Drury University Athletics

WILLIAMSVILLE, Ill. – Drury volleyball's quest for its first Great Lakes Valley Conference Tournament title came to an end with a semifinal round 3-1 setback (25-18, 13-25, 18-25, 21-25) to No. 22 Indianapolis Friday afternoon at Williamsville High School Fieldhouse.

Drury (21-9, 9-4 GLVC) hit a blistering .321 in a 25-18 opening-set victory, taking advantage of four Greyhound errors during a critical 6-0 scoring run that proved to be the difference.

But Indianapolis (26-4, 11-2 GLVC), the tournament's top seed, turned the tables on the Panthers in the second stanza, limiting DU to -.043 hitting to seize the momentum. The Greyhounds tightened the defensive clamps on Drury from that point, holding the Panthers to a combined .095 hitting percentage over the final three sets -- all UIndy victories -- to lock up their first GLVC title game berth since 2015.

Gracie Kimrey led the Drury attack with 10 kills and seven blocks, while Jacy Bray turned in her 20th consecutive double-double with 37 assists and 10 digs.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• Drury trailed 15-14 before a 6-0 scoring run flipped the scoreboard in the Panthers favor; kills by Chaney Barth and Bray bookended the spurt, with DU taking advantage of four Greyhound errors in the interim.
• The Panthers, who hit a collective .321 in the opening stanza, closed out the 25-18 win with back-to-back-to-back kills from Barth, Kimrey and Abby Renshaw to grab the early one-set advantage.
• DU took an early two-point lead in the second set, before the 'Hounds responded with a 7-0 spurt to gain control.
• After the Panthers closed the gap to six points, the Greyhounds claimed the next three points to extend their lead to 15-7.
• DU fought back once more, pulling to within 16-11 thanks three Indianapolis errors.
• But Maddie Lynch and Maddie Berger combined for eight kills in the set, helping UIndy close out the 25-13 win with a 9-3 scoring run down the stretch.
• The third set followed a similar pattern, with the Greyhounds using a 6-2 scoring run to build a 13-8 cushion.
• Moments later, Indianapolis won four straight points to stretch the margin to 19-11.
• Drury would get no closer than five points the rest of the way, as Lynch helped close out the 25-18 victory with one of her five kills in the set.
• The Panthers held an earlry three-point edge in the fourth, as Renshaw delivered a pair of kills.
• But the 'Hounds used a 4-0 run to take the lead, then wiped out another two-point Panther advantage with seven unanswered points to build an 18-13 margin.
• DU bounced back to even the score at 19-19 on a Barth kill that capped a 6-1 run, but UIndy claimed the next four points, then closed out the match on Lynch's 17th kill of the day.

NOTABLES

• The Panthers dropped to 4-10 all-time at the GLVC Championship.
• DU also fell to 7-4 in neutral-site contests this season.
• Kimrey matched a career high with her seven blocks and recorded her sixth double-digit kill performance of the season.
• Kim Quinit logged a team-leading 16 digs, and Jenna LaBarge added 15 for the Panthers.
• Bray logged her 20th double-double of the season -- and her 10th in a row.
• Barth finished with a team-best 12 kills for her 15th double-digit kill total of the season.

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