Bulldogs Rally to Earn Spot in GLVC Championship

FINAL: #2W Truman 3, #1E Lewis 2 || 24-26, -21, 25-27, -19, 15-13 || Box Score
2013 Schedule || 2013 Season Stats || Career Stats (active players)

ROMEOVILLE, Ill. - -A career-high 23 kills by sophomore MH Ali Patterson - coupled with 18 kills apiece for junior OH Allie Brak and sophomore OPP Abby Heise - sent the Truman volleyball team to its first Great Lakes Valley Conference championship match with a 3-2 road victory at Lewis (Ill.) in the tournament semifinals.

Truman (23-10) will face the University of Indianapolis - a four-set victor against Rockhurst in Saturday's other semifinal - at 2 p.m. on Sunday afternoon in the tournament championship match. The Bulldogs and Greyhounds battled to a five-set UIndy victory on Nov. 9 in Indianapolis in their only match during the regular season.

The Bulldogs fought back all night, trailing both 1-0 and 2-1 in the match, before forcing a decisive fifth frame with a 25-19 fourth set win. After playing to 7-7 in the final set, it appeared that the host Flyers (24-9) had the match in hand by rattling off a 4-0 run; however, the Bulldogs scored six of the next seven points to jump back ahead, 13-12.

The Flyers would get a kill to even the match at 13-13, but a Heise kill gave the Bulldogs the lead before Lewis was whistled for a bad set to close the match at 15-13 for the purple and white.

Patterson was phenomenal on the night, racking up a career-best 23 kills on a .373 hitting line to go alongside an ace and a block for 24.5 total points. Heise hit .292 with her 18 kills and added six digs, while Brak logged a double-double by pairing her 18 kills with 13 digs and an ace.

Junior Meghan Zimmerman set the Bulldog offense to a .224 hitting line with a season-high 219 total team hitting attempts, while also adding 14 digs for a double-double. Junior Abby Moser led all 'Dogs with 26 digs, and senior Heather Hargadine added 19 digs to go alongside five kills. Truman topped 100 team digs for the first time this season, totaling 101.

Lewis was led by Kim Vertin's 24 kills and 19 digs, while Nicole Yeude tallied 30 digs along the back line.

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