MANHATTAN, Kan. – The Drake volleyball team took to the court on Sunday afternoon for its final contest from the Wildcat Classic and fell to the host team Kansas State in straight sets.
The Bulldogs and Wildcats started set one going back-and-forth and traded points until a 7-7 draw after a kill from
Caroline Smith. But all the momentum shifted to Kansas State from that point forward as the Wildcats went on a 7-0 run to go ahead 16-8. Drake responded with a 4-0 burst a few moments later, highlighted by a
Matthea Dalton service ace, to cut the deficit down to 18-14, but the Wildcats were too much in the later stages winning five of the final six points for final frame score of 25-17.
In set two, Kansas State was in control from the jump as it grabbed an early 7-1 advantage over the Bulldogs. By the time the media timeout hit, Drake found itself down double digits, 15-5, with the Wildcats hitting at an efficient clip. Kansas State then wrapped up the set with a 3-0 run to claim the frame, 25-13.
The third set was the closest between Drake and Kansas State, but the Wildcats led the entire way starting with an 8-4 advantage in the early stages. Drake pulled within a point at the 12-11 mark off a
Lisa Melenciano kill, but an immediate 3-0 response from Kansas State pushed the Drake deficit right back to four. The Bulldogs started to make a late push with a 3-0 run of their own which forced K-State to take a timeout, however, the Wildcats cut the momentum after the break and secured the match, 25-20.
"Our team did some good things today against a strong Power Four opponent," Drake head coach
Darrin McBroom. "Lisa had another strong performance offensively and Jasmine did well defensively. We just need to put a few more things together as a team."
Melenciano was the only Bulldog with double digit kills in the match and led Drake with 13. Smith had the next highest kill mark for Drake at eight.
Katie Quick and
Carolyn Maser split assist duties with the duo tallying 17 and 11, respectively. Defensively,
Jasmine Dulan recorded 19 digs to be the team leader for the Bulldogs. Dulan, Melenciano, and Quick were named to the All-Tournament Team for their efforts.
Drake will be back on the court next weekend for another tournament, the Kansas City Klassic, from Kansas City, Missouri. The Bulldogs will go up against Utah Valley, Radford, and Kansas City during their time in KC.
