Nov. 15, 2008

Champaign, Ill. - The Illini defense took center stage Saturday night in a three-set sweep of visiting Indiana (25-19, 25-19, 25-19). Paced by 23 digs from libero Ashley Edinger and eight team blocks, no. 17 Illinois forced the Hoosiers into 27 hitting errors and just an .056 hitting percentage for the match.

With the win, the Illini improve to 20-7 on the season and 11-5 in the Big Ten, maintaining third place in the league. Illinois has reached the 20-win plateau for the first time since 2003 and gain a little momentum before a critical nationally televised contest at no. 18 Purdue. The Boilermakers enter Wednesday's action just behind the Illini in fourth. The match could be critical to determining home court in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament.

In a team filled with a lot of younger players, a pair of veterans played major roles in helping the Illini bounce back from a loss Friday to no. 1 Penn State. Senior Lizzie Bazzetta tallied a double-double with 10 digs and a team-leading 17 assists.

"Lizzie's leadership has really emerged, which is a big reason why we've been successful," said Illinois head coach Don Hardin. "She really settled us down tonight and it helped us take care of business."

Edinger, meanwhile, came through with some amazing saves, keeping Indiana's hot hitters Erica Short and Ashley Benson out of rhythm. Short, who entered the weekend in a virtual tie with Illinois' Laura DeBruler for the Big Ten lead in kills, managed 14 kills on the night, but also committed 12 errors. Benson, meanwhile, had seven kills, but five attack errors.

"This was one Ashley's best performances," Hardin said. "She was very disciplined tonight and consistently made incredible plays. She really frustrated them and it turned into a lot of hitting errors."

DeBruler had another stellar night, hitting .308 with 14 kills and seven digs to move back in front of Short for the conference lead. Junior Kylie McCulley chipped in nine kills and sophomore Johannah Bangert tallied six block assists for the Orange and Blue.

It was a scrappy affair in the opening set as neither team could quite find their rhythm. However, the Illini pulled through with a 25-19 victory.

The Orange and Blue got off to an early 14-7 lead early in the second set. However, the Hoosiers were not ready to go down without a fight as they stormed out to a 6-0 run that was ended by a Hoosier service error. The Illini got their spark back on a powerful kill from Kylie McCulley to give the Orange and Blue an 18-15 lead. DeBruler sealed the second set 25-19 win with two solid kills.

The Illini came out after the break ready to roll. The Hoosiers edged closer midway through tying it up at 10-all, but the Fighting Illini took care of business, completing the sweep with a 25-19 third set victory.

"This is a huge win tonight," Hardin added. "Losing tonight would have really set us back."