ILLINOIS VS. THE FIELD
The No. 6 Illinois volleyball team is set to open the 2019 season with a home-and-home series with No. 19 Tennessee this weekend.Â
The Illini will travel to Knoxville, Tenn., to take on the Vols in their season opener on Friday (Aug. 30) night in Thompson-Boiling Arena at 7 p.m. CT, before returning to Huff Hall for the 2019 home opener on Sunday at 1 p.m. CT.Â
The Illini lead in the all-time series with the Vols, 4-2, and have won the last three meetings, including a 3-1 win on Sept. 2, 2011 in the most recent meeting between the two programs.
ILLINI TABBED NO. 6 IN AVCAÂ PRESEASON POLL
After a historic season that included a NCAA Final Four appearance in 2018, the Illinois volleyball team will open 2019 ranked No. 6 in the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Preseason Poll. Illinois joinsÂ
Illinois joins seven Big Ten schools ranked the AVCA Preseason Poll and are the fourth-highest behind No. 2 Nebraska, No. 3 Minnesota and No. 5 Wisconsin, with No. 8 Penn State, No. 15 Michigan and No. 17 Purdue also making appearances in the rankings.
Along with their conference foes, the Illini will face three other opponents in the top-20, including No. 13 Washington, No. 16 Marquette and No. 19 Tennessee, with UCF, Loyola Marymount and Colorado also receiving votes.
ILLINI PICKED FIFTH IN B1G PRESEASON POLL
The Illinois volleyball team was picked to finish fifth in the league standings in 2019, the conference announced on Monday (August 26). Wisconsin was chosen as the conference favorite for the 2019 volleyball season as voted on by the Big Ten coaches, while Nebraska was picked to finish second and Minnesota was tabbed third. Penn State and the Illini round out the top five in the preseason poll in fourth and fifth, respectively. Â
QUADE TABBED UNANIMOUSÂ PRESEASON ALL-B1G
Illinois volleyball senior Jacqueline Quade was named a unanimous Preseason All-Big Ten honoree as voted on by the Big Ten Conference coaches, with the No. 6 Illini picked to finish fifth in the league standings for the second-straight season, the conference announced on Monday (August 26).
It is the first such honor for Quade, who collected American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) First-Team All-America honors as well as unanimous All-Big Ten First-Team accolades in a breakout junior campaign.
In her first year as a six-rotation player a season ago, Quade paced the Illini offense with a 4.24 kills per set mark on a .265 hitting percentage, while totaling 625 points on the season to rank sixth in the nation for a 4.73 points per set average. The MVP of the 2018 B1G/Pac-12 Challenge, Quade also registered 254 digs, 63 blocks and 32 service aces on the season. She owned nine double-doubles on the season, as well as registered 10 20-kill matches.
Quade was also named to the NCAA National Championship All-Tournament Team after leading the Illini with 28 kills on a .237 hitting percentage – just one kill off her career-high – and 13 digs in the team's National Semifinal match against Nebraska at the NCAA Final Four last December.
ROSTER RUNDOWN
The Illini return 10 members from the 2018 NCAA National Semifinal squad, including American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) All-American Jacqueline Quade and All-Big Ten Second-Team honoree Ashlyn Fleming, who join classmates Beth Prince and Caroline Welsh for their senior season in Champaign.Â
Juniors Megan Cooney, Morgan O'Brien, Kylie Bruder and Emily Hollowell, sophomore Taylor Kuper and redshirt-freshman Diana Brown complete the returning roster.Â
Joining the squad for 2019 are Auburn sophomore transfer Mica Allison, redshirt-freshman Bruna Vrankovic and freshmen Kennedy Collins, Rylee Hinton, Kyla Swanson, Ellie Holzman, Alyssa Eske and Madison Chi.Â
HEAD COACH CHRIS TAMAS ENTERS THIRD SEASON AT THE HELM OF ILLINI VOLLEYBALL
Chris Tamas is entering is third season as head coach of the Fighting Illini volleyball program in 2019 after being named to the position in February 2017. Tamas (pronounced Thomas) is the eighth head coach in Illinois history.
In just two seasons at the helm of the program, Tamas has made an immediate impact on Illinois volleyball and owns an overall record of 55-15 (.786), including a 29-11 (.725) mark in the nation's toughest volleyball league, the Big Ten Conference.
Illinois experienced one of its most successful seasons ever in 2018 under Tamas, who was named American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Northeast Region Coach of the Year. The Illini made the program's fourth-ever appearance in the NCAA National Semifinals as the No. 3 overall seed in the tournament – riding a 17-match win streak into the Final Four - and ended the season ranked No. 3 in the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Coaches Poll. The team registered a 32-4 overall record and finished in second place in the Big Ten Conference with a 17-3 mark, with the 32 victories ranking tied for fourth-most wins in school history.
STRONG SCHEDULE SET FOR ILLINI IN 2019
The 2018 schedule features 29 matches and is highlighted by 11 matches at Huff Hall. This season the Illini will take on another strong slate of opponents with 13 NCAA Tournament participants, including seven Sweet 16 teams and three Elite Eight foes and will face national runner-up Nebraska in their Big Ten Conference opener at home on September 27.
Schedule Notes:
• Ranked in the final AVCA poll: 14 matches vs. 10 teams, 1 match vs. RV
• RPI Top 50: 16 matches vs. 12 teams
• 2018 Conference Champions/Tournament Champions: 3 (Illinois State, UCF, Minnesota)
NCAA Tournament:
• Qualifiers: 13 (Tennessee, Washington, Colorado, Illinois State, UCF, Marquette, Loyola Marymount, Nebraska, Purdue, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Penn State, Michigan)
• NCAA Second Round: 10 (Loyola Marymount, Tennessee, Washington, Penn State, Michigan, Marquette, Wisconsin, Nebraska, Purdue, Minnesota)
• Sweet 16: 7 (Washington, Marquette, Penn State, Michigan, Wisconsin, Nebraska, Minnesota)
• Elite Eight: 3 (Nebraska, Penn State, Wisconsin)
• National Runner-Up: 1 (Nebraska | Sept 27)
OPENING NIGHT SUCCESS
The Illini have had tremendous success on opening night, going 35-10 all time in the first match of the season. Illinois has lost just one season opener since 1999, starting the new millennium with a 12-match winning streak from 2000-2011, before dropping the 2012 lid-lifter at Dayton. Illinois swept UNCW at the Colorado State Tournament to open last season.
Illinois is even more successful in home openers, going 38-7 all time in the first home match of the year. The Orange and Blue have won 21 their last 22 home openers, including last season's straight-sets victory over Northern Iowa in the Illini Classic on September 14. Since making the move to Huff Hall in 1990, Illinois is 26-2 in the first home match of the season.Â
The Illini's 2019 home opener is set for this Sunday, September 1, as they host the No. 19 Vols at 1 p.m. CT in Huff Hall.Â
ILLINI ADVANCE TO FOURTH-EVER NCAA FINAL FOUR IN HISTORIC 2018 SEASON
The Illini are coming off an historic 2018 season that saw the Orange & Blue make the program's fourth appearance in the NCAA National Semifinals after earning the No. 3 overall seed in the NCAA Tournament. The Illini ended the season with a 32-4 overall record – with the 32 wins ranking fourth-most in program history - and finished in second place in the Big Ten Conference with a 17-3 mark.
