TOLEDO, OH – Bradley won back-to-back five-set matches for the first time since 2001, coming back in the fifth set to top Youngstown State 25-19, 18-25, 27-25, 15-25, 15-11 Friday afternoon at the Rocket Invitational.

Junior Kelsey Cave (Solon, IA/Solon) had 11 kills and a team-high five blocks to help lead Bradley, while freshman Raegen Jackson (Arvada, CO/Lakewood) finished with 11 kills and no hitting errors to attack at a .524 clip as the duo helped the Braves to 13 blocks.

Senior Lea Sack (Lincoln, NE/Pius X) served up three of Bradley's 10 aces and tallied a team-best 21 digs to help highlight the victory.  She moved up three spots on Bradley's career digs list into 17th and is now two short of 900 at 898 career digs. 

Jackson and Cave combined for six kills on just seven swings as Bradley hit .385 as a team and cruised to a 25-19 opening-set victory.  Sack collected eight of her 21 digs in the first set as the Braves limited Youngstown State to a .143 attack percentage.

Youngstown State grabbed the lead in the second set with a 6-0 run and the Penguins evened the match with a 25-18 win.  Sam Brown led the Penguins with five kills in the second.

In the third set, Bradley trailed 23-21 before rallying to pull out a 27-25 win.  A Jamie Livaudais (Fenton, MO/Fenton) kill, Sack ace and a block put the Braves ahead 24-23.  Youngstown State pulled even at 24-24 and the score was knotted at 25-25 when freshman Erica Haslag (Jefferson City, MO/Helias Catholic) found the floor with a kill to put Bradley ahead.  Senior Jessica Teel (San Antonio, TX/Claudia Taylor Johnson) sealed the third-set win with the fourth ace of the set for the Braves.

Bradley struggled offensively in the fourth set and Youngstown State took control with eight consecutive points.  The Penguins went on to take the frame 25-15 and force a deciding fifth set.

The Braves led for most of the fifth set, but Youngstown pulled even at 10-10 on an ace.  Bradley took the lead on a Penguin attack error and a Haslag ace put the Braves ahead 12-10.  Jackson, who helped seal Friday morning's five-set win against Toledo with a block for the final point, notched back-to-back kills to give Bradley match point at 14-11.  Just like the day's first match, a Jackson block (solo) sealed the victory. 

Bradley opened a season with two wins away from home for the first time since 2012. 

The Braves close out play at the Rocket Invitational Saturday with a 1:30 p.m. (CDT) match against Wisconsin-Green Bay.