The women’s volleyball team is now undefeated in November.
The Braves won their first match of the season by sweeping Evansville in three sets on Saturday after they were swept in three sets against Southern Illinois University (SIU) Friday.
Sophomore Kelsey Cave got into double digits in kills for the third time in six matches, tallying a career-high of 13 against the Salukis. However, SIU proved too much for the Braves, winning 25-18, 25-10, 25-22 in the three sets. Junior Lea Sack and sophomore Melissa Hoerber were the two Braves with double figure digs, with 14 and 10 respectively.
Taylor Pippen led the Salukis with 11 kills, six blocks and a .476 hitting percentage on the evening.
In Saturday’s contest against Evansville, the team’s fortunes turned around as they notched their first win of the season over the Purple Aces.
“It feels great to reap the benefits of all the preparation we put into this,” coach Jenny Mauer said. “Because we have been fighting all along and for all of the things to collectively happen and go together, it feels nice.”
Senior Madison Kamp led the Braves with 13 kills, matching a career best, and freshman Jamie Livaudais added 12 kills of her own. Sack contributed to the win with 17 digs and eight assists as the Braves held the Purple Aces to a .092 attack percentage. Sack’s performance moved her to 30th at Bradley on the all-time career digs list, passing 2006 graduate Ashley Vance with 757.
Senior Ashley Ring and freshman Genesis Miranda led Evansville with 11 kills each, but it wasn’t enough as the Braves swept all three sets, winning 27-25, 25-22, 25-22.
Maurer said that it was a bit of relief to get the first win but also something they know they can build on.
“We have focused all season on getting better every day,” Maurer said. “It’s all about the steps and process of improving each day and every game. It’s a game of momentum and with rally scoring, it’s difficult, but you have to work through those times.”
Junior outside hitter Jessie Tulacka said that the players are happy the results finally showed on the court.
“It’s something that has been coming and that we’ve been working towards,” Tulacka said. “We’ve been working and evolving as players and the success from all of the hard work feels great.”
Maurer noted her team’s never-say-die attitude showed just how hard the team has worked, despite what its record shows.
“The bouncing back, the resiliency, and the ability to come away with a win in the Missouri Valley Conference is a testament to the work our team has done,” Maurer said. “It would’ve been easy to throw in the towel. It’s not reflected in our record, but they’ve been fighting, and they earned it.”
The Braves open up their final road swing of the 2014 season tonight. The team will travel to Terre Haute, Indiana to face Indiana State at 6 p.m. Tomorrow, the team faces off against I-74 Rival Illinois State at 7 p.m. before returning to Peoria for their final three home games of the season next week.
