Sept. 14, 2002

Final Stats

Champaign, Ill. - The Fighting Illini volleyball team won the championship of the Illini Classic tonight, defeating Connecticut in the title match in straight games by the score of 30-21, 30-22, 30-22. The 1,684 fans at Huff Hall not only saw Illinois win its 13th Illini Classic title, but also witnessed Head Coach Don Hardin record his 300th career coaching victory. In his seventh season at Illinois and 15th season overall as a head coach, Hardin now owns an all-time coaching record of 300-155 (.659). Following the match, Illinois director of athletics Ron Guenther presented Hardin with a plaque, commemorating his coaching milestone.

"This is quite an honor, and is really the result of having great players and being surrounded by fantastic coaches and support staff over the years," Hardin said following the match. "I'm proud to be coaching here at Illinois, where the support and enthusiasm for volleyball is so tremendous."

The Illini cruised to the title tonight, led by the sensational play of senior setter Betsy Eiserman, who was named Most Valuable Player of the Classic. Eiserman tallied 41 assists on the evening and distributed the ball equally among her teammates, keeping the Connecticut block guessing throughout the match. Her favorite option tonight was junior Melissa Vandrey, who responded with a season-high 16 kills and efficient .344 hitting.

In addition to Eiserman's MVP honors, the Illini had two players named to the All-Tournament Team in senior Sue Webber and sophomore Jessica Belter. Webber had nine kills, 10 digs and five blocks on .389 hitting, while Belter also tallied nine kills and had a match-high 15 digs.

Illinois hit .301 as a team, while holding Connecticut to .037 hitting for the match. The Illini also enjoyed a 12-to-9 blocking advantage over the Huskies.

Winners of three matches in a row, the Illini are on the road next weekend, traveling to Brigham Young on Sept. 20 and Utah on Sept. 21. Both matches begin at 8 p.m. CT.