Photo by Jake McNeill: Marshall outside hitter Reese Drake goes up for a kill during the second set of a Big South Conference volleyball match against Worthington on Tuesday in Marshall.

MARSHALL — Seniors Reese Drake and Brooke Gillingham each hit career milestones during the No. 1 Marshall Tigers’ Big South Conference volleyball matchup against Worthington on Tuesday. Drake hit for a team-high 13 kills in the match to surpass 1,000 career kills, while Gillingham tallied 21 set assists to bring her career total over 2,000. The duo’s performance helped lead Marshall to a 25-19, 25-8, 25-10 win over the Trojans.

Both Gillingham and Drake have been major contributors to the Marshall volleyball team’s success over the last several years. The two both played key roles in Marshall’s 2023 state championship run, each earning Class AAA All-Tournament selections. Gillingham, the Tigers lone setter that season before the team transitioned to a 6-2 with her and Avery Fahl, logged 1,128 set assists in her first season with the varsity team. The mark is good for fourth in state history, two spots behind her older sister Maysa’s mark of 1,201 to rank second.

Kezlyn Pinckney was money from the service line for Marshall in the match. The junior libero went 19 of 20 on her serve attempts with six aces. Avery Fahl also went 16 of 16 with three aces while Gillingham and Drake each contributed another two.

Avery Fahl also had a big night for the Marshall Tigers. Her 12 kills and 13 set assists each ranked second on the team, and her one ace block tied her sister Julia Fahl for a team-high. Julia also notched 10 kills in the match.

Defensively, Pinckney led the way with 14 digs, followed by 10 from Gillingham and eight from Drake.

Marshall improves to 18-1 on the season with the win and heads to Montgomery on Tuesday for its next match, taking on Tri-City United (6-7) at 7:30 p.m.