(RV) Missouri State Win 29th-Straight MVC Match In Win Over Valpo

MATCH STATS

• (RV) Missouri State def. Valparaiso, 3-1 (25-21, 22-25, 25-18, 25-19)
• Missouri State improves to 21-5, 13-0 Missouri Valley; Valparaiso drops to 13-12, 5-7 Missouri Valley
• Springfield, Missouri
• Attendance: 977
• Box score

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – To cap off their second-straight undefeated October, Missouri State fought off a tough effort from Valparaiso in a four-set victory (25-21, 22-25, 25-18, 25-19) Monday evening. It was MSU’s 14th-straight victory this season, the seventh-longest streak in school history and the longest for MSU since 1983. The match also marked the first time these two teams have met as MVC opponents.

The Bears were led offensively, once again, by Lily Johnson. She notched her fourth 20-20 match of the season, a single-season school record, with 21 kills and 22 digs. Aubrey Cheffey matched her career-high with 17 kills, and did so without a hitting error, hitting .486 on the evening. Lynsey Wright added 14 kills for the Bears. Daniele Messa added a double-double of her own, with 41 assists, 20 digs and 3 aces. Libero Emily Butters almost had a double-double of her own with a match-high 24 digs on the evening to go along with 9 assists. Butters also moved to second place in school history with 1,719 digs.

Valpo was led offensively by Katherine Carlson, the only double-digit kill provider for the Crusaders, with 10 kills and added 13 digs for a double-double. Freshman setter Brittany Anderson had a double-double of her own, adding 38 assists and 10 digs. Freshman libero Rylee Cookerly led the team with 23 digs. Taylor Graboski blocked a match-high 6 balls.

Prior to the match, Valpo led the nation in digs, but was outdug by Missouri State, 92-83. The Bears had at least 22 digs in each of the four sets, and the tone was set for their defensive effort with a 16-2 run to cap off the first set, overcoming a 19-9 deficit. The Bears also won the small battles in kills (65-45), aces (7-3) and hitting percentage (.215-.153).

PRESS RELEASES

Courtesy of Missouri State Athletics

SPRINGFIELD — Missouri State finished the month of October without a loss for the second consecutive season after a 3-1 (25-21, 22-25, 25-18, 25-19) victory over Valparaiso Monday evening at Hammons Student Center in the first meeting between the schools as Missouri Valley Conference rivals.

The Bears (21-5, 13-0 MVC) extended their overall winning streak to 14 matches, tying for the seventh-longest in school history and third-best since 1983, while matching the fifth-longest streak in conference history with their 29th consecutive Valley win.

Missouri State had at least 22 digs in every set and out-dueled the nation’s leader in that category by a final 92-83 count as Emily Butters (24), Lily Johnson (22) and Daniele Messa (20) all reached 20 digs in the same match for the second time this season. Butters also surpassed Ashley Mason for the No. 2 spot on MSU’s career digs list with 1,719.

Sophomore Aubrey Cheffey equaled her career high with 17 kills, doing so on 35 swings without an error, while Lily Johnson led all players with 21 kills for her fourth 20-kill, 20-dig match of 2017, an MSU single-season record.

The Bears made a miraculous comeback to win the first set, closing on a 16-2 run after trailing 19-9. Cheffey had three kills and a block in a 9-0 spurt for a 19-18 deficit, and gave MSU the lead for good with another kill for 21-20.

Valparaiso (13-12, 5-7) led for the majority of the second set, breaking it open with a 5-0 run to lead 15-9 and extending the margin to 22-14 before the Bears got as close as 24-22. The third set featured six ties and five separate runs of 3-0 or better by the time MSU led 13-10, and Cheffey swatted four kills after MSU reached 15 points to help the Bears pull away from 15-14 to the 25-18 final.

The Crusaders led 16-13 in the third set when the Bears turned the momentum, beginning with back-to-back aces from Emelie Orlando for an 18-17 lead. Lynsey Wright followed with two of her 14 kills to make it a 4-0 run, and Lauren Boone added three kills during MSU’s closing 4-1 run.

Messa added 41 assists and three aces, and Butters narrowly missed a double-double with a career-high nine assists. The Bears hit .215 compared to .153 for Valpo and finished leads of 65-45 in kills and 7-3 in aces.

Courtesy of Valpo Athletics

The Valparaiso University volleyball team stood strong with a showdown against MVC leader Missouri State on Monday evening in Springfield, Mo., but in the end, the Bears emerged with a 3-1 (25-21, 22-25, 25-18, 25-19) victory. Missouri State entered the match just outside the top-25 in the latest AVCA national poll.

How It Happened

• With the score tied 7-7 in the first set, the Crusaders went on a big run to look to take control, scoring 12 of the next 14 points to go ahead 19-9. Junior Katherine Carlson (Lake Orion, Mich./Notre Dame Prep) picked up three kills and a block during the run, while redshirt junior Allison Ketcham (Mishawaka, Ind./Marian) recorded a pair of kills as well.
• But the Bears answered in kind, scoring the next nine points to close to within 19-18 before a kill from freshman Jaclyn Bulmahn (McCordsville, Ind./Mt. Vernon) slowed the MSU run. The Bears scored four straight to take the lead, and while a Ketcham kill brought Valpo back within 22-21, MSU scored the final three points of the set.
• The second set played out much like the first, as with the Crusaders holding a narrow 10-9 lead, they seized control with five consecutive points to pull ahead 15-9. Later in the set, a three-point spurt which included kills from Carlson and junior Lizzie Zaleski (Oak Lawn, Ill./Marist) pushed the Valpo lead to eight points at 22-14.
• Much like in the first set, MSU would rally, scoring six of the next seven points to close within 23-20. A kill from senior Taylor Graboski (Upper Sandusky, Ohio/Upper Sandusky) gave Valpo set point at 24-20, and on their third attempt, the Crusaders would even the match on a second-touch attack by freshman Brittany Anderson (East Chicago, Ind./Bishop Noll).
• Valpo led early in the third set at 9-7 before a 6-1 run from the Bears gave them a 13-10 lead. The Crusaders closed to within one point twice and were still within two at 17-15 before MSU reeled off seven in a roll to seize control.
• After trailing early in the fourth set, Valpo took a 12-9 lead with a four-point spurt which included a pair of blocks and a service ace from Ketcham. The Crusaders led by three points on four different occasions, but were unable to push the lead to four points, and with the score 17-15, the Bears scored 10 of the match’s final 12 points.

Inside the Match

• Missouri State was the last MVC opponent which the Crusaders faced for the first time this season.
• Valpo was facing a Bears squad which entered the week placed second among the others receiving votes in the AVCA weekly top-25 poll.
• The Crusaders limited Missouri State to just .146 hitting with 30 kills over the first two sets, but the Bears tallied 35 kills on .294 hitting over the final two frames.
• Missouri State ended the match with a 65-45 advantage in kills. The Crusaders did force 26 attack errors from the Bears, 10 of which were blocks – led by a match-high six rejections by Graboski.
• Valpo’s balanced attack was led by 10 kills from Carlson. Graboski posted nine kills, while Zaleski hit .333 with eight kills.
• The Crusaders maintained their national-best pace in the back row, tallying 83 digs over the four sets. Freshman Rylee Cookerly (Brownsburg, Ind./Brownsburg) led five players in double figures for Valpo with 23 digs.
• Ketcham tallied 18 digs, while sophomore Alana Brown (Napa, Calif./Vintage) ended the evening with a career-best 15 digs. Carlson added 13 digs as well.
• Anderson posted another double-double for the Crusaders, handing out 38 assists and recording 10 digs.