By WJBC Staff
COLUMBIA, Mo. – The Illinois State volleyball team played its second and third five-set matches in just over 24 hours at the Tiger Invitational, splitting a pair of contests Saturday at the Hearnes Center. Illinois State fell to Rice Saturday morning before bouncing back with a win over Utah in their final match at the tournament.
The Redbirds lost to Rice in Friday’s opener by scores of 25-17, 17-25, 25-21, 21-25, 15-13. Against Utah, Illinois State won by tallies of 23-25, 25-18, 15-25, 18-25, 15-13.
Saturday’s split of five-set matches came after a come-from-behind, five-set win over Miami (Ohio) Friday night.
“We had three great opponents this weekend and it was great to come away with two wins,” said Illinois State head coach Melissa Myers. “We had several different players step up at different times and were able to get a lot of valuable playing experience against great competition.
“I love that we played in several high-pressure situations, which will only benefit us as the season progresses.”
Rice 3, Illinois State 2
The Illinois State volleyball team came back twice but couldn’t muster a third rally as the Redbirds fell to Rice in five sets at the Tiger Invitational Saturday morning at the Hearnes Center.
Illinois State won the second and fourth sets, evening the match with both set victories. Rice used a six-point binge early in the fifth set, turning a three-point deficit into a three-point lead, and Rice’s Chelsey Harris tallied seven of her match-high 18 kills in the fifth as the Owls closed out the win.
Ali Line led the Redbirds with a team-high and career-high 16 kills. Jaelyn Keene and Ella Francis added 14 kills apiece; Francis’ kill total marked a career high as well. Jacqueline Twing dished out 40 assists, while Courtney Pence registered a match-high 22 digs.
Both teams made runs early in the first set. ISU scored four-straight points to go up 4-1, but Rice came back with a 7-2 run to take a lead it would not relent the rest of the set. Key kills down the stretch from Portia Okafor and Shelby Livingstone helped the Owls grab an early lead in the match.
Illinois State rebounded in the second set. The Redbirds started strong, scoring four of the first five points in the set, and finished strong, closing out the set on a 7-1 run that featured kills from Keene, Lexi Wallen and Lexi Varga.
A very close third set appeared turning in the Redbirds’ favor when Illinois State took a 17-16 lead late, but Rice ended the set on a 9-4 run, capping the tie-breaking third set with a kill from setter Madison McDaniel.
Illinois State led wire-to-wire in the fourth set, although the Owls trimmed an early six-point Illinois State down to just one point. The Redbirds finished strong, though, with Line registering the team’s final three kills to force a fifth set.
The Redbirds scored the first three points of the fifth set to prompt a Rice timeout, but the Owls came back with a 7-1 run that gave Rice the lead for good. Harris tallied three kills during the 7-1 binge and later provided the match-winner with her seventh kill of the set.
Illinois State 3, Utah 2
Illinois State secured a winning weekend by finishing the Tiger Invitational with a five-set win over Utah.
Varga led the Redbirds with a team-high 16 kills, while Keene added 12 kills and a team-high five blocks. Setters Jordan Weatherless and Twing combined for 46 assists. Pence led the Redbirds with 15 digs.
Illinois State ran out to an early lead in the first set, scoring the first four points of the match. The Utes slowly chipped away at the lead, eventually tying the score at 20-20, and later taking a 22-21 lead. Illinois State scored four of the final five points in the set, finishing the set with a kill from Francis.
Utah grabbed an early advantage in the second set, shooting out to a 6-1 advantage. The Redbirds fought back to tie it at 13-13, but Utah used a 7-0 surge late to even the match at one set apiece.
Back-and-forth early, the third set turned the Redbirds’ way with a 7-0 Illinois State run that turned a one-point lead into an eight-point cushion. Illinois State continued to build its lead en route to winning the most lopsided set in the match.
In the fourth set, Utah ran out to an 11-4 lead and never let up. Illinois State cut the lead down to five at 17-12, but Utah answered with three-straight points to restore an eight-point lead and sent the match to a fifth set on a kill from Carly Trueman.
Illinois State and Utah traded points early in the fifth set until Utah scored three-straight points to take a 7-5 lead. The Redbirds answered, however, with four straight to flip the two-point lead. Utah took a 13-12 lead with three-straight points, but Illinois State scored the final three points of the match, sealing the win with a kill from Keene on match point.
The Redbirds return to action next weekend at the Blue Raider Bash, hosted by Middle Tennessee, in Murfreesboro, Tennessee. The Redbirds will take on Seton Hall and Middle Tennessee on Friday, and Tennessee Tech Saturday.
