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CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – With the 2021 home schedule set to kick off this weekend with the 2021 Big Ten/Pac-12 Challenge on September 3-4, the Illinois volleyball team is excited to host the 10-year reunion for the Fighting Illini's 2011 National Runner-Up team as well as welcome back alums and United States Olympic Gold Medalists Michelle Bartsch-Hackley, Jordyn Poulter and Erin Virtue on Friday.
Prior to the Illini's home opener against No. 11 Washington at 8 p.m. CT in Huff Hall, there will be a pre-match recognition of the Olympians along with a special ceremony during the national anthem. The 2011 team will also be honored during the second and third sets. Giveaways will include USA-themed swag.
The 2011 season was an historic one for Illinois after finishing 32-5 and advancing to the program's third-ever NCAA National Semifinal and first-ever NCAA National Championship match and ending the season ranked No. 2 in the country.
The Illini began the year 20-0, the second most wins to start a season in school history, which resulted in the school's first No. 1 ranking the in the AVCA Coaches poll. The Illini also had the top-ranked RPI the entire season, thanks in large to part to a challenging schedule. Illinois won a school record 11 matches against ranked opponents, playing a school-best 15 matches against top-25 clubs as well as 27 matches against 19 NCAA qualifying teams.
Illinois finished second in the Big Ten with a 16-4 record, including sweeping the season series with Penn State for the first time ever.
Individually, Illinois hailed perhaps the best outside hitting combination in the country in seniors Colleen Ward, who became Illinois' fifth first-team All-American, and Bartsch-Hackley, who earned third-team All-America honors for the second-straight year. The Big Ten also honored Bartsch-Hackley and Ward as all-conference, while Bartsch-Hackley, Ward and Annie Luhrsen were named All-NCAA Tournament.
Bartsch-Hackley then joined fellow Illini legends Poulter and Virtue – an assistant coach with USA Volleyball - in helping lead Team USA to its first-ever gold medal in women's volleyball at the Tokyo Olympics earlier in the month. Bartsch-Hackley and Poulter became the first Illinois female athletes to earn gold medals and just the third and fourth Illini female athletes to medal at an Olympic Games following bronze medals from Tonya Buford-Bailey in the 400m hurdles at the 1996 Olympic Games and Aja Evans in bobsled at the 2014 Olympic Games.
The United States finished is tournament with a 7-1 record and dominated the playoff matches with sweeps in the quarterfinal, semifinal and championship rounds. For their efforts, five members of Team USA were named to the Olympic Dream Team, highlighted by Bartsch-Hackley being named the Best Outside Hitter and Poulter earning Best Setter of the tournament.
Bartsch-Hackley was a three-time All-American for Illinois from 2008-11 and led the Illini to the national championship match in 2011. Poulter was also a three-time All-American, including earning first-team accolades as a senior in 2018 as well as being named Big Ten Co-Setter of the Year, AVCA Northeast Region Player of the Year and a finalist for the Honda Award and led the Illini to the program's fourth-ever NCAA National Semifinal appearance. Virtue, who joined the U.S. Women's National Volleyball Team as a consultant coach in 2017 and moved into a full-time role with USA Volleyball in fall of 2018, was an AVCA Honorable Mention All-American setter during her time in the Orange and Blue from 2001-05.
Along with Friday's festivities, Saturday is College Colors Day and fans are encouraged to wear orange to "Orange Out" Huff Hall for the Illini's 2 p.m. CT match against Colorado. The first 1,000 fans will get "Back in the Fight" shirts.
For more Fighting Illini volleyball news, stay tuned to FightingIllini.com and follow @IlliniVBall on social media: Twitter | Instagram | Facebook.
