Team Effort Propels Abercrombie Past Team Drews

MESA, Arizona, October 18, 2024.- Team Abercrombie used strong performances from opposite Brittany Abercrombie, libero Morgan Hentz, setter Alisha Childress and outside hitter Temi Thomas-Ailara to move past Team Drews, 75-68, in the second match of Friday night’s Athletes Unlimited Pro Volleyball doubleheader at Arizona Athletic Grounds.

Team Abercrombie moves to 1-0 after winning its Week Three opener, while Team Drews slides to 0-1.

Abercrombie dialed up a match-high 15 kills on a .324 hitting percentage with 14 digs to claim MVP 1 plaudits and 355 leaderboard points. Hentz, meanwhile, garnered MVP 2 honors following a 17-dig performance to receive 272 points.

Childress, who made her first start of the season, earned MVP 3 distinction and 274 leaderboard points after a season-best performance that saw her dish out 40 assists with 10 digs, three blocks and a pair of kills. 

Thomas-Ailara posted her first double-digit kill effort of the season with 13 kills while contributing six digs and a pair of blocks in Team Abercrombie’s victory, while outside hitter Lindsey Vander Weide put down seven kills with a pair of service aces, 10 digs and a solo block. 

Middle blocker Molly McCage chipped in five solo blocks, four block assists and seven kills for Team Abercrombie. 

Outside hitter Dani Drews paced her squad with 11 kills and seven digs in the loss, while libero Mary Lake registered a team-high 15 digs. 

How It Happened: Team Abercrombie opened up a 25-21 lead in the opening frame and advanced the lead to 50-41 after the middle frame. Team Drews took the final set, 27-25, but could not overcome the deficit. 

Leaderboard Impact: Abercrombie remains in the top position on the leaderboard following the opening night of Week Three with 2,430 points, while Childress and Thomas-Ailara each jumped six places in the standings.