University of Illinois
No. 10 Nebraska
Illini Prepped for NCAA Regionals in Austin
December 8, 2021 | Volleyball
Preview
| WEEK 16: NCAA REGIONALS | |
|---|---|
| Match 34: Regional Semifinal vs. No. 10 Nebraska | Thursday, Dec. 9 // 8:30 p.m. CT // Gregory Gymnasium // Austin, Tx. |
| Regional Semifinal: No. 2 Texas vs. No. 15 Washington | Thursday, Dec. 9 // 6:30 p.m. CT // Gregory Gymnasium // Austin, Tx. |
| Regional Final | Saturday, Dec. 11 // 9 p.m. CT // Gregory Gymnasium // Austin, Tx. |
| Live Streaming | ESPNU // Watch |
| Radio | WDWS 1400 // Listen |
| Live Stats | ncaa.com |
| Tickets | Buy Now! |
| Related Links | NCAA Championship Central // Interactive Bracket // Printable Bracket |
| Printable Notes | Illinois // Nebraska // Texas // Washington |
| Stats | Illinois // Nebraska // Texas // Washington |
| Series History | Nebraska: Illinois trails, 8-31-1 | Last Match: Illinois lost, 0-3, on 11/4/2021 | Streak: Lost 6 | Results Texas: Series tied, 7-7 | Last Match: Illinois lost, 2-3, on 9/14/2013 | Streak: Lost 1 | Results Washington: Series tied, 3-3 | Last Match: Illinois lost, 1-3, on 9/3/2021 | Streak Lost 2 | Results |
| Shop | Online Store |
| Social Media | @IlliniVBall  | #Illini | @IlliniVBall  | Facebook  | YouTube  |
FIRST SERVE | WEEK 16 // ILLINOIS SET FOR NCAA REGIONALS
With back-to-back 3-1 wins over West Virginia and reigning National Champion and No. 7 seed Kentucky, the Illinois volleyball earned its third trip to the NCAA Sweet 16 under head coach Chris Tamas and its 10th Regional appearance in the last 14 seasons.
Illinois will meet a familiar foe in Big Ten Conference member and No. 10 seed Nebraska in the Austin Regional Semifinal on Thursday (December 9) at Gregory Gymnasium on the campus of the University of Texas in Austin. The match will be televised on ESPNU.
The opening match of the Austin Regional between host and No. 2 seed Texas and No. 15 seed Washington is set for 6:30 p.m. CT on ESPNU. The winners of the two matches will then meet in the Regional Final on Saturday at 9 p.m. CT on ESPNU for the chance to advance to the NCAA Final Four in Columbus, Ohio on December 16 & 18.
The National Semifinals and Championship Final will be held in Nationwide Arena, with the national semifinal matches broadcasting on ESPN and the championship match airing on ESPN2.
Illinois is making its 27th NCAA Tournament appearance in program history and fourth in five years under head coach Chris Tamas.
The Big Ten led all conferences with eight teams selected from the league to compete in the championship tournament, with six schools advancing to the Sweet 16 as No. 4 Wisconsin, No. 6 Purdue, No. 9 Ohio State, No. 10 Nebraska and No. 12 Minnesota joined the Illini in the NCAA Regionals.
ILLINOIS VS. THE FIELD
The Illinois volleyball team is very familiar with all three opponents at this week's Austin Regional, with the Illini facing off against Big Ten Conference foe Nebraska twice this season and Washington once earlier this season in the Big Ten/Pac-12 Challenge in Huff Hall.
The Illini trail the all-time series with the Huskers, 8-31-1, including a 0-7-1 mark in neutral-site matches and dropped both meetings with Nebraska in 2021.
Sophomore Raina Terry led the Illini with 19 kills in the two meetings this season, with junior Kennedy Collins adding 14 kills on a .345 hitting percentage and a team-high eight blocks. The Illini had a strong showing at the service line, totaling 20 aces to the Huskers' 11, with senior Taylor Kuper and Terry each serving up five aces. Defensively, Kuper totaled 27 digs for a 4.50 digs per set.
The Illini and Texas have met 14 times, with the series tied at 7-7. The two teams last met in the 2013 season, with the then-No. 2 Longhorns taking a 3-2 in Huff Hall.
The series between Illinois and Washington is also tied at 3-3, with the two teams meeting four of the last five sasons in the Big Ten/Pac-12 Challenge. The Huskies took this season's earlier meeting, 3-1, with graduate student Megan Cooney leading all players with 14 kills, while adding 10 digs for her sixth-career double-double. Joining her was junior Kennedy Collins with 13 kills, junior Jessica Nunge with 12 kills and sophomore Raina Terry with 11 kills to go along with a match-high four aces.
Redshirt-junior Diana Brown registered her 27th-career double-double – and her third in four matches this season – with 47 assists and a match-high 17 digs. Defensively, junior Kyla Swanson led with five blocks, while senior Taylor Kuper added 10 digs on the night.
The Huskies also have a familiar face on the coaching staff with former Illini assistant Jason Mansfield, who coached in Champaign during the 2016 and 2017 seasons.
THE ILLINI IN THE NCAA TOURNAMENT
Illinois is making its 27th overall appearance in the NCAA Tournament and its 11th postseason appearance in the last 14 seasons. The Illini own a 46-26 (.639) all-time record in postseason play. The Illini have advanced to Regionals on nine occasions since 2008, including a run to the National Championship match in 2011 and a Final Four trip in 2018.
Prior to this season, the Illini's last NCAA Tournament appearance came in 2019, with Illinois falling in a hard-fought five-set battle against Utah in the opening round on the campus of BYU.
COONEY GARNERS AVCA NORTHEAST ALL-REGION ACCOLADES
Illinois volleyball graduate student Megan Cooney added another honor to her collection as she was named American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Northeast All-Region, the organization announced on Tuesday (December 7).
Most recently named All-Big Ten First-Team, Cooney helped lead Illinois to its third NCAA Regional appearance under head coach Chris Tamas this season. The 'Iron Woman' of Illini volleyball, she became the program's career sets played leader with 546 sets played, while also ranking third all-time with 147 matches played during her five-year career, including starting all 33 contests this season.
The 2021 CoSIDA Academic All-District Second-Team honoree ranks second on the team with 376 kills for a 3.03 kills per set on a .267 hitting percentage and with 17 kills in the Illini's second round win over No. 7 seed Kentucky, the Topeka, Kansas native moved over 1,500 kills in her career. She also ranks third on the team with 282 digs and 83 blocks, while sitting fourth with 29 service aces on the season.
ILLINI STUN NO. 7 KENTUCKY TO ADVANCE TO NCAA SWEET 16
Illinois is Sweet 16 bound for the third time under head coach Chris Tamas as the Illini shocked defending national champion and No. 7 seed Kentucky in a 3-1 (25-22, 20-25, 25-10, 25-21) victory in the NCAA Tournament second round on Saturday (December 4) in Memorial Coliseum.
With the win, head coach Chris Tamas earned his 100th career win, with all 100 victories coming as the leader of the Illini.
Sophomore Raina Terry had a monster match for the Illini, pouring in a career-high 27 kills to tie for sixth-most in a postseason match in program history. Joining her in double figures was graduate student Megan Cooney with 17 kills on a .302 attack clip and junior Kennedy Collins with 10 kills on a .381 hitting percentage. With her 17 kills on the night, Cooney moved over 1,500 kills in her career and currently sits 10th all-time with 1,507 kills.
Redshirt-junior Diana Brown handed out 52 assists as she led the Illini to a .331 team hitting percentage, while also registering 16 digs for her 40th career double-double and 16th of the season.
Defensively, senior Taylor Kuper turned in a match-high 23 digs, her 18th-career 20-dig match and the 11th of the season, while adding nine assists and a match-high three service aces to put her at 50 aces on the season. The Lenexa, Kansas native also reached the 1,400 digs mark in her career and moved into fifth place all-time with 1,411 career digs.
NCAA FIRST & SECOND ROUND STANDOUTS
Sophomore Raina Terry had a dominating weekend in the Illini's opening matches of the NCAA Tournament, totaling a team-high 45 kills for an outstanding 5.63 kills per set on a .320 hitting percentage, while adding 17 digs and three blocks.
Graduate student Megan Cooney registered 32 kills for a 4.00 kills per set mark on a .333 hitting percentage, while junior Kennedy Collins turned 21 kills on a .366 attack clip and seven blocks and classmate Kyla Swanson added 17 kills on a .552 hitting percentage and a team-leading 10 blocks.
Redshirt-junior Diana Brown led the Illini to a .319 team hitting percentage as she handed out 105 assists for a 13.13 assists per set mark, while also contributing 30 digs, five blocks and three aces.
Defensively, senior Taylor Kuper recorded 49 digs for a 6.13 digs per set average as the Illini held their opponents to a .196 hitting percentage.
IRON WOMAN COONEY BECOMES ALL-TIME LEADER IN CAREER SETS
Graduate student Megan Cooney has been a stalwart in the Illini lineup since she has been a freshman - playing in 147 of 151 in her five years. Her 147 matches played also sits third all-time in program history behind Chris Schwarz (151, 1985-88) and Mary Eggers (150, 1985-88).
On October 29 at Rutgers, Cooney became the all-time leader in career sets played at Illinois and has currently played in 554 sets in her storied career. She passes Illinois Hall of Famer Mary Eggers' previous program record of 516 sets played that she established from 1985-88.
After reaching the 1,000 kills mark a season ago, she most recently moved over 1,500 kills in Saturday's win over the Wilcats and currently sits in 10th place in program history with 1,507 kills in her career. She also owns 546 digs and 346 blocks in her five years at Illinois.
TERRY, ILLINI SERVING UP THE FIRE
Sophomore Raina Terry owns 54 service aces in 124 sets played on the season, ranking her 12th in the NCAA and first in the Big Ten.
Her 54 aces also sits second all-time for service aces in a single season in the Illinois record book, with Tina Rogers (1992) owning the program record with 67 in 108 sets.
The Sophomore's 0.44 aces per set mark also ranks 29th nationally and paces the conference.
As a team, the Illini rank second nationally and pace the Big Ten with 232 service aces on the season, with senior Taylor Kuper joining Terry with 50 or more aces in 2021 after reaching that mark in Saturday's win at No. 7 seed Kentucky. The Illini average 1.87 aces per set to lead the conference and rank 13th in the NCAA.
ILLINI IN NCAA & B1G RANKINGS
• Illinois is second the nation and leads the Big Ten in total service aces (232).
• Illinois ranks 13th in the nation and leads the Big Ten in service aces per set (1.87).
• Illinois is 12th in the NCAA in team kills (1,642).
• Illinois is 19th in the nation in team assists (1,496).
• Illinois is 27th in the NCAA and fourth in the conference in team total blocks (282.0).
• Illinois is 27th in the nation in team total attacks (4,329).
• Illinois is 43rd in team digs (1,827).
• Illinois is 81st in the NCAA in kills per set (13.24).
• Illinois is 85th in the NCAA in hitting percentage (.232).
• Illinois is 87th in the NCAA in assists per set (12.06).
• Illinois is 90th in the NCAA in blocks per set (2.27).
• Sophomore Raina Terry is 12th in the NCAA and leads the Big Ten with 54 total aces and is 29th nationally and second in the conference with 0.44 aces per set.
• Senior Taylor Kuper ranks 17th in the NCAA and second in the Big Ten in aces (50) and is 55th in the nation and fifth in the Big Ten with 0.40 aces per set.
• Kuper ranks 66th in the NCAA and is fourth the conference in digs per set (4.57) and is 18th in the nation and first in the Big Ten with 567 digs on the season.
• Terry also ranks 34th in the NCAA and is fourth in the conference with 523.0.5 total points on the season and is 29th nationally and sits fourth in the Big Ten with 1,291 attacks on the season, while also sitting 49th with 436 total kills.
• Redshirt-junior Diana Brown ranks fifth in the NCAA and is second in the conference with 1,291 total assists, while also sitting 42nd nationally and sixth in the Big Ten with 10.41 assists per set.
• Junior Kennedy Collins ranks 59th in the NCAA and ninth in the Big Ten with 125.0 total blocks.
KUPER HITS 1,000 CAREER DIGS, CLOSING IN ON ACES RECORD
A constant in the Illini lineup through her four years at Illinois, senior Taylor Kuper reached a career milestone in the Missouri match on Sept. 17 as she collected a match-high 18 digs, with her 14th dig of the match marking her 1,000 career dig. Kuper became the 16th Illini to reach that mark and is currently in fifth place in program history with 1,411 career digs.
The Lenexa, Kansas native also owns 171 career service aces and moved into third place in program history with four total aces in wins at Rutgers and No. 13 Penn State. Illini Hall of Famer Mary Eggers owns the all-time record with 180 aces from 1985-88, with Laura Bush (1987-90) sitting in second with 176.
KUPER MOVING UP SINGLE SEASON DIGS CHART
Senior Taylor Kuper has totaled 567 digs during the 2021 season, ranking fifth all-time for single season digs in program history.
Jennifer Beltran holds the record with 623 digs during the 2010 season, with Kuper needing just eight digs to move into a tie for second place with Brandi Donnelly, who registered 575 digs during the 2014 campaign.
NCAA ACTIVE CAREER LEADERS
Graduate student Megan Cooney ranks sixth in the NCAA active career leaders with 554 sets played, while also siting 17th with 147 matches played and 34th with 1,507 kills in her five-year career.
Senior Taylor Kuper is also 12th in NCAA active career leaders with 171 career service aces.
SECOND SET SUCCESS
Illinois owns a 20-1 record when winning the second set in 2021 and are 2-10 when losing the second set, with Saturday's win marking only the second time all season that the Illini have dropped the second set and went on to win. The first win came in UI's five-set upset of then-No. 4 Purdue on September 30 in West Lafayette, Ind.
HEAD COACH CHRIS TAMAS IN FIFTH SEASON AT THE HELM
Chris Tamas is in his fifth season as head coach of the Fighting Illini volleyball program in 2021 after being named to the position in February 2017. Tamas (pronounced Thomas) is the eighth head coach in Illinois history.
Tamas has made an immediate impact on Illinois volleyball in his five seasons at the helm of the program, with Saturday's win over reigning National Champions and No. 7 seed Kentucky marking his 100th career win, with all 100 victories coming as the leader of the Illini. Tamas owns an overall record of 100-51 (.662), including a 59-39 (.602) mark in the nation's toughest volleyball league, the Big Ten Conference, as well as five NCAA Tournament appearances, three NCAA Regional appearances and a trip to the Final Four in 2018.
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.
