ANN ARBOR, Mich. – Freshman Ali Bastianelli had a career night in a homecoming for the Marysville, Mich., native, but it would not be enough as the No. 18 Fighting Illini fell to Michigan, 3-1 (25-23, 22-25, 25-27, 20-25), in the regular-season finale on Friday night (Nov. 27) in Cliff Keen Arena.
The Illini finish the regular-season at 19-12 and 10-10 in the Big Ten, while the Wolverines also finish at 19-12 and 9-11 in the conference.
Bastianelli totaled 11 kills on 26 attacks for a .346 hitting percentage to go along with 11 blocks, while junior Katie Roustio tallied her fourth double-digit kill outing of the season with 10 on the night and had a career-high four blocks.
In a competitive opening set that saw nine ties and five lead changes, neither team grabbed more than a two-point lead. The Illini held a two-point advantage seven times throughout out the set, including a 23-21 edge, but the Wolverines battled back to even the score at 23-23. A kill from redshirt-senior Jocelynn Birks, followed by a Bastianelli and Naya Crittenden block sent the visitors to a 25-23 set one win.
The Wolverines jumped out to an early 4-1 lead in the second set and pushed it out to 7-4 before the Illini closed with 9-8 on a Bastianelli kill. An 8-3 run from the home team gave Michigan control of the second with a 17-11 edge, but the Orange and Blue did not quit. Facing a 23-17 deficit they put together four-straight points to cut the deficit to 23-21, but two Clarie Kiefer-Wright kills gave the Wolverines the set at 25-22.
It was a back-and-forth start to the third with 11 ties through the first 28 points of the set. With the score knotted at 14-14, the Wolverines strung together four-straight points for the first significant lead of the period at 18-14. The Illini responded with a 6-0 run to take a 20-18 lead, before extending it to 23-20 on a Bastianelli and Crittenden block. Despite the deficit, the Wolverines fought back with four-straight points to earn set point at 24-23. The Illini saved a pair of set points before Michigan took the third, 27-25, and a 2-1 advantage in the match.
In another competitive start to a set, the two teams went back-and-forth before entering an 8-8 tie in the fourth. The Wolverines then broke the tie with a 7-1 run that lead to a 15-9 advantage for the home team. Trailing 18-10, the Illini turned the tables on Michigan with a 10-2 run, including seven-straight points from Roustio, freshman Jordyn Poulter and junior Katie Stadick to knot the score at 20-20. The Wolverines then scored the next five points to win the set, 25-20, and the match, 3-1.
As a team, the Illini out-blocked the Wolverines, 19 to seven, but were out-dug 84 to 63. UI hit at a .226 clip, while Michigan posted a .230 hitting percentage.
Birks led the Illini with 14 kills and notched her 12th double-double of the season with 13 digs, while sophomore Brandi Donnelly totaled a team-high 16 digs and senior Julia Conard added 14 digs.
Poulter recorded 49 assists as well as a season-high nine blocks.
The Illini will now turn their attention to the NCAA Tournament and the NCAA Selection Show, airing on Sunday night (Nov. 29) at 8 p.m. CT on ESPNU. NCAA Tournament first and second round action begins next weekend on Friday and Saturday (Dec. 4-5) at campus sites.
For more Fighting Illini volleyball news, stay tuned to FIGHTINGILLINI.com and follow the team on Twitter @IlliniVBall or like Fighting Illini Volleyball on Facebook.
