PEORIA, ILL. - The five-act play was rife with drama and anticipation as it wasn't until the final act that the Drake volleyball team had captured a come-from behind 3-2 (20-25, 22-25, 25-10, 25-23, 15-10) victory over Bradley on Friday (Nov. 20).

For the Bulldogs it was their third consecutive win and second straight in five sets and improved Drake to 22-10 overall and 10-7 in Missouri Valley Conference action.  The Braves saw their ledger fall to 9-22 on the year and 0-17 in league action.

"Our defensive intensity kept us in the match tonight as our middles were very effective," Bulldog head coach Phil McDaniel commented.  "Bradley came out with a little better focus in the first two sets but we gained momentum and our defensive intensity peaked in the final three sets to help us earn the win."

Bradley took early control of the affair winning the first two sets by scores of 25-20 and 25-22, respectively.

Drake cut the deficit in half attacking the ball at a .371 clip with 14 kills and just one error in the third stanza to register a 25-10 victory.

In the fourth set, the Bulldogs broke open a 23-23 tilt with a kill by junior Alisa DeBerg Roth (Hudson, Iowa/Hudson) and a Bradley attack error to capture the frame, 25-23.

In the deciding fifth stanza, Drake collected eight kills to earn a 15-10 decision.

Senior Chelsea Lauersdorf (Watertown, Wis./Watertown) registered her seventh straight double-double and team-leading 12th of the year with a 34-assist, 14-dig effort.

Redshirt freshman Emily Heffernen (Manchester, Iowa/West Delaware), DeBerg Roth and sophomore Michelle Reidy (Dubuque, Iowa/Wahlert Catholic) chipped in 16, 14 and 10 kills, respectively.  Heffernen also added 10 blocks to post her first career double-double.

Junior Alana Wittenburg (Readlyn, Iowa/Wapsie Valley) recorded a match-high 31 digs, while senior Emily Madden (Van Meter, Iowa/Adel DeSoto Minburn) netted 13.

Drake bettered Bradley in kills (59-52), assists (55-49), hitting percentage (.182-.095) and blocks (18.0-6.0), while the Braves bested the Bulldogs in service aces (5-4) and digs (86-77).

Drake closes out its regular season at No. 21 Northern Iowa on Saturday (Nov. 21) in a 7:00 p.m. match.  The Bulldogs then open their first MVC Championship since 1998 against host Creighton on Thursday (Nov. 26) at 8:00 p.m.