The Braves faced a challenging weekend at Renaissance Coliseum, losing matches to both the UIC Flames and Valparaiso Beacons.
The Braves opened their weekend against UIC, where they were swept in three sets: 16-25, 8-25 and 21-25. Sophomore Maria Drapp reflected on the team’s struggles against a tough Flames defense.
“Throughout the UIC match, it was sometimes difficult to get anything going,” said Drapp. “I felt like UIC’s block was very big, and they had a good defense behind it. It was hard to get in a groove offensively.”
On Saturday, the Braves came out with more intensity, taking the Beacons to five sets, 22-25, 25-14, 20-25, 25-18 and 8-15.
“Our team’s approach was to work harder throughout the plays since Valpo typically is a very scrappy defensive team,” Drapp said. “We wanted to be aggressive in transition and switch up our shot selection.”
Drapp highlighted standout performances from Tendai Titley and Vitoria Oliveira.
“Tendai was very aggressive and tallied up a lot of kills by changing up her shots, and Tori did a great job running the slide attack behind the setter,” Drapp said.
Senior Irene Mostardini echoed the team’s growth mindset.
“I kept a very consistent serve receive during both matches, and my defense was strong, especially against Valpo,” Mostardini said. “Energy, effort and believing in it made us win those sets, but we have to work on being more consistent.”
Both players emphasized preparation for the road ahead.
“We need to come into practice with a wanting to work hard and growth mindset,” Drapp said.
“Even though we lost, we definitely had a lot to learn from that game,” Mostardini added.
Bradley looks to bounce back on the road this weekend as they face the University of Northern Iowa and Drake University.
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