FULLERTON, Calif. – The Drake University volleyball team began its 2017 season with a pair of wins Friday at the Fullerton Titan Tournament. The Bulldogs opened the day with a 3-1 win against Bryant followed by a 3-2 victory over the host, Cal State Fullerton, in the evening.
The Bulldogs' season-opening 3-1 win came by set scores of 13-25, 25-20, 25-16, 25-18 as the team stormed back behind Kyla Inderski's (Urbandale, Iowa) 18 kills on 53 attempts with three blocks. Freshman Emily Plock (Altoona, Iowa) added 11 kills and hit .321 in her collegiate debut while Oklahoma transfer Cathryn Cheek (Coppell, Texas) recorded a double-double with 10 kills and 11 digs in her first game in the Blue & White.
Paige Aspinwall (Maple Grove, Minn.) had 30 assists while Courtney Morehead (Bellevue, Neb.) had 26 digs in the win.
After dropping the first set, Drake never trailed in the second set and rattled off four-straight points to even the match. The Bulldogs used a 7-0 run behind Morehead's serving in the third set to cruise to the 25-16 win. In the fourth and final set, the Bulldogs trailed, 15-17, before rallying for nine-straight points, again on Morehead's serving, to take a 24-17 lead before closing the match on an Inderski kill to take the set, 25-18, and the match, 3-1.
In the nightcap, Drake prevailed by set scores of 25-20, 20-25, 18-25, 25-9 and 15-11. Plock led the Bulldogs with 18 kills on 39 attempts and four blocks while Cheek added another double-double with 13 kills and 14 digs. Elle Tubbs (Clinton, Iowa) led a strong defensive effort at the net with seven blocks.
Drake fell behind in the match, 2-1, but the Bulldogs took the fourth set in convincing fashion by a 25-9 margin. The Bulldogs hit .300 in that set with six kills from Plock. Drake scored seven-straight points to open the set and then closed it on an 11-2 run to force a fifth set.
With the fifth set tied at 8-8, Drake reeled off four-straight points to take a lead they would not surrender in prevailing, 15-11, to win the match, 3-2.
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The Bulldogs return to the court Saturday, Aug. 26, for the second day of the Fullerton Titan Tournament. Drake will face Fairleigh Dickinson at 4 p.m. CDT followed by a 9:30 p.m. CDT contest against UC Riverside.
