Aces have two more home weekends remaining
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Just four home matches remain for the University of Evansville volleyball team with a pair on tap this weekend as the Purple Aces welcome Bradley and Illinois State to Meeks Family Fieldhouse.
UE takes on the Braves on Friday before squaring off against the Redbirds on Saturday evening; both matches begin at 7 p.m.
Mildrelis Rodriguez continues to be a steady force for the Aces, ranking second on the team with 2.89 kills/set and second with 2.70 digs per game. She is one of three current Valley players to have 1,000 kills and 1,000 digs in her career and as of Oct. 15, one of just 13 in the nation. Rodriguez has finished with at least seven digs in 10 of the 11 MVC matches.
Rachel Tam’s torrid pace continued last time out at Loyola as the junior notched 18 kills in 43 tries. Her season total of 402 kills ranks third in the nation while her 431.0 points is seventh in the NCAA. Tam checks in with 4.47 kills per set, a total that remains second in the MVC and 16th in the country.
Allana McInnis has posted 22 or more assists in each of the last seven matches while improving her season average to 7.07 per set. In her first 26 sets this season, she had 3.77 assists/game, but has upped that significantly in the last 39 sets, finishing at 8.5 assists per frame over that span.
Bradley will be the first opponent of the weekend; the Braves come to Evansville with an 18-5 mark while going 8-3 in league action. Erica Haslag leads the Braves with 3.82 kills per set, which is third in the MVC while Yavianliz Rosado heads the Braves defense with 5.69 digs per game, second in the conference.
Illinois State starts the weekend with an 18-5 overall record and are 10-1 through their first 11 league outings. Marissa Stockman is the most accurate hitter in the Valley, checking in at .351 while Stef Jankiewicz leads the league with 11.70 assists per frame.
