Oct. 31, 2009

Box Score

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - The No. 6 Illini volleyball team continued its hot streak on Halloween night, rattling off its ninth consecutive win behind a balanced attack that hit .347 for the match. Illinois improved to 18-3 overall and 10-2 in the Big Ten thanks to a straight-sets victory (25-21, 25-19, 25-14) over Purdue, who fell to 11-12 overall and 3-9 in the Big Ten. The Orange and Blue's middle blockers, Erin Johnson and Johannah Bangert, combined for 15 kills and hit .533 and .308, respectively, to bolster the impressive Illini attack.

"We have been working very hard to get our middles going, and it has been paying off," head coach Kevin Hambly said. "Erin Johnson had a great weekend and Johannah Bangert did a nice job attacking. Our outsides always bring their game, so it is nice to get some more productivity out of the middles. We are continuing to get better as a team, and it's nice to see things progress in that direction."

Illinois' outside hitters also continued their stellar play, combining for 29 kills, as Laura DeBruler and Michelle Bartsch posted a match-high 10 kills apiece and Kylie McCulley added nine. All three players also hit over .300, which is the first time that has happened all year.

The Illini trailed for the majority of the opening frame until the block brigade turned it on to spark a 9-3 run. Two key blocks turned the tide for the Illini, as the Orange and Blue tied the match at 18 thanks to a block assist from McCulley and Bangert and then grabbed their first lead at 19-18 on a block assist from Bartsch and Bangert. McCulley had five kills in the set to pace the Illini, who hit .385 compared to .222 from Purdue.

The second set was a back-and-forth affair until the score was tied at nine and the Illini used a 7-2 run to pull away. Illinois never looked back from there, easily taking the second set behind six kills from Johnson and four from Bartsch. Illinois out-hit the Boilermakers .382 to .156 in the second stanza.

The Illini dominated the third frame thanks to great play from DeBruler and Bartsch, but saw their senior libero Ashley Edinger go down with an injury with Illinois leading 21-12. Edinger, who had 12 digs to pace the Illini defense, was helped off the floor and replaced by Rachel Feldman. Illinois took four of the next six points to close out the match.

"It's too early to speculate (about Ashley), so we will just wait and see what happens," Hambly said.

The win was Illinois' ninth straight in the Big Ten, the longest streak for the Illini in conference since winning 18 straight in 1992. The Orange and Blue remained alone in second place and improved to 6-1 on the road in the conference after the victory in front of 1,821 fans at the Intercollegiate Athletic Facility.

Illinois returns to Huff Hall for a pair of matches next weekend, as the Illini face No. 13 Michigan on Friday, Nov. 6 and Michigan State on Saturday, Nov. 7. Both matches are set to begin at 7 p.m. CT.