Bradley volleyball (1-5) hit the road for the first time in 2022 and arrived in West Lafayette, Indiana to face off against Purdue, Milwaukee and Utah. As part of the Reamer Club Xtra Special, the Braves lost all three matches against stiff competition.
“It’s good for us [to play tough opposition], but it’s hard to look at our 1-5 record and think that we’re doing good things,” head coach Alicia Williams said. “But when we’re playing the 11th best team in the country and the score is 11 all, I feel there’s something we can take away from that.”
The early morning affair on Sept. 2 against No. 11 Purdue was the highest ranked encounter for the Braves since the time they faced 11th-ranked Wichita State back in 2008. The match ended in three sets, as Purdue took the win 25-13, 25-14, 25-15.
The Braves trailed Purdue 14-11 in the first set when the Boilermakers went on a nine-point streak before back-to-back kills ended the set. In the second set however, the Braves led for a short period of time before Purdue tied things up at seven before later going on an eight-point run. Purdue finished the job after an early lead in the third set.
“It was 10 o’clock in the morning; we weren’t expecting that many people to be there,” senior libero Serena Sparks said. “They had the band and a packed house making it a really good experience.”
Freshman Kendall Minta and junior Doga Topcicek shared team-high honors with five kills each. Minta further added seven digs, while Topcicek earned herself a team-best three blocks.
“I think Kendall Minta is playing really well for a freshman,” Williams said. “She was someone who, late in the game, was given the task to put the ball down and I didn’t feel she had any jitters.”
Following the morning’s action, the Braves went up against a struggling Milwaukee team who won the Horizon League last season.
In the first set of the match, neither team could get a legitimate run going, as there were 14 ties and three lead changes. Topcicek tied up the match at 23, but mistakes haunted the Braves as an attack error gave the Panthers the first set.
Nevertheless, the Braves responded with a 25-22 win in the second set. Minta and junior Maike Bertens Deckart partnered for a block to seal the deal for the Braves.
However, in the third and fourth sets, the Panthers picked up the pace and won both sets 25-16 and 25-21.
“We were really well matched against [Milwaukee],” Williams said. “I thought for sure we could have gotten a fifth set out of them.”
The Braves finished their three-game stay in West Lafayette against Pac-12 foe Utah, who took the match in three sets 25-21, 25-15 and 25-19. The Braves kept the Utes on their feet throughout the first set as they came within two points of tying at 23-21.
However, in the second and third sets, Utah had their best performance offensively, running away for a match sweep. Along with Minta, junior Abby Johnson finished as Bradley’s offensive leader by claiming seven kills.
“We played some really good teams,” Sparks said. “They tested us and mentally prepared us to meet those [MVC] conference teams.”
The Braves return to action Friday and Saturday at the Bobcat Invitational in Athens, Ohio. They will go head to head against Loyola Maryland, Ohio and Tennessee Tech.
