BOZEMAN, Mont. – The Illinois volleyball team opened the Chris Tamas era with a dominating 3-0 (25-15, 25-16, 25-12) win over Gonzaga in the opening match of the Montana State Bobcat Classic as the first-year Illini head coach earned his first career collegiate victory Friday (August 25) morning at Shroyer Gym.
"We're really proud of the team effort today," said Tamas. "It was a nice first match and really well-played as a team. We had good serving and passing today, so that really helped us get off to a good start with holding [Gonzaga] to a low hitting percentage and us hitting a really good percentage. We look at things from a team perspective and we hit really well as a team today."
The Illini were efficient on the offensive side of the ball, registering a .434 hitting percentage, including a .522 clip in the final set. Sophomore Jacqueline Quade paced the Illini with a team-high 10 kills, while junior Ali Bastianelli posted nine kills on 11 swings and no errors for an .818 hitting percentage to go along with nine blocks.
It was a back-and-forth start to the match as redshirt-sophomore Beth Prince got the Illini started with a kill. From there the Illini settled into a rhythm with a Bastianelli kill on a slide play giving UI a 16-10 lead. Following an attack error, the Illini strung together five-straight points to take control at 21-11, before a Bastianelli block sealed set one, 25-15.
The Illini continued the momentum from the opening set to jump out to a quick 5-1 edge following a Bastianelli kill. Gonzaga would get as close as 13-7, but an 8-3 Illini run – capped by an ace from senior Brandi Donnelly – put the set out of reach at 21-10. Junior Blayke Hranicka then finished it off with a kill for a 25-16 set two win.
The offense continued to thrive in the third period as Poulter quarterbacked the Illini to a .522 hitting percentage, while an early block party – including three Bastianelli stuffs – powered the Illini to quick 12-2 lead. It was all Illinois the rest of the way as a kill from freshman Kylie Kuyava-Deberg made it 20-9, before a Zaga hitting error gave the Illini the set and the win.
Poulter led the Illini attack with 35 assists and added four blocks in the win, while Donnelly recorded a team-high 10 digs.
Freshman Kylie Kuyava-Deberg, Morgan O'Brien and Tyanna Omazic made their Illini debut in the match, with Kuyava-Deberg earning her first career start in the Orange and Blue.
As a team, the Illini totaled 12 blocks on the day to Gonzaga's two, while the Zags hit just a .021 hitting percentage in the match.
The Illini continue play at the Bobcat Classic as they take on host Montana State on Friday night at 8 p.m. CT.
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