EVANSVILLE, IND. - The Bulldogs entered this weekend knowing that only two matches remained on their 2006 schedule. The challenge set before them during the week of practice focused on a one goal, to win their final two contests. Drake is well on its way to achieving this goal following a 3-2 (19-30, 30-27, 30-25, 23-30, 15-13) victory over Evansville on Friday (Nov. 17).
The triumph for the blue and white helped Drake improve to 7-22 overall, including 3-14 in the Missouri Valley Conference. The loss may have dealt a stinging blow to the Purple Aces chances of making the league tournament as Evansville dropped to 12-16 on the campaign and 6-11 in the MVC.
"Tonight was a great team effort for us, we had a goal to win our final two matches and with the win tonight we are halfway there," Bulldog head coach Amy Farber Knowles said. "We had one of our better matches all season and I was proud of our defensive efforts along with our serving. We served exceptionally well and were effectively able to take them out of their game plan."
After falling in game one by a count of 30-19, Drake rallied in the second stanza behind a .189 hitting percentage to square the match, 30-27. The Bulldogs then followed their performance in the second frame with a 30-25 decision to go up two games to one. The Purple Aces didn't go down without a fight as the home team struck the ball at a .200 clip in the fourth game to secure a 30-23 victory and force a winner-take-all game five.
In the deciding frame, the blue and white pushed their way out to a 13-7 advantage, as a win appeared to be in the cards. Not a team for the faint of heart, Drake was able to withstand a furious Evansville rally to record a 15-13 triumph to record its seventh victory of the season.
Senior
Liz McNulty (Roosevelt) directed the Bulldogs in triumph as she registered a match and career-high 20 kills to go along with 17 digs, one shy of equaling a career best. Senior
Eve Johnson (Council Bluffs, Iowa) added her team-leading eighth double-double with a 19-kill, 18-dig effort while fellow senior
Megan Veltman (Racine, Wis.) contributed 17 kills. Joining Johnson in the double-double parade was junior
Samantha Nelson (Ceresco, Neb.) with 16 digs and 11 kills and junior
Sarah Schuster (Indianola, Iowa), who chipped in a team-best 22 digs to go along with a match-high 62 assists. Senior
Beth Kranske (Fort Collins, Colo.) equaled a personal season-best with 18 digs. Megan Spurlock led four Evansville players in double-figure kills with 15.
Despite only striking the ball at a .108 clip as compared to Evansville, who posted a .158 hitting percentage, the Bulldogs won the battle of kills (76-61), assists (72-58), digs (101-96) and service aces (9-4), while being outblocked, 15-9.
The finale to the 2006 campaign for Drake is Saturday (Nov. 18), as the Bulldogs face Southern Illinois in a 7:00 p.m. match.
