CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – Illinois used a team-high 24 kills from Raina Terry to take down Rutgers, 3-1, at Huff Hall on Sunday afternoon.
The Fighting Illini improved to 8-10 on the season and 3-5 in Big Ten play, while the Scarlet Knights dropped to 9-9 overall and 1-7 against conference opponents.
Terry recorded her sixth outing with at least 20 kills and tallied a season-high four aces. Terry also registered four blocks and seven digs.
Jessica Nunge notched a season-high 12 kills alongside two aces.
Brooke Mosher secured her ninth double-double with 43 assists and 11 digs. Her 43 assists marked the sixth time she has finished with at least 40 this season.
Three Illini finished with double-digit digs: Barnes, who led the way with 12, Mosher (11), and Lily Barry (10).
The Orange and Blue recorded 10 blocks, their ninth match with double-digit stuffs. Cari Bohm led the way with five, while Terry and Kennedy Collins each tallied four.
How it happened
Illinois opened the match with two straght points before Rutgers responded with a 3-0 run to take its first lead of the afternoon. The Illini answered with a 4-1 run to retake an early two-point advantage. After Rutgers battled back and took a 14-12 lead, Illinois put together a 6-0 stretch, which included back-to-back Terry aces, to jump out to its biggest advantage of the set at 18-14. The Scarlet Knights knotted the frame at 20 before a 2-0 Illini run forced the visitors to call their second timeout. Terry recorded the final three points, all of which came from kills, to clinch a 25-22 first-set victory for the Orange and Blue.
The Illini used a 5-0 run early in the second set to pull ahead, 7-2. The Scarlet Knights cut their deficit to one point with a 3-1 run before going on a 5-0 stretch to take a 13-11 lead. Three points later and trailing 15-12, Illinois used its first timeout of the set. Rutgers then pieced together a 6-0 run to take a seven-point lead before ultimately taking the second frame, 25-17, and tying the match at one set apiece.
Neither side led by more than two points early, with the teams knotted at 10. Two separate 3-1 runs from the Orange and Blue put the hosts ahead, 16-14, but Rutgers continued to battle. With the Fighting Illini in front, 21-18, following Terry's fourth ace of the match, the Scarlet Knights tied the frame at 21 following a 3-0 run. In a back-and-forth set that featured 15 ties, the Illini secured the third frame with set-clinching kills from Terry and Nunge, 25-23.
Illinois came out strong in the fourth set, using a 4-0 run that included two Nunge aces to take a 4-1 advantage. The Illini extended their lead to five points, forcing Rutgers to use a timeout with the home side leading, 7-2. Two different 3-0 runs by the Orange and Blue forced the Scarlet Knights to use their final timeout midway through the frame with Illinois ahead, 14-6. The Illini continued to build onto their advantage, extending it to double digitis at 20-10 behind a big block from Collins and Mosher. Illinois closed the frame on a 5-1 run. A Terry kill, her 24th of the afternoon, sealed the win, with the Orange and Blue taking the set, 25-12, and the match, 3-1.
Up Next
Illinois hits the road for a two-match East Coast road trip, starting Friday at 6 p.m. CT against Maryland. The Fighting Illini will then have a rematch against the Scarlet Knights in Piscataway, N.J., on Sunday at 2 p.m. CT. Both matches will air on BTN+.
Notes
- Starters: Brooke Mosher, Raina Terry, Sarah Bingham, Kennedy Collins, Lily Barry, Cari Bohm and Caroline Barnes
- The Illini are 1-2 with this starting lineup this season.
- The Illini wore sleeveless white jerseys, moving to 5-1 while donning those.
- The Illinois volleyball program moved to 15-1 against Rutgers in the 16th meeting between the sides.
- Head coach Chris Tamas owns an 8-0 all-time record against the Scarlet Knights.
- Illinois moved to 5-2 in four-set matches this season.
- Kayla Burbage made her first appearance since Oct. 4, recording four kills and one block.
- Raina Terry registered four aces, her most in a match this season.
- Terry's four aces moved her into sole possession of sixth place in program history with 145 in her career.
- With 24 kills on Sunday, Terry recorded back-to-back outings with at least 20 kills (28 kills at Ohio State on Friday).
- Rutgers took the second set, 25-17, the first time the Scarlet Knights have won a set in Huff Hall in program history.
- Attendance on Sunday afternoon was called at 2,157.
