Box Score PEORIA, Ill. -- Sophomore Madelyn Ervin (Lewis Center, Ohio/Olentangy) had a team-best eight kills and tied a career-high with three aces, but Bradley fell to Indiana State 25-13, 25-21, 25-23 in Missouri Valley Conference volleyball action Saturday night at ISU Arena. The Braves wrap up a season-long, four-match road swing Sunday with a 2 p.m. match at Illinois State.
Indiana State (9-13 overall, 1-8 MVC) hit .636 in the opening set and took control midway through the frame. Bradley (4-16 overall, 0-8 MVC) trailed 11-8 after a kill by junior Annie Cave (Easton, Ill./Illini Central), before the Morgan Dall highlighted a 12-3 Sycamore run with five kills to put Indiana State in front 23-11. The Sycamores took the first set by the score of 25-13.
In the second set, junior Jennifer Sykes (Racine, Wis./Case/Parkland C.C.) knotted the score at 21-21 with a kill, before Indiana State used a late push to take the frame. Auriel Armstrong put the Sycamores in front with a kill and three consecutive Bradley attack errors closed out a 25-21 Indiana State victory.
Ervin gave Bradley a 22-20 lead late in the third set with one of her team-best eight kills, but Indiana State answered with four consecutive points to take a 24-22 advantage. A Sycamore service error pulled the Braves to within one point at 24-23, but Dall found the floor with one of her match-high 17 kills to help Indiana State close out the match with a 25-23 third-set win.
Ervin led the Braves with eight kills and three aces. Junior Genevieve Dejean (Naperville, Ill./Neuqua Valley) tallied a team-best 13 digs to pace Bradley in the loss.
Dall finished with match-high totals of 17 kills and 16 digs to pace Indiana State, while Kiya James reached double figures in digs with 11 as the duo helped the Sycamores to a 52-38 advantage in digs. Indiana State hit .302 as a team in the win.
The Braves return to action Sunday with a 2 p.m. match against I-74 rival Illinois State at Redbird Arena.
