UE To Take Part In Purdue Fort Wayne Invitational
 EVANSVILLE, Ind. – With a unique spring season in the books, the University of Evansville volleyball team is set for a more conventional season as the Purple Aces embark on the 2021 fall campaign this weekend.
UE travels to Fort Wayne, Ind. to take part on the Purdue Fort Wayne Invitational. SIU Edwardsville will mark the opener on Friday morning before UE faces Kent State that afternoon and the host Mastodons on Saturday morning. Head coach Fernando Morales is not with the UE squad this weekend as he is coaching the Puerto Rico National Team as they compete for a spot in the 2022 Volleyball World Championship.
Preseason Team
– Alondra Vazquez is regarded as one of the top offensive players in the Missouri Valley Conference and was named to the league’s preseason team in August
– A member of the All-MVC First Team in the spring, Vazquez paced the league with 4.43 kills per set, finishing 16th in the nation
– With an average of 14.13 attacks per set, Vazquez was the national leader while her total of 1,060 attempts was 6th
– Vazquez earned MVC Player of the Week recognition on March 15 after recording 5.57 kills and 4.43 digs in a weekend sweep over Southern Illinois
Record-Breaker
– Finishing the spring with an average of 3.89 kills/set, Melanie Feliciano ranked fourth in the MVC
– A season-high of 25 kills at Missouri State highlighted a strong finish to the season that saw her average 4.47 kills in the final 12 outings
– She recorded 10 or more kills in 19 out of 20 matches and notched 15+ in seven of the last 12 matches
– Defensively, Feliciano chipped in 3.19 digs per set with her season mark of 20 coming at Loyola
Gaining Valuable Experience
– Despite a unique set of circumstances in the spring, UE saw its freshmen gain valuable experience as the team was able to play its entire MVC schedule along with two non-conference contests
– Brook Springer tied the Purple Aces program record with 11 block assists in the 3-2 win over Loyola on February 15 and her final total tied the UE program record, which was set by Meaghan Holmes against UT Martin in 2013
– Springer finished up her inaugural campaign at UE with 1.05 blocks per set, finishing 6th in the MVC
– Starting at Loyola on February 14, Rachel Basinski became Evansville’s primary libero and the move paid immediate dividends – through the first six matches of her freshman season, Basinski finished with 0.95 digs per set, but over the 14 matches of the spring, she registered an average of 4.83
– In the opener against the Salukis, Elise Moeller set her career mark with nine kills before adding seven in the finale…in what was the top series of her freshman campaign, Moeller averaged 2.29 kills while hitting .471
– Moeller finished the spring with 0.95 kills per set – fourth on the squad
Fall 2021 Freshmen
#7 Taya Haffner – Freshman -Â S – Fort Wayne, Ind.
– Played at Carroll High School in Fort Wayne…named to the IHSVCA Players to Watch List in 2020…garnered IHSVCA Academic All-State accolades…member of the 2019 ICGSA Volleyball Class 4A All-State Team…named to Ultra Ankle JVA Watch List in 2017 and 2018.
#12 Giulia Cardona – Freshman – RS – Rosario, Argentina
– Native of Rosario, Santa Fe, Argentina…played at Instituto Politécnico Superior “General San Martinâ€.
#15 Madisyn Steele – Freshman – MB – New Paris, Ind.
– Played at Fairfield HS in New Paris, Ind….earned a spot on the 2020 IHSVCA Players to Watch List…named to the 2020 IHSVCA 2A All-State Team and the IHSVCA 2A All-District squad…recognized for her academic efforts win an IHSVCA Academic All-State honor in 2020.
Blakeley Freeman – Freshman – DS/L – Bloomington, Ind.
– Earned an IHSVCA Academic All-State honor in 2020…3-time captain at Bloomington North HS and was a starter since freshman season…First Team All-Conference player…named a “Player to be Watched†as a junior by JVA and Under Armour.
