WICHITA, Kan. – Tasked with a tough assignment, the IUPUI volleyball team (2-3) fell in straight-sets (16-25, 14-25, 15-25) to Marquette (3-1) Friday (Sep. 2) in the opening match of the Shocker Volleyball Classic.  The contest, as does the entire tournament, featured a top-ranked team in RPI from last season (36th).
 
The Jaguars were paced in the contest by Gabby Fisher, who collected eight kills and eight digs, snapping a four-match double-double streak.  Kori Waelbroeck added seven kills and 11 digs, while Logan Walling added six kills and a block.  Summit League leader Alexis Mapes was limited to a season-low 19 assists in the match.
 
The Jaguar' offense was held to just a .079 attack percentage, while the Golden Eagles hit .357 for the match, including a .484 clip in the final set.  As a team, IUPUI could manage only one block, and were outperformed in the back row, collecting 37 digs to 49 for Marquette. 
 
The opening set was heavily dictated by the flow of the Marquette offense, as the Jaguars were held without a block defensively.  IUPUI mustered just eight kills throughout the frame, as Walling, Waelbroeck and Fisher each collected two.  The Jags picked up points on seven Golden Eagle' errors, and were plagued from behind the service line, committing three service errors in the set.
 
The second set didn't favor the Jaguars either, as the offense was mostly stagnant, hitting -.067 as a team.  The Jags committed nine errors to just seven kills, falling victim to three Marquette blocks.  The Golden Eagles collectively swung .229 in the frame, forcing the Jags onto their heels throughout. 
 
IUPUI was able to fire the opening salvo of the third set and looked far more competitive than they had earlier in the match.  A well distributed offense saw four Jags pick up kills, as they trailed the Golden Eagles early, 7-6.  A 5-1 run by Marquette, which included three-straight kills, broke the frame open, giving the Golden Eagles a big edge.  After back-to-back Jaguar' points on consecutive kills, Marquette answered with three kills to stretch their lead, 16-10.  A 4-1 run by the Eagles forced an IUPUI timeout with the lead growing and the danger of the match ending early, 20-11.  Marquette would eventually close the match on a Jag' service error, taking the set 25-15. 
 
IUPUI will return to the hardwood Saturday (Sep. 3) against Wichita State at 2 p.m. EST.  The match will air on ESPN 3.