The Drake University volleyball team begins the Missouri Valley Conference season at home with its annual series against Illinois State and Bradley this weekend at the Knapp Center.
All fans in attendance at the Knapp Center must wear a face mask the entire time they are indoors at the Knapp Center.
The Valley series begins Friday at 6 p.m. when the top two teams in last season's Valley standings meet and continues Saturday at 6 p.m. against Bradley. The Bulldogs return home after having one of the most successful seasons in program history in the spring of 2021 with a second-place finish in the league standings, the program's best finish since 1996.
The Bulldogs are led by reigning MVC Player of the Year Haley Bush who is averaging 3.42 kills per set this season and Bush is one of three returning All-MVC players on the roster along with Emily Plock and Kylee Macke.
The Bulldogs went 3-0 last weekend to win the Jackrabbit Classic with newcomer Mariana Rodrigues earning tournament MVP honors by leading the Bulldogs in their final two wins of the weekend.
In addition to Rodrigues' hitting, Drake's defense held opponents to just .109 hitting and Idaho to just .029. Meanwhile, Drake had its three-best hitting performances of the season at .304, .198 and .327.
The Bulldogs also have the current MVC Freshman of the Week in Ashlynn Kuhn. Kuhn is one of two Bulldogs to rank in the top five of the Valley in blocks as she and sophomore Kacie Rewerts lead a middle that is tops in the Valley with 2.57 blocks per set.
