After starting the season with a 2-6 record, the Bradley volleyball team continues to turn its season around. The Braves moved to 13-11 with a sweep of Missouri State and Southern Illinois this past weekend.
The Braves have won four straight matches and nine of their last 12, heating up at just the right time.
Bradley started its weekend with a thrilling five-set road win against conference foe Missouri State, but it did not come easy, as all five sets during the matches were decided by five points or fewer.
Junior Karagan Coggin was the star of the show at the Hammons Student Center on Friday, as she attacked at a .371 clip and finished with 17 kills. Senior Hannah Thompson added 17 kills and 13 digs to notch her 15th double-double of the season. Fellow senior Kora Kauling was three kills away from the rare triple-double, a feat that she accomplished two weekends ago.
Junior Carlee Camlin also had a double-double with 26 assists and 14 digs, as did Turkish freshman Silan Demirkol with 12 kills and 10 digs.
Missouri State reached game point in the fifth set leading 14-13, but Bradley came back to win on a game-winning kill from Demirkol, following kills from Thompson and Coggin.
“We’re a very determined team,” Kauling said. “Everyone really wants to win.”
Bradley felt like they did all of the little things correctly, which, according to Kauling, can help them beat any team in the Valley. The key to each game is similar.
“We need to control our side of the net and make sure that we play our game,” Kauling said.
Bradley’s tricky non-conference schedule is playing a role in its recent successes.
“We went through a lot of adversity in tight sets in non-conference,” head coach Carol Price-Torok said. “Being able to play on the road and play tough matches on the road, I think that is helping us a lot.”
Playing in challenging games and battling on the road is nothing new for Bradley, as the team thrives on its upperclassmen leadership.
“We are a veteran team,” Price-Torok said. “I think that helps us as well.”
Less than 24 hours after their thrilling win against Missouri State, the Braves took a trip to Carbondale to take on Southern Illinois. Bradley handily completed the road sweep against the Salukis, who are winless in Valley play.
The stat-sheet-stuffer Kauling was once again close to her second career triple-double with 10 kills, 22 assists and eight digs. Thompson had another excellent performance in the 3-set sweep with nine kills and team-high 11 digs. Junior Raeann Bergman helped set the tone early on, as she had five kills and three blocks in the first set.
The story of the night likely came from junior Carlee Camlin, who had six aces, the most in a three-set match by Bradley since 2003.
“I just kept my routine and kept my calm,” Camlin said. “I remember when they took a timeout. The bench came up to me and was like, ‘Oh my gosh, you’re doing great.’Carol turned to me and goes, ‘Yeah, but keep your cool.’”
After winning four straight, spirits are high on the Braves squad.
“We have a lot of energy on the bench, which feeds onto the court,” Camlin said. “I think celebrating big moments is essential to keeping energy throughout the game.”
The Braves will be taking on Indiana State on Friday at 6 p.m. for their final match at home this season before their senior night duel with Evansville on Saturday.
“I definitely think we can pack the [Renaissance Colosseum] and get everyone out there to support our seniors obviously in their last home weekend,” Camlin said. “Having the energy of the fans is going to be something we can thrive on if we can get everyone there.”
