CHICAGO — In the program's first-ever national postseason match, the Chicago State women's volleyball team (17-11) suffered a 3-1 loss to Bradley in the first round of the National Invitational Volleyball Championship on Thursday night.
The loss caps Chicago State's best season on the volleyball hardwood, featuring a program-record 17 Division I wins after just one win last season. The 2021 campaign also featured a WAC Player of the Year honor for Yanlis Feliz and WAC Coach of the Year recognition for Tony Trifonov.
Feliz hammered home 17 kills tonight, giving her an all-time CSU program-record 540 on the season, edging Stacy Cole's 524 in 2004.
"We made a lot of unforced errors," head coach Tony Trifonov said. "It's hard to overcome a deficit against a good team like the Braves. We played hard, so did they, and it was a really good, contested match. Unfortunately, we came up short."
In the first set, both teams came out firing as Abby Johnson opened the Bradley scoring with a kill. However, the Cougars fired right back with a kill of their own by none other than Feliz, which tied it all up at 1-1.
The back-and-forth style of play continued up until a 14-14 score with Ezgi Dokuzlar, Berenice Almeyda and Mesalina Severino all shining.
From there, the Braves dominated. Bradley answered back with an 11-3 run, winning the set's final four points to take it at 25-17 behind Turkish freshman Silan Demirkol.
In the second set, the Cougars quickly bounced back and started with a 3-0 run with one kill each from Nailah Jones and Severino, followed by a beautiful service ace by Andrea Calderon.
This early run did not phase the Braves, however, as Bradley answered right back with a 3-0 run of their own behind a powerful defense.
Suddenly, Chicago State unleashed a 9-4 run which featured two attack errors by the Braves, kills by Severino, Feliz, Dokuzlar, Jones, Jaclyn Inclan, and Berenice Almeyda which forced the Braves to a timeout.
After the timeout, the Cougars and Braves battled evenly, a stretch that brought the score to 19-13, CSU leading.
From there, Bradley unleashed a 12-5 scoring run, as the Braves came back to beat the Cougars, 25-23, to take a comfortable 2-0 lead overall.
To start the third set, the Braves rode on their momentum and opened up the set with a 4-1 run, with three of those points off of attacking errors by the Cougars. Bradley's block, with nine on the night, stifled Feliz.
But the Cougars once again bounced back with a 5-2 run featuring two attacking errors by the Braves and kills by Almeyda, Dokuzlar, and Feliz.
The two Illinois rivals dueled to 23-23 tie, with the Cougars winning the final two points on Inclan and Feliz kills to take the third set and trail 2-1 overall.
To start the fourth set of the match, the Cougars opened up the scoring with a 3-0 run featuring two powerful kills from Dokuzlar and another attacking error by the Braves.
As the set progressed, Feliz heated up, but a stifling Bradley defense continued to block efficiently and successfully dig Feliz to win, 25-23, finishing set four on a 4-0 run.
The loss ends the Cougars' 2021 season and sends Bradley to the second round of the NIVC, where the Braves meet Evansville at 7 p.m. tomorrow at the Jones Convocation Center.
"We need to keep building on this," Trifonov said. "We're a young team and will only get better with all of our starters returning. We had huge improvements and we'll get after it next season as well."
About Chicago State
Chicago State University Athletics is comprised of 15 intercollegiate teams involving over 150 student-athletes that compete in basketball, cross country, golf, soccer, tennis, indoor and outdoor track and volleyball. CSU held memberships in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) and NCAA Division II before transitioning to NCAA Division I in 1994. Melvin Bland was the first CSU student-athlete to gain NAIA All-American status in 1974 as a wrestler. Fred Evans became the first black swimmer ever to win a national championship in 1975. CSU's women's basketball team earned a spot in the 2011 Women's Basketball Invitational and CSU's men's basketball team won the 2013 Great West Conference Tournament title and made an appearance in the CollegeInside.com Postseason Tournament (CIT). The Men's Outdoor Track & Field 4x100-Meter Relay team were 2019 Honorable Mention All-Americans and WAC Champions. Their feat marked the first time the Chicago State's men's track & field program was represented at the national meet.
Follow the Cougars
For complete coverage of Chicago State University athletics, follow us on social media @ChiStateCougars (Twitter), @ChiStateCougars (Instagram), /ChiStateCougars (Facebook), or visit the official home of Chicago State athletics at GoCSUCougars.com.
