DES MOINES, Iowa – Junior Cordelia Murphy (Marseilles, Ill./Marquette) tallied a career-best 14 kills and freshman Jamie Livaudais (Fenton, Mo./Rockwood Summit) added 13 kills of her own, but Drake topped Bradley 25-20, 25-17, 16-25, 25-22 Friday in the Missouri Valley Conference opener for both squads at the Drake Knapp Center. 

Murphy hit .370 in the match and finished with a career-high 14 kills, while Livaudais added a season and team-best six blocks to go with her 13 kills to help pace Bradley (0-11 overall, 0-1 MVC) offensively. 

Freshman Taylor Thiele (Aurora, Neb./Aurora) matched a season-high with 17 digs to lead five Bradley players in double figures in digs and also added 11 kills for her fifth double-double of the year.  Fellow freshman Afton Sobasky (Inver Grove Heights, Minn./St. Croix Lutheran) also notched a double-double with 36 assists and 11 digs. 

Drake (9-3 overall, 1-0 MVC) led by as many as 10 points at 21-11 in the first set before a 7-2 Bradley spurt trimmed the Bulldogs advantage in half at 23-18.  Murphy had a pair of kills and a block during the run for the Braves, but Drake managed to hold on for a 25-20 victory in the opener. 

The Bulldogs led from start to finish in the second set, hitting .326 in the frame en route to a 25-17 win. Kyla Inderski had seven of her match-high 14 kills to help Drake take the second set.

Livaudais had back-to-back kills to help highlight a 5-0 Bradley spurt in the third set which gave the Braves a commanding 16-9 lead.  Bradley, which hit .375 in the frame, cruised to a 25-16 win to force a fourth set.  Murphy had four kills on four swings to help highlight the BU fourth-set win, while Livaudais and senior Madison Kamp (Orland Park, Ill./Chicago Christian) each added four kills of their own.

The fourth set was close throughout, but Drake held a 22-19 lead before a Bradley rally.  A kill and block by Livaudais was followed by a Bulldog attack error to pull the Braves even at 22-22.  Back-to-back Bradley errors gave Drake match point at 24-22, however, and the Bulldogs finished off a 25-22 win with another Inderski kill.  Thiele tallied five kills and seven digs in the fourth-set for the Braves.

Bradley returns to action Saturday at Northern Iowa, playing a 7 p.m. against the Panthers in Cedar Falls, Iowa.