Southern Indiana (15-13, 11-4 GLVC): 3
at Bellarmine (15-7, 10-5 GLVC): 0
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LOUISVILLE, Ky.—The University of Southern Indiana rallied from a late three-point deficit to claim a three-point win in the opening set of its Great Lakes Valley Conference match against Bellarmine University and never looked back as went on to a 25-22, 25-16, 25-23 victory over the host Knights Friday evening.
USI (15-13, 11-4 GLVC), which hit .306 while committing just six attacking errors, fought off a furious Bellarmine attack by using a strong presence at the net. The Screaming Eagles recorded 11 blocks as a team and limited the Knights, who had 39 more attacking attempts than USI, to a .161 hitting percentage.
Sophomore outside hitter
Fawn Ryan, who has served as a middle blocker since the middle of October, and freshman right side hitter
Erica Oberbroeckling each had seven blocks to lead the Eagles at the net. Ryan added eight kills and a .444 attacking percentage, while Oberbroeckling finished with seven kills, eight digs, and a .467 attacking percentage.
Bellarmine (15-7, 10-5 GLVC), which is ranked ninth in the NCAA II Midwest Region rankings, rallied from a four-point deficit to build a 20-17 edge in the opening frame. The Eagles, however, rebounded by winning eight of the next 10 rallies to take the first set and a one-game lead in the match.
Sophomore outside hitter
Lauren DeShaney led the Eagles in the first frame as she converted five of her seven attacks into kills. She finished the contest with nine kills, seven digs, and a pair of blocks.
The Eagles used a blistering .387 attacking percentage and several small outbursts to run away with a nine-point win in the second frame and a two-set advantage in the match; then rallied from an early five-point hole to edge the Knights in the third set.
Freshman middle blocker
Abbey Winter had eight of her team-high 10 kills in the second and third sets and finished the match with a .533 attacking percentage to pace the Eagles' offense.
Junior setter
Jorae Bradbury tallied 27 assists and eight digs, while junior libero
Kayla Heldman finished with 13 digs. Heldman moved past Michelle Welp (1992-95) into fifth-place all-time at USI in career digs (1,169).
USI concludes its 2012 regular-season road schedule Saturday at 3 p.m. when it travels to Lebanon, Illinois, to take on McKendree University. The Bearcats (14-14, 8-7 GLVC) defeated Kentucky Wesleyan College in three sets Friday night in Lebanon.
