Aug. 22, 2006

Champaign, Ill. -

State Farm Illini Classic Game Notes in PDF Format
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ILLINOIS AT AT GLANCE

Illinois hosts State Farm Illini Classic:
The Fighting Illini kick off the 2006 season by hosting the State Farm Illini Classic.
• The tournament is being moved this year to the opening week of the season for the first time. The tournament has typically been held the second week of September.
• The tournament features the four teams that have been in the NCAA Tournament the past four seasons. Winthrop has won the Big South title the past four seasons. UW-Milwaukee has either won the regular season or tournament in the Horizon League the past ten seasons. Both Winthrop and UW-Milwaukee are favored to win their respective conferences this season. Illinois State has made 11 NCAA appearances since 1982 and finished third in the Missouri Valley last year.
• Ticket prices per session: $5 for adults, $4 for UIUC faculty/staff, $2 for students ages 18-and-under, UIUC students are free. Parking is $3
• Radio: WDWS AM 1400 locally Dave Loane & Steve Layman. Winthrop match internet only

Schedule
8/25, 5 pm -- Winthrop vs. UW-M
8/25, 7 pm -- Illinois vs. Illinois St.
8/26, 11 am -- Illinois St. vs. UW-M
8/26, 1 pm -- Illinois vs. Winthrop
8/26, 5 pm -- Winthrop vs. Illinois St.
8/26, 7 pm -- Illinois vs. UW-M

Stuff Huff: The Illinois-Illinois State rivalry is building again. A big crowd is expected Friday night for the Illini and the Redbirds. The Illini are promoting the season opener as Stuff Huff and have set a goal to draw 3,000 fans. Typically both teams travel well on the road in the rivalry. Last year's match between the two schools went five games. There will be a free barbecue for Illinois students outside of Huff Hall before the match.

Illinois vs. Illinois State Series Notes:
• Illinois State leads the all-time series, 26-20, but the Illini have dominated the series the past 20 seasons. Since 1985, the Illini have won 15 of 16 matches with Illinois holding a 46-10 advantage in individual games won.
• Last year's battle in Redbird Arena was epic, with the Illini holding on to win the match behind a Redbird Arena record 39 kills by Rachel VanMeter.

Illinois-UW-Milwaukee Series Notes:
• Illinois and UW-Milwaukee have met twice with Illinois winning both meetings. The 16th-ranked Fighting Illini defeated UWM 15-3, 15-2, 15-6 in the second match of the 1992 season. That year, Illinois went 32-4 and lost to #1 UCLA, #2 Stanford twice and at #17 Penn State.
• Illinois defeated the Panthers 15-13, 10-15, 15-12, 15-6 in the first round of the NCAA Tournament at Huff Hall in 1999.

Beth Vrdsky featured in Big Ten's 25th Anniversary Video
This year the Big Ten is celebrating the 25th Anniversary of Big Ten Women's Athletics. One of the components of the celebration is a PSA campaign titled "This is My Big Ten Story." The conference selected 11 athletes, one from each school, past or present.

Beth Vrdsky represents Illinois as she tells of her dream of becoming a fighter pilot. One of the top rated cadets in the University of Illinois' ROTC program, Vrdsky received one of a select group of invitation to the competitive Air Force Flight School. She will begin training following graduation next year.

Illinois in openers, non-conference
• This is the fourth straight year that Illinois has opened against Illinois. The Illini have won the three previous meetings, two in Normal and one in Champaign. The Illini are 8-2 in season openers under Head Coach Don Hardin, which included a 3-1 loss at ISU in 1996.
• Illinois is 73-20 in non-conference play in 10 years under Don Hardin, including a 9-2 mark last year.

A Brief History Of The Illini Classic

The four-team Illini Classic began in 1984, featuring Missouri, Northern Illinois, Notre Dame and the host Fighting Illini. Missouri won the inaugural round-robin tournament with a perfect 6-0 record. In 1985, Illinois defeated New Mexico State, 3-0, to win its first Classic title. In 1986, No. 4 San Jose State ended a 15-match home winning streak for the Illini, winning 3-1.

In 1987, No. 4 Brigham Young defeated No. 6 Illinois, 3-1, in the title match featuring two of the nation's top returning teams.
The Fighting Illini captured the 1988 and 1989 Classic titles, defeating Nebraska and Pittsburgh. In 1990, No. 6 Stanford pulled off a stunning comeback to defeat the Illini in the title match. In 1991, Illinois scored the last six points in the decisive fifth game, stunning No. 19 Georgia to win the championship.

In 1992, the Classic featured the "Big Eight-Big Ten Challenge" pitting No. 12 Illinois and No. 14 Ohio State against No. 5 Nebraska and No. 16 Colorado. Illinois captured the 1995 title by defeating current Illinois coach Don Hardin's Louisville Cardinals in the championship match. That began a winning streak of consecutive tournament titles for the Illini, which stood at six until Florida ended the streak by claiming the 2001 title. The Illini returned to their winning ways defeating Connecticut 3-0 in 2002, Wake Forest 3-0 in 2003, and USC in 2004 before falling to Rice in the tourney final last season.

In one of the biggest regular season victories in school history, the Illini defeated No. 1 USC, ending the Women of Troy's record 52-game winning streak in the 2004 finals. The Illini rallied from 2-1 down to claim the victory in front of more than 3,000 fans at Huff Hall.

State Farm Illini Classic Champions
1984 Missouri (def. Illinois, 3-0)
1985 ILLINOIS (def. New Mexico St. 3-0)
1986 San Jose State (def. Illinois, 3-1)
1987 Brigham Young (def. Illinois, 3-1)
1988 ILLINOIS (def. Nebraska, 3-1)
1989 ILLINOIS (def. Pittsburgh, 3-0)
1990 Stanford (def. Illinois, 3-2)
1991 ILLINOIS (def. Georgia, 3-2)
1992 ILLINOIS (def. Colorado, 3-1
1993 ILLINOIS (def. Maryland, 3-0)
1994 Stanford (def. New Mexico, 3-0)
1995 ILLINOIS (def. Louisville, 3-1)
1996 ILLINOIS (def. Connecticut, 3-1)
1997 ILLINOIS (def. Ball State, 3-0)
1998 ILLINOIS (def. Oral Roberts, 3-2)
1999 ILLINOIS (def. Georgia, 3-0)
2000 ILLINOIS (def. Ball State, 3-2)
2001 Florida (def. Illinois 3-0)
2002 ILLINOIS (def. Connecticut, 3-0)
2003 ILLINOIS (def. Wake Forest, 3-0)
2004 ILLINOIS (def. USC, 3-2)
2005 Rice (def. Illinois, 3-0)

BATMAN AND ROBIN RETURNS
Last year, Athletic trainer Randy Ballard compared Vicki Brown and Kayani Turner to Batman and Robin because of their playing styles. The names stuck with media types and the Illini fans even donned outfits from the "cape crusaders."

With the loss of Rachel VanMeter to graduation, Brown and Turner will be a big chunk of the Illinois offense. Last season, VanMeter took over 40 percent of the attack swings for the Illini.

Turner, who has suffered through injury each of the past two seasons, returned with a vengeance against the Alumni. Turner had nine kills and hit .750 hitting from the right side in the two games vs. the Alumni. The duo came into the program together, but Turner used a medical redshirt as a freshman while nursing a knee injury. Last season, she missed the final six matches with a stress fracture in her left tibia. She did amass 225 kills on the year.

Brown led the Illini with 10 kills in 14 attacks for a .429 attack percentage vs. the Alumni.

HENDERSON BACK TO MIDDLE
Because of the many unexpected injuries and illnesses last season, sophomore Rachel Henderson played out of position most of the year, playing some at defensive specialist. Because of some depth this season, Henderson is able to play her natural position of middle blocker. Henderson started against the Alumni and had three kills while hitting .750.

EDINGER NAMED TOP LIBERO
Ashley Edinger, who will start at the libero position for the Fighting Illini was named prepvolleyball.com's top libero in the nation as a senior at Michigan City (Ind.) H.S.

CLINTON DAY SET
Illinois has added some local talent this year, including two players from nearby Clinton in freshman outside hitter Kylie McCulley and sophomore defensive specialist Kristine Anderson. As a result, the Illini are sponsoring Clinton Day Oct. 28. Discounted tickets will be on sale throughout the town.
• Other promotions include
Saturday, Sept. 30: Camper Reunion. U of I summer campers are invited to return to campus to see their favorite Fighting Illini in action.
Friday, Oct.27: Middle School Madness
Saturday, Oct. 28: Faith Night
Friday, Nov. 17: Team Night
Saturday, Nov. 18: Girl Scout Night/Senior Night. Admission for Girl Scouts is $1. Tickets must be purchased in advance by Monday, Nov. 13.

To order tickets or for more information, contact Allison Berg at 244-0062 or alberg@uiuc.edu.

AIR FORCE TIES
In March, Illinois junior Beth Vrdsky got the news she's been waiting most of her life to hear - she is one of the elite that has been selected into the Air Force Academy flight school. Ever since seeing the movie "Top Gun" as a youngster, Vrdsky has aspired to one day fly a fighter jet.

Vrdsky will finish her career both academically and athletically this season, and will leave for flight school to fulfill her dream. Vrdsky is one of 520 cadets selected into flight school out of all the ROTC programs nationwide. Illinois head coach Don Hardin, an Air Force veteran himself, was there to congratulate Vrdsky on the achievement.