Volleyball Returns Home To Host Drake & #25 UNI

Bob Hunt - Photographer

Volleyball 10/26/2017 11:00:00 AM

PEORIA, Ill. -- After playing seven of the last nine matches away from home and wrapping up a four-match Missouri Valley Conference road swing with a thrilling five-set victory at Southern Illinois last Saturday, Bradley Volleyball returns to Renaissance Coliseum for the first time in three weeks for a two-match home stand which features contests against Drake (Friday) and 25th-ranked Northern Iowa (Sunday).

Friday's 7 p.m. matchup against Drake (19-6 overall, 8-3 MVC) is Bradley's (9-16 overall, 2-9 MVC) first home match since a five-set victory over Loyola on Oct. 7 and will mark just the third home match for the Braves since concluding a school record 10-match home stand back on Sept. 23. With Halloween approaching, prizes will be awarded to the Bradley students with the best costumes in addition to the dorm floor with the highest attendance awarded a pizza party courtesy of Pappa John's.

Northern Iowa (20-5 overall, 10-1 MVC) heads into a Friday night match at Illinois State second in the Missouri Valley Conference standings, one game behind league-leading Missouri State. Sunday's noon contest is Bradley's first Sunday home match since Sept. 28, 2014 and the Panthers will be the first ranked team to visit Renaissance Coliseum since UNI was ranked 12th for a Nov. 4, 2011 contest in Peoria.

Following Sunday's matchup with Northern Iowa, Bradley Volleyball will host a free youth clinic open to children (ages 6-14) who attend the contest. Bradley volleyball players and coaches will provide instruction at the free hour-long clinic which will be held on the Renaissance Coliseum floor shortly after the completion of the match. No pre-registration is necessary, but participants are encouraged to wear active gear and gym shoes.

Both matches will be available on ESPN3 as part of the MVC media rights agreement with ESPN. The Valley On ESPN3 and can be viewed through WatchESPN.com and the WatchESPN app.

Bradley has made a habit of pushing teams to the limit with four of the last five matches going to a deciding fifth set, including a five-setter at league-leading Missouri State in which the Braves held four match points before the Bears pulled out a 19-17 win in the fifth.

Last week's victory against Southern Illinois gave Bradley its second MVC win of the year to match last year's total. The Braves need one victory in the final seven matches of the regular season to have the team's highest MVC win total since 2013. In addition, Bradley would boast improved overall and MVC win totals in back-to-back seasons for the first time since 1993 and 1994 with one more victory.

Erica Haslag recorded her 1,000th career kill last week and is currently 10th in school history with 1,037 career kills as she joined Bradley Hall of Fame members Lindsay Stazler and Jenny Pavlas as the only players in program history to reach 1,000 career kills as a junior. Haslag is 17 kills from moving into ninth in school history and needs three digs to post just the eighth season in Bradley history with 400 kills and 300 or more digs.

Junior Yavianliz Rosado continues to rank among the MVC leaders in digs per set (4th) and now owns the sixth 500-dig season in school history. Her 510 digs this fall are the most on The Hilltop since 2013 and rank fifth among Bradley season marks. Rosado is just 34 digs from owning the second-best season dig total in Bradley history behind Stacey Besjak's school record 606 digs set in 1985.

Sophomore Kathryn Graf reached a milestone of her own last week as she became the first Brave to tally 100 or more blocks in a season since 2012. Graf has averaged 2.63 kills per set with a .315 hitting percentage over the last 12 contests and is Bradley's first individual with 200 kills and 100 or more blocks in a season since Stalzer in 2004.

Following the weekend home stand Bradley will open its final regular-season road swing Friday, Nov. 3 at Loyola (7 p.m.).

Print Friendly Version

Players Mentioned

#12 Kathryn Graf: MB; 6' 2"; Sophomore

#3 Erica Haslag: OH; 5' 11"; Junior

#1 Yavianliz Rosado: DS/L; 5' 6"; Junior

Players Mentioned

#12 Kathryn Graf
: 6' 2"; Sophomore
: MB

#3 Erica Haslag
: 5' 11"; Junior
: OH

#1 Yavianliz Rosado
: 5' 6"; Junior
: DS/L

Volleyball Returns Home To Host Drake & #25 UNI

Players Mentioned

#12 Kathryn Graf

#3 Erica Haslag

#1 Yavianliz Rosado

Players Mentioned

#12 Kathryn Graf

#3 Erica Haslag

#1 Yavianliz Rosado