The semester is just getting started, but the Bulldogs Volleyball has been underway
since the Aug. 26.
They opened the season in Boca Raton, Florida, for the Florida Atlantic Tournament. The Bulldogs faced Northeastern University, then North Florida University, Florida Atlantic and then Bethune-Cookman University.
So far this season the Bulldogs have secured three wins in their first four matches. That performance secured a share of the victory in the tourney, the third consecutive year that Drake Volleyball has won a tournament to start the season.
The Bulldogs were able to secure the tournament win marking three straight years of the team winning tournaments to open a season.
The Bulldogs came out strong against Northeastern in their first match of 2016.
Junior Kyla Inderski garnered 19 kills in the match. The kills came on 46 attempts for a .238 attack percentage. Senior Makena Schoene added 14 kills in this game as well.
This game also saw senior middle blocker Capris Quaites back on the court for the first time in almost a year after sustaining an injury that benched her last season. The Bulldogs had a total of nine team blocks and won the match three sets to one: 25-21, 25-19, 18-25, and 25-20.
Drake came out in the second match of the day against North Florida with Inderski and Schoene again leading the team in kills. Inderski matched her previous mark with another 19 kills, while Schoene added another 13.
The second match ended up in a five-set battle. After losing the first two games, the Bulldogs battled back.
Clutch back-to-back kills late in the third set from Inderski and Schoene off of feeds from seasoned senior setter Chandelle Davidson kept Drake alive.
Back-to-back kills from Inderski followed by an ace from Davidson closed out the fourth set: 26-24.
Despite fighting for another chance at the win in game
five, North Florida was able to dominate the final set with a 10-1 lead early on. The match ended two sets to three for a Bulldog loss.
The Bulldogs third match came on Aug. 27 against the tournament hosts, Florida Atlantic.
In an effort similar to the first two matches, Inderski led the team in kills with 14. Junior Kameo Pope added another 10. Most assists came from Davidson and freshman Paige Aspinwall, recording 15 and 14 respectively, Michelle Thommi added another seven. The Bulldogs shut out Florida Atlantic three sets to zero: 25-18, 25-21, 25-18.
It was essentially the same story later in the afternoon in Drake’s final match against Bethune-Cookman. Inderski added another 11 kills and brought her attack percentage on the weekend up to .289.
The Bulldogs were able to secure the shut out win. The Bulldogs returned to the Knapp Center last night to host South Dakota State. That match began after the Times-Delphic had gone to print.
