EAST LANSING, Mich. – The Illinois volleyball team fell to No. 16 Michigan State, 3-0 (25-16, 25-20, 25-22) on Saturday (Nov. 5) night in the Jenison Field House as sophomore Ali Bastianelli paced the Illini with eight kills on 15 swings and only three errors for a .333 hitting percentage to go along with seven blocks in the setback.
The Illini fall to 14-11 on the season and 7-7 in the Big Ten Conference, while the Spartans improve to 21-5 and 10-4 in the league.
Senior Michelle Strizak added a team-high nine kills and three blocks, while sophomore setter Jordyn Poulter turned in 31 assists and four blocks on the night.
It was a tight start to the opening set as both teams traded points for an early 7-7 tie, before the Spartans grabbed the momentum with a 6-1 run to build a 13-8 advantage. The Illini closed to within four at 19-15 on an MSU attack error, but the Spartans then finished of the first stanza by scoring the next six of seven points for the 25-16 win.
MSU continued its strong play to jump out to a quick 5-1 lead after a kill from senior Naya Crittenden opened action in the second set. Trailing 10-2, the Illini took the next four of five points to trim the deficit to 11-6, capped by a Bastianelli kill. After three-straight MSU points extended the lead to 14-6, the Illini fought back to cut the score to 19-17 after a 6-2 Illini run. The two teams went back-and-forth as a Strizak kill again brought the Illini to within 20-18, but four-straight MSU points set up set point for the home team at 24-18. A kill from freshman Jacqueline Quade, followed by a Crittenden solo block made it 24-20, before an Illini service error gave the Spartans a 2-0 lead in the match.
Out of intermission, it was another close start to the third as the Illini held a 7-6 lead before four-straight blocks propelled the Spartans to a 10-7 edge. Back-to-back Illini points cut the advantage to one at 10-9, but another three-straight points stalled the UI rally. A kill from senior Katie Stadick brought the Illini within 17-14, before a 7-1 run put MSU just one point from victory at 24-15. The Illini then rallied to fight off seven match points – including a pair of Strizak kills and three-straight blocks – to cut the lead to 24-22, but a serve into the net ended the comeback attempt and the match in favor of the Spartans.
The Illini were held to a .181 hitting percentage and nine blocks, while the Spartans registered a .290 hitting percentage and 14 stuffs in the match. Senior Naya Crittenden and freshman Jacqueline Quade each added seven kills for the Orange and Blue.
Junior Brandi Donnelly totaled a team-high 15 digs in the contest.
Illinois returns to Champaign next weekend to open its final four-match home stand of the season, taking on No. 3 Wisconsin on Friday (Nov. 11), before facing off against No. 2 Minnesota on Saturday (Nov. 12) night. Both matches are slated for 7 p.m. CT in Huff Hall.
