KEVIN JENISON
GoSycamores.com
EVANSVILLE, Ind. – The Indiana State volleyball team lived to fight another day as they turned back a determined Evansville Purple Aces team for a five-set Missouri Valley Conference victory Friday in the Carson Center on the campus of the University of Evansville. The 3-2 (25-23, 22-25, 30-28, 15-25, 15-11) victory was Indiana State's sixth win in the last seven games with the Purple Aces.
Morgan Dall led four players into double-digit kills with 16 while Bree Spangler contributed 14, Cassandra Willis 12, and Victoria Swigart 11. Loni Mackinson recorded 53 set assists while Molly Murphy had 32 digs. Willis also led the team in blocks with seven while Thomas and Mackinson had six each.
Indiana State took control early in the deciding fifth set as they opened up a 4-1 lead after two Evansville errors and a Spangler kill. The lead grew to 9-4 after a Willis kill. Evansville fought back and trailed 12-10 on an Ashley Ring kill but the Sycamores responded with kills from Swigart, Dall and Willis to lead 14-10. After Evansville got a point back, the Sycamores closed out the set and the game on a kill by Spangler that gave Indiana State a 15-11 set win and a 3-2 win in the game.
Cassandra Willis had four kills and Morgan Dall four as Indiana State rallied to take the opening set 25-23. The Sycamores trailed by as many as five early in the opening set and played from behind until they caught the Purple Aces at 16 and again at 17. Indiana State briefly had the lead 18-17 but Evansville scored five straight to go up 22-18. The Sycamores rallied from there to go up 24-22 behind the serving of Victoria Swigart who had an ace in the 6-0 run. Evansville staved off set point once but could not do it a second time as a Willis kill sealed the 25-23 opening set win.
Evansville never trailed in the second set although the Sycamores stayed within striking distance. The Purple Aces had a 17-11 lead late in the second set but Indiana State rallied to within three (20-17) on a Bree Spangler kill. Spangler combined with Willis for a block that cut the deficit to two (21-19) and the Sycamore shad it to one (23-21) when Willis and Loni Mackinson combined for a block. However, Indiana State would score just one more point, a kill by Willis, as Evansville held off the Indiana State to take the set win 25-22.
Indiana State started to pull away in a tightly contested third set and built a 12-8 advantage ahead of an Evansville time out. The lead stood at 14-9 on a Mackinson kill and Indiana State maintained the advantage until a late rally by the Purple Aces tied the set at 22. Evansville gained the advantage but could not pull away as each time the Purple Aces took the lead, Indiana State came back. The Sycamores were able to tie the et for the final time at 28 on an Evansville error with the Sycamores taking the lead on a block by Kyla Thomas and Mackinson and scoring the set wining point on a Shannon Murphy service ace.
The Purple Aces jumped out to a 4-0 advantage early in the fourth set and never looked back, taking a 25-15 set victory to even the game at two-sets each.
In other Valley action Friday: Southern Illinois won on the home court over Illinois State 3-1, Wichita State won at Missouri State 3-1, Loyola swept to a 3-0 win at Drake, and Northern Iowa had to hold off Bradley for a 3-2 victory.
Indiana State (13-16 overall and 6-11 in the MVC) will close out the regular season Saturday night by visiting Carbondale, Ill., to take on the Southern Illinois Salukis. First serve is scheduled for 8 p.m. (ET). The Sycamores need a win to keep their playoff hopes alive combined with a Bradley loss.
