Illini Classic Presented by Hyatt Place

For more infomation on each participating team, see their complete game notes:
Illinois | Arkansas | Missouri State | Xavier.

Ticket Information

PRICES: Reserved tickets are $10 | General admission tickets are $6 | Tickets bought on Friday will be good for both matches and tickets bought for Saturday will be good for all four matches on that day.  

Tickets are available at Huff Hall or for purchase online here. The Ticket Trailer at Huff Hall will open at 3:30 p.m. on Friday and 9 a.m. on Saturday and will remain open throughout the day. 

Single-match tickets for all Illinois volleyball games are now available online | BUY NOW

Parking Information

Free parking is located in the grass lot south of Huff Hall beginning at 2 pm on Friday. Lot E-12 opens at 5 pm on Friday. Both lots are available all day Saturday.

Illinois vs. the Field

The Illinois volleyball team are a combined 3-1 against the Illini Classic field, with only four matchups between Arkansas and Xavier combined. The Illini and Missouri State will meet for the first time on Saturday night.

The Illini own a 2-1 all-time record with Friday night's opponent, Arkansas and last faced the Razorbacks in 2004, winning 3-1 (30-22, 29-31, 30-20, 31-29) in Fayetteville on Sept. 18, 2004.

There has only been one meeting between the Musketeers of Xavier and the Illini, with Illinois taking a 3-0 (15-5, 15-2, 15-3) win in Champaign  on Sept. 5, 1997.

2016 Recruiting Class Ranked No. 22

The 2016 Illinois volleyball recruiting class has garnered a top-25 ranking, coming in as the No. 22 recruiting class in the nation as rated byPrepVolleyball.com.

The ranking continues the Illini recruiting success, with the 2016 class including a pair of Top 100 PrepVolleyball.com Senior Aces in outside hitters Kaylin Korte (No. 35) and Jacqueline Quade (No. 86), as well as defensive specialists Annika Gereau and Caroline Welsh and defensive specialist/setter Kendal Kavanaugh. Korte and Quade were both also named to Volleyball Magazine's Fab 50 list, featuring the top seniors in the class of 2016.

A native of Morris, Ill., Korte was a three-time MVP for her Morris High School team and holds the school record for attack attempts (2,527), kills (1,217) and blocks (183). She earned a spot on the 2015 Junior Volleyball Association All-National Team and was a USA Volleyball A1 Continental Team member. She is a three-time North Central Illinois All-Conference First-Team honoree and a two-time Joliet Herald All-Area Team selection and was named to the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Under Armour Girls High School Third-Team.

Hailing from Fort Wayne, Ind., Quade earned Indiana Coaches of Girls Sports Association (ICGSA) First-Team All-State as a senior after leading her Carroll High School team to a state runner-up finish in 2015, finishing her time at CHS as the career and season kills record holder. An ICGSA Second-Team All-State honoree as a junior, Quade earned First-Team All-Northeast Indiana and Northeast Hoosier Conference First-Team All-Conference honors in 2013 and 2014 and also joined Korte on the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Under Armour Girls High School Third-Team.  

A local of Marietta, Ga., Welch earned American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Under Armour Girls High School Second-Team accolades and was named the Georgia Volleyball Coaches Association AAA State Player of the Year and the 2-AAA Area Player of the Year as a senior. She earned GVCA AAA All-State Team honors as a junior and a senior and was selected to the AA All-State Team as a freshman and sophomore. Welsh, who set the Westminster School record in season digs and career digs, was named to the AVCA Phenom List four-straight years and to the AVCA All-American Watch List as a senior and has earned multiple honors from PrepVolleyball.com, including Soph 79 Highest Honorable Mention, Frosh 59, two-time Defensive Dandy List, Special Mention All-American and Top 250 Senior Ace.

A three-time MVP for the Winneconne High School team in Oshkosh, Wisc., Gereau was selected to the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Under Armour Girls High School Third-Team All-America as a senior. The 2015 Eastern Central Conference Player of the Year, Gereau was a four-time ECC All-Conference Team honoree, including back-to-back First-Team accolades as a junior and senior and also earned Wisconsin Volleyball Coaches Association All-State Honorable-Mention accolades in her final season.

Kavanaugh, the final member of the 2016 class, hails from Woodridge, Ill., where she led her Benet Academy high school team to regional and sectional championships, advancing to the IHSA Elite 8 as a senior and finishing the year ranked 28th in the nation and second in the state of Illinois. She was also selected for the Chicago Senior All-Star Showcase after totaling 165 digs and 15 service aces as a senior. A teammate of fellow signee Kaylin Korte at 1st Alliance, Kavanauch led her team in serving percentage during the 2015-16 season and also helped guide her 2014-15 1st Alliance squad to a 10th place finish at the AAU Open National Championships.

In addition to the quintet, the Illini will be joined next season by N.C. State transfer Blayke Hranicka. A 6-foot-0 middle blocker from Denver, Colo., Hranicka garnered All-ACC Freshman Team honors after a fantastic rookie season with the Wolfpack, starting all 32 matches and appearing in all 119 of the team's sets. She led the team with 409.5 points scored, the most by any freshman in the program history and finished fourth on the squad in kills with 299.

Illini Ranked Preseason No. 14

When the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) released its preseason poll on August 10, the Fighting Illini volleyball team once again made an appearance, coming in at No. 14 in the season's opening top-25 poll. 

Illinois returns 10 letterwinners, including a majority of its starters from its 2015 NCAA Sweet 16 team, including Big Ten All-Freshman Team honorees Jordyn Poulter and Ali Bastianelli, as well as junior libero Brandi Donnelly and hard-hitting seniors Katie Stadick,Michelle Strizak and Naya Crittenden. The Illini will also welcome in the No. 22-ranked recruiting class, including a pair of Top 100 PrepVolleyball.com Senior Aces in Kaylin Korte and Jacqueline Quade, as well as NC State transfer Blayke Hranicka.

Illinois' highest opening rank came on Sept. 6, 1988, when the AVCA placed the Illini at No. 2 on the first week of the season following their first-ever trip to the NCAA Semifinals.

Illinois appeared in the top 25 of the AVCA's first poll every season from 1986 to 1994, resurfaced at No. 14 in 1999 then at No. 19 in 2002 and 2004. The Illini have been ranked in the preseason top 25 in all-but-one season under Hambly, while receiving votes in 2013, with five top-10 projections in his eight seasons. The 2016 preseason ranking marks the Illini's 19th year beginning the schedule in the top 25.

Illini Debut New Staff in 2016

It will be an entirely new staff that joins head coach Kevin Hambly on the sidelines this season as assistant coaches Jason Mansfield and Erin Lindsey, director of volleyball operations Jenni Bolduc and volunteer assistant coach Austin D'Amore were hired on during the offseason. Along with the new coaching staff, Misao Tanioka joins the team as the Illini's athletic trainer.

Illini Classic History

The four-team Illini Classic began in 1984, featuring Missouri, Northern Illinois and Notre Dame. Mizzou earned the first-ever Illini Classic title, but the Illini rebounded to top New Mexico State in 1985 to win its first Classic crown. Since its inception, the Illini have won 23 of 30 outright Illini Classic titles and split a two-match series with Iowa State in 2012. The 2013 Illini Classic was the first tournament in which the participants did not all play the same amount of matches and thus no champion was crowned.

The Illini Classic has seen some top competition over the years, none bigger than the Illini's 2004 upset of No. 1 USC. The Orange and Blue rallied from down 2-1 to claim the victory in front of over 3,000 fans to end the Women of Troy's then-NCAA record 52-match winning streak. 

Illinois dominated the 2015 Illini Classic to open last season, winning all nine sets with sweeps of Louisville, Miami (Ohio) and Creighton, with Louisville and Creighton both advancing to the 2015 NCAA Tournament. 

Opening Night Success

The Illini have had tremendous success on opening night, going 32-10 all time in the first match of the season. Illinois has lost just one season opener since 1999, starting the new millennium with a 12-match winning streak from 2000-2011, before dropping the 2012 lid-lifter at Dayton. Illinois swept Louisville at the Illini Classic to open last season.

Illinois is even more successful in home openers, going 36-6 all time in the first home match of the year. The Illini have not lost a home opener in over two decades; after falling to No. 18 New Mexico on Sept. 9, 1994, the Orange and Blue have won their last 20 straight home openers. Since making the move to Huff Hall in 1990, Illinois is 25-1 in the first home match of the season.

11th Annual Stuff Huff Promotion Set for August 26

On Friday night, the Fighting Illini will host Arkansas in the 11th annual "Stuff Huff" match. The Illini are 9-1 since the promotion began in 2006, with the Illini taking their first-ever loss in the event in 2013 to No. 6 Washington, who would end the season with a trip to the Final Four. The Huskies were the highest-ranked team to appear in the Stuff Huff event, and the match drew a crowd of 3,538 fans, the second-straight Stuff Huff crowd of over 3,000 fans.

Stuff Huff is renowned for its vast crowds, as the Illini have averaged 2,860 fans per game, with 3,000+ crowds in 2006, 2012, 2013 and a season ago. Prior to the match, Spike Squad and the DIA Marketing & Promotions staff will host an outdoor carnival for Illinois students in the grass lot just south of Huff Hall. The event will feature inflatables, free wings from Buffalo Wild Wings, as well as serve as the I-Pride kickoff party, and will provide a chance for new students to meet other Illini fans before the first match of the year.

Year    Match    Attendance
2006    Illinois 3, Illinois State 1    3,129
2007    Illinois 3, Marquette 0    2,287
2008    Illinois 3, North Carolina 0    1,989
2009    #14 Illinois 3, Cincinnati 0    2,291
2010    #6 Illinois 3, BYU 1    2,688
2011    #7 Illinois 3, Tennessee 1    2,619
2012    #19 Illinois 3, #15 Iowa State 0    3,770
2013    #6 Washington 3, #14 Illinois 1    3,538
2014    #11 Illinois 3, Long Beach State 0    2,942
2015    #8 Illinois 3, Louisville 0    3,344

Poulter Tabbed Preseason All-Big Ten 

Illinois sophomore setter Jordyn Poulter was named Preseason All-Big Ten, as voted on by the Big Ten coaches. It was the first preseason honor of her career. Poulter made an immediate impact for the Illini in her freshman season, starting 29 of 32 matches at the setter position and earned Big Ten All-Freshman Team honors. She directed the Illini offense with 1,088 assists and recorded eight double-doubles on the season, highlighted by career highs of 59 assists and 21 digs vs. No. 4 Minnesota and a 34-assist, 10-dig performance in an NCAA Tournament first-round victory over Southern Illinois. 

Poulter was also named to the B1G/Pac-12 All-Tournament Team and was a two-time Big Ten Freshman of the Week and Big Ten Setter of the Week selection. Following her breakout rookie campaign, she was selected as the Fighting Illini Newcomer of the Year.

Hambly's Regional Run

Under the leadership of head coach Kevin Hambly, the Illinois volleyball program has seen a run of success in postseason play as the Illini have advanced to an NCAA Regional every season with the exception of one in his seven seasons at the helm. The Illini have advanced to the NCAA Regionals in 2009, 2010, 2011, 2013, 2014 and 2015, and also made  run to the National Championship match in 2011.

Hambly Produces All-Americans

Illinois has 28 All-America honors among 17 players in school history. Nine of those players earned 16 honors with Kevin Hambly on staff. Three of the five First-Team All-Americans have come under Hambly (Laura DeBruler, Colleen Ward, Michelle Bartsch), while recent graduate Jocelynn Birks was a three-time All-American, finishing her 2015 senior campaign as an Honorable Mention selection, to go along with a 2013 Third Team honor with a Second Team award in 2014.