Freeman had the top tally for UE with 13 digs. Sam Houston was led by Catherine Krieger’s 12-kill performance.
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Set 1 – UE 25, Sam Houston 21
Alondra Vazquez recorded five kills in the opening set to help the Aces grab the early advantage. Kills by Giulia Cardona and Melanie Feliciano put UE on top by a 3-1 score to open before Sam Houston came back to tie the set at 8-8. A 6-4 stretch by the Bearkats gave them their first lead at 14-12. Consecutive aces by Cardona put the lead right back in the Aces hands at 15-14 before Sam Houston came back to tie it up at 18-18. A pivotal stretch by Evansville saw them take a 24-19 lead before winning by a 25-21 final.
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Set 2 – UE 25, Sam Houston 21
Once again it was Evansville with the strong start, posting four of the first five points with Cardona and Vazquez adding two kills apiece. The Bearkats got within a pair at 9-7 before UE extended its lead to a high mark of seven points. A 4-0 spurt got things started with Vazuqez adding three more kills before an ace from Taya Haffner made it a 16-9 game. Sam Houston chipped away at the UE lead, cutting the gap to a pair at 19-17, but Evansville countered and it was two more kills from Vazquez that finished off another 25-21 UE win.
Set 3 – UE 25, Sam Houston 21
For the third game in a row, UE had the upper hand in the early going. Kate Tsironis along with Cardona picked up two kills each in a 6-2 run to open the set. In a set that mirrored the first two frames, Sam Houston fought back in the next segment, embarking on a 3-0 run to knot the game at 12-12. In this instance, they were unable to get over the hump to take a lead. Evansville responded with four in a row in a run that would see them score seven out of eight tallies to go up 19-13. Cardona got it started with a kill before Vazquez capped it off with one of her own. The Bearkats never relented and made a final rally to cut the gap to 21-20. It was Vazquez who had the point to get her squad back on track before an ace by Laura Ruiz capped off the third 25-21 decision of the night.
