CORALVILLE, Iowa – Drake volleyball closed out its tournament action of the 2024 season with its final matchup at the Kwik Stat Klassic against in-state foe, Iowa on Saturday afternoon. The Bulldogs came away with a convincing 3-1 victory over the Hawkeyes, ending the tournament with a 2-1 record.
 
The Bulldogs got out to a blistering start in the first set behind a 7-0 run, that featured three consecutive kills from Macy Daufeldt, to give them an early 12-3 advantage. Drake never relinquished its lead the rest of period as it increased its lead to 10 at the 17-7 mark. The Hawkeyes made a late push, but the Bulldogs secured the set, 25-20.
 
In the second set, Drake and Iowa traded points early on and reached a stalemate at 10-10. The draw was broken, and the momentum was taken by the Bulldogs off a 4-0 scoring spurt that put them ahead 14-10. Drake remained in control as the period progressed and won their second straight set by a score of 25-20 after kills from Aniyah Davis and Daufeldt secured the win.
 
Drake found itself ahead early in the third at 9-7, but the Hawkeyes responded with a run of their own to jump in front, 14-10. Iowa extended its lead out to seven, but Drake wouldn't back down cutting it to a one-point game using a 3-0 rally spearheaded by kills from Megan Witte and Thea Rotto to make the score 20-19. The comeback and sweep ultimately wasn't completed, however, as the Hawkeyes staved off the Bulldogs down the stretch to win the period, 25-22.
 
The fourth set featured more back-and-forth action between the Bulldogs and the Hawkeyes with the two squads coming together for a 10-10 stalemate again. Drake gained some breathing room though and took the lead at 16-12 after winning six of the next eight points due to more kills from Daufeldt, a Bliss Beck service ace, and a couple Hawkeye errors. The Bulldogs remained steady through the remainder of the period as Drake held Iowa at bay and went on to win the set, 25-20, and the match, 3-1.
 
"This was a really nice win to end our non-conference portion of the schedule," Drake head coach Darrin McBroom said. "To get a win over an in-state opponent, a Big Ten opponent, is a really good sign of things moving forward. Overall, I thought the entire team was outstanding. We really played our brand of Drake volleyball and remained controlled and composed throughout the match. Getting some quality playing time and contributions from Madison Geise and Thea Rotto today gave us a huge boost as well. Hopefully we can open our conference schedule with a win next weekend as we are really looking forward to being at home after being on the road for so long."
 
Daufeldt led all players in the match with 20 kills. She also added 11 digs to her stat line to record her sixth straight game with a double-double. Witte and Ashlynn Kuhn were next in line offensively as they chipped in with 12 and 11 kills. Witte also notched a double-double performance with 11 digs. Addison Beagle and Madison Geise dished out 27 and 22 assists, respectively and each tallied eight digs. Meanwhile, Jada Wills led all players recording 22 digs. Daufeldt and Wills were named to the All-Tournament team for their efforts over the weekend.
 
Drake now looks forward to conference action as it hosts Missouri State (Sep. 27) and Southern Illinois (Sep. 28) for a pair of home-opening matches next weekend.