SAINT LOUIS, Mo. – The Fighting Illini volleyball team put together an efficient performance in a 3-0 (25-20, 25-13, 25-11) win over Murray State that took just over one hour to complete on Saturday (Sept. 17) morning at the Billiken Invitational in Chaifetz Paviliion.
"We played clean and smooth, especially for a 10 a.m. match and after playing last night I thought our kids came out prepared," said head coach Kevin Hambly. "It took us a little while to adjust to them defensively in the first set, but we started to pick the lock and we did a really nice job against them at the end of the first and in the second set. Offensively, especially passing-wise, I thought we passed great. Our passers did a phenomenal job of moving and on tough serves, these deep serves, and not losing the handle that get a lot of people in trouble and I thought we handled it great."
For the fourth-straight match, the Illini (6-4) posted a team hitting percentage over .300 with a .483 mark against the Racers (5-6) – including a .667 clip in the third set. Freshman Jacqueline Quade put up a team-high 13 kills, while senior Naya Crittenden contributed 10 kills in the win.
Senior Katie Stadick added eight kills on 12 swings and no errors for a .667 hitting percentage.
The Illini raced out of the gates to start things with an early 5-1 lead, but the Racers pulled within 9-6 on a Rachel Giustino kill. UI responded by rattling off five-straight points to build a 14-6 edge following an MSU attacking error. After a Crittenden kill made it 20-12 in favor of the Illini, the Racers registered seven of the next 10 points to close with 23-19, but that would be as close as they would get as Illinois finished off the set on a Stadick kill.
It was another fast start in the second as a Crittenden kill gave the Illini a quick 5-1 advantage. The Racers continued to fight and pulled within 8-7 before a 12-2 run, including seven-straight points on the serve of senior Michelle Strizak, propelled Illinois to the 20-9 lead. The two teams traded points the rest of the way as the Illini went up 2-0 in the match.
Unlike the first two sets, it was a competitive start to the third with the teams tied early at 2-2. Holding just a two-point lead at 6-4, the Illini grabbed the momentum of the set with an 8-2 run to push its advantage out to 14-6 midway through the period. UI went back-and-forth with the Racers over the next several points, before the Illini – leading at 19-11 – scored six-straight points to take the set and the match.
The Illini got seven kills each from senior Michelle Strizak and sophomore Ali Bastianelli, who also paced the team with four blocks in the win. As a team, the Illini once again out-blocked its opponent, 7-1.
Sophomore setter Jordyn Poulter registered 42 assists and five digs against the Racers, while junior Brandi Donnelly posted 11 digs.
Defensively, the Illini held MSU to a .135 hitting percentage in the match, including a .029 mark in the third.
Illinois wraps up the Billiken Invitational this evening against host Saint Louis at 7 p.m. CT.
