DES MOINES, IOWA ? In a back and forth affair fitting for a season opener, the Drake volleyball fought valiantly before dropping a 3-2 (32-34, 30-17, 27-30, 30-21, 10-15) decision to UMKC on Tuesday evening (Aug. 28) at the Knapp Center.
The first game was a struggle for both sides as neither team was able to pull away from the other before the Kangaroos finally registered a 34-32 victory. The Bulldogs quickly established momentum in the second stanza and rallied to a 30-17 triumph.
The intermission between the second and third games did little to affect the sides as game three proved to be a barnburner with UMKC netting a 30-27 decision.
As has been their signature, the Bulldogs refused to give into a 2-1 deficit, collecting a 30-21 win in game four to force a deciding game five.
In the final frame, the Kangaroos raced out took a quick lead and then held on for a 15-10 triumph to secure the game and the match.
Drake received strong performances in the contest from sophomore
Emily Madden (Van Meter, Iowa/Adel DeSoto Minburn), senior
Samantha Nelson (Ceresco, Neb./Raymond Central) and freshmen
Mikayla Sims (Waterloo, Iowa/East) and
Angela Bys (Marion, Iowa/Marion) as the quartet registered 19, 14, 13 and 11 kills, respectively.
Senior
Sarah Schuster (Indianola, Iowa/Indianola) paced the way for Drake with a match-high 46 assists. Collecting double-figure digs for the Blue and White was freshman
Alana Wittenburg (Readlyn, Iowa/Wapsie Valley), sophomores
Lindsay Schryver (Williams Bay, Wis./Williams Bay) and
Chelsea Lauersdorf (Watertown, Wis./Watertown) along with Schuster with 19, 14, 13 and 12, respectively.
Caitlin Koenig directed UMKC with a triple-double after a 12-kill, 11-dig, 41-assist performance. Mandy Tipton led all players with 20 digs, while Jamie Hagerman recorded a team-best 13 kills.
Statistically, the Kangaroos won the battle in kills (66-65), assists (55-53), digs (79-76), while Drake bested UMKC in service aces (8-4) and total blocks (14.0-13.0). The Bulldogs attacked the ball at a .178 clip, compared to a .144 hitting mark for UMKC.
Drake returns to the court on Friday (Aug. 31), hosting the Hampton Inn Invitational. Participating teams include; Green Bay, Furman and Florida Atlantic. The Bulldogs commence their tournament play versus Green Bay at 7:30 p.m.
