CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – Behind double-digit kills from Jocelynn Birks and Naya Crittenden, the Illinois volleyball team celebrated Pink Night at Huff Hall with a 3-1 win (25-17, 23-25, 25-15, 25-19) over Michigan State in a crucial Big Ten battle on Friday night (Oct. 30).
With the win, the Illini improve to 14-8 and 5-6 in the Big Ten, while MSU drops to 14-8 and 6-5 in the conference.
"It was nice to get a little run early and put the pressure on," said head coach Kevin Hambly. "I thought we did a nice job of defending for most of the match. I thought the biggest thing was that we blocked 14 balls in four sets - that's a lot. Naya Crittenden and Ali Bastianelli did a great job, especially of blocking. Offensively, it was nice to get Ali [Bastianelli] and Naya [Crittenden] going. I thought Naya gave us a big spark early and really put some pressure on them. I do think that the second set we got a little comfortable, and didn't keep the pressure on, but it was nice to see us recover and take care of that in the third and fourth sets. We sided-out 93 percent in that third set and that really got us in the right comfort level that we could relax and keep pressure on them with our serve and keep pressure on them with our attack. I thought that was huge for us because we haven't been able to sustain that."
Birks led the Illini with 16 kills and added 12 digs for her sixth double-double of the season and the 49th of her career, while Crittenden collected 13 kills on 22 swings for a .364 hitting percentage. The Modesto, Calif., native also contributed five block assists in the win.
The Illini came out firing on all cylinders in the opening set, scoring the first seven points of the match before the Spartans got on the board at 7-1. With the Illini leading 16-6, the Spartans notched three-straight points to cut the score to 16-9, but an Ali Bastianelli kill stalled the MSU run. Leading by nine at 19-10, the Illini sailed to a 25-17 first set victory that was finished off by a Michelle Strizak kill. Â Â
It was a different start to the second set as the two teams traded points before MSU jumped out to a 7-5 lead. A Strizak kill, followed by a Crittenden and Bastianelli block evened the score at 7-7. After going back-and-forth throughout the set, the Illini grabbed the biggest lead of the period at 18-15, forcing a Spartan timeout. Out of the break, MSU used a 6-1 run to propel the visitors to a 21-19 lead, before grabbing set point at 24-21. Back-to-back Illini points cut the deficit to one, but a Spartan kill from Holly Toliver gave MSU the 25-23 set two win and evened the match at 1-1.
Out of intermission, the Illini sprinted out to a 4-0 lead in the third, before pushing its advantage out to 9-3 with the help of aces from Ali Stark and Birks. With the Spartans closing to within 12-8, the Illini took control of the set with a 7-2 run to push their lead to 19-10. After trading points, a Birks kill gave the Illini set point at 24, before Alexis Viliunas finished off the set with a kill for the 25-15 set win and a 2-1 edge in the match.
Following an early 7-7 tie in the fourth, the Spartans raced out to an 11-8 advantage. Taking advantage of back-to-back MSU errors, the Illini put together a 10-2 run to take a 18-13 lead and turn the momentum of the set back towards the Orange and Blue. MSU closed within two at 21-19, but four-straight Illini points, including a Crittenden and Bastianelli block – the team's 14th of the match - sealed the 25-19 set win and the 3-1 victory.
As a team, the Illini posted a .284 hitting percentage, while limiting the Spartans to a .165 hitting percentage and out-blocked MSU, 14-5. UI also registered six service aces on the night.
Viliunas orchestrated the Illini offense with 41 assists in her first start of the season, while adding nine digs and four kills in the match.
Brandi Donnelly recorded her sixth 20-dig performance of the season and the 16th of her career with 21 on the night, while Bastianelli continued her strong play at the net as the freshman equaled her career-high with eight block assists and added one solo block in the win.
Illinois continues its B1G weekend on Saturday (Oct. 31) when the Illini host No. 25 Michigan in Huff Hall on Halloween Night. Fans that come to the match in costume will get free candy. The match is slated to start at 7 p.m. CT and can be seen on BTN Plus. Â
