"That was a really good win," said Drake head coach Phil McDaniel. "Before the match we talked about making sure we carried over the momentum from last weekend."

Drake hit the ball at a .248 clip led by sophomore middle blocker Michelle Reidy (Dubuque, Iowa/Wahlert Catholic) with 10 kills and one error on 20 attempts for a .450 percentage and freshman middle blocker Emily Heffernen (Manchester, Iowa/West Delaware) with nine kills and one error on 15 attempts for a .533 percentage. Junior outside hitter Alisa DeBerg Roth (Hudson, Iowa/Hudson) added eight kills for the Bulldogs.

Senior setter Chelsea Lauersdorf (Watertown, Wis./Watertown) collected a team-high 28 assists, while junior libero Alana Wittenburg (Redlyn, Iowa/Wapsie Valley) led the way with 16 digs. Senior outside hitter Emily Madden (Van Meter, Iowa/Adel DeSoto Minburn) added five kills and seven digs and Heffernen had a team-high five blocks.

Drake outmatched UMKC in kills (38-31), attack percentage (.248-.056), assists (33-30), service aces (4-1) and blocks (7-3). The Kangaroos held a slight advantage in digs, 47-43.

Drake opens Missouri Valley Conference play, hosting UNI and Bradley Friday and Saturday, respectively. Each match is scheduled to begin at 7 p.m.

"We have got to pick up the intensity as we enter MVC play Friday," noted McDaniel. This is the second half of the season for us and is what will determine whether we go to Omaha at Thanksgiving this year."