The Basics
Drake volleyball's historic 2022 season will come to an exciting conclusion tomorrow in the NIVC Championship. The Bulldogs will host Boston College from the Atlantic Coast Conference on Wednesday, Dec. 14 at 6 p.m. with the NIVC crown up for grabs.
NIVC Recap
Drake's NIVC journey has added to the Bulldogs' historic season. The Dogs opened NIVC play with a pair of neutral site matches in Wichita, Kan. Drake was nearly eliminated by Weber State in a five-set thriller but found a way to pick up the program's first-ever postseason win. The Bulldogs then bounced back with a sweep of Grand Canyon to reach the semifinals. Drake's postseason march continued with another sweep of Pacific in their first-ever home postseason victory.
Boston College's trip to Des Moines will be their first road journey of the 2022 postseason. The Eagles have picked up all four NIVC wins at home. Boston College opened the NIVC with a pair of 3-0 sweeps over Buffalo and St. John's. The Eagles then took down Xavier in a five-set quarterfinal bout before beating Southern Miss 3-1 in the semifinal round.
One for the History Books
Drake has put together an incredible 2022 season. After some early stumbles, the Bulldogs rolled through Missouri Valley Conference play with 15 wins in 16 matches to end the regular season. Drake's 30 wins are the most in a single season in program history.
Freshman Phenom
Bulldog setter
Addison Beagle has had a sensational debut season. The Liberty, Mo. native leads Drake with 1,562 assists, the most of any freshman in Division I women's volleyball and a new single-season Bulldog record.
The 2022 MVC Freshman of the Year also leads Drake with 41 service aces and has recorded 316 digs on the defensive side of the net.
Local Legend
Haley Bush has been Drake's shining star during the 2022 season. The senior outside hitter was named MVC Player of the Year for the second time in her career.
While falling among the Bulldog leaders for digs (313), blocks (54), and aces (25), Bush paces the team with 504 kills, a single-season program record. She is the only player in Drake history to surpass the 500-kills mark.
Net in Her House
Drake boasts not only a potent offense but also a stifling defensive lineup. The Bulldog defense is led by front row phenom
Kacie Rewerts. The junior middle blocker led the MVC during the regular season and is currently tied for fourth nationally with 175 total blocks this season. She also ranks 18th in Division I volleyball with an average of 1.40 blocks per set.
In the Bulldogs' quarterfinal win over Pacific, Rewerts logged eight block assists to eclipse the 300 career block assists mark.
Hometown Team
Another layer to Drake's exceptional season came in the friendly confines of the Knapp Center including their NIVC quarterfinal victory over Pacific (12/8). In 10 home matches during the 2022 campaign, the Bulldogs won all 10 and dropped just two sets. Eight of Drake's 19 sweeps have come at home.
Scouting Boston College
Boston College enters the final week of their 2022 season with a 23-13 overall record. The Eagles also posted a 7-11 mark in ACC action this season. BC started their year on a hot streak winning their first 10 matches of the 2022 season. They saw a few struggles once ACC play began but did enough down the stretch to qualify for the NIVC.
The Eagles are led offensively by Izzy Clavenna, the only player to record at least 300 kills with that exact figure. BC does utilize a diverse offensive attack, though, as four other Eagles have logged over 225 kills. The Boston College offense is coordinated by setters Grace Penn and Sophia Lambros with 818 assists and 509 assists, respectively. Lambros has also been deadly on the service line with 43 aces.
Defensively, Anna Murphy's 507 digs lead the Eagles followed by by 215 by Penn. At the net, Julia Haggerty and Kate Brennan have been excellent defenders with 151 blocks and 135 blocks, respectively.
Like Drake, Boston College is enjoying its best season in program history. The Eagles' head coach, Jason Kennedy, recently set the school record for most career wins. In his five years leading BC, Kennedy has produced an 81-69 record.
Wednesday's match featuring Drake and Boston College will be the first-ever meeting between the two teams and just Drake's second all-time match against an ACC opponent. The Bulldogs' one previous ACC tilt came in a 3-0 loss to Maryland in 1997.
