CARBONDALE, ILL. ? Southern Illinois made sure Drake wasn't able to escape Davies Gym with a victory for the second consecutive year on Friday (Oct. 5) as the Salukis registered a 3-1 (30-21, 27-30, 30-21, 30-26) triumph in Missouri Valley Conference volleyball action.
Southern Illinois improved its ledger to 11-6 overall and 3-3 in league action with the win, while the Bulldogs dropped to 5-12 on the campaign, including 2-4 in the MVC following the setback.
The Salukis jumped out to the early advantage in game one and never trailed en route to collecting a 30-21 decision.
In game two, Drake's offense came alive as the Bulldogs overcame a 9-3 deficit with six unanswered tallies to square the game at 15. Southern Illinois pushed ahead by as many as three (21-18), before the Blue and White forged ahead for good in the stanza, 27-26, on a bad set by the Salukis' Brooklyn Robbins and in the process took game two, 30-27.
Southern Illinois responded in games three and four as the Salukis led throughout in securing the final two frames to earn the match victory.
Freshman
Angela Bys (Marion, Iowa/Marion) had a monster night for the Bulldogs as she smashed a match-high 24 kills, while notching a career-best 13 digs for her second career double-double.
Sophomore
Chelsea Lauersdorf (Watertown, Wis./Watertown) equaled sophomore teammate
Emily Madden (Van Meter, Iowa/Adel DeSoto Minburn) for the team lead in double-doubles with six, posting a 45-assist, 10-dig effort. Senior
Samantha Nelson (Ceresco, Neb./Raymond Central) added 10 kills, while Madden and freshman
Alana Wittenburg (Readlyn, Iowa/Wapsie Valley) contributed 13 and 17 digs, respectively.
Southern Illinois garnered 13 kills from Chandra Roberson, while Robbins finished with a 34-assist, 14-dig night.
The Salukis won a tight battle of the stats besting Drake in kills (60-56), assists (52-50), digs (77-72) and blocks (11.0-6.0). The Bulldogs finished the affair attacking the ball at a .106 rate, while Illinois State recorded a .218 hitting percentage.
Drake concludes its two-match road swing on Saturday (Oct. 6) at Evansville. The contest is set to begin at 7:00 p.m.
