LINCOLN, Neb. – Illinois volleyball dropped a four-set Big Ten contest to #1 Nebraska at the Bob Devaney Sports Center on Sunday afternoon.
The Illini moved to 14-12 this year with a 9-7 record in Big Ten play. The top-ranked Huskers improved to 25-0 this season with a 16-0 league mark.
Raina Terry led the Orange and Blue with 20 kills in the loss, the 24th time this year she has paced the Illini squad. Brooke Mosher tallied her 12th double-double of the year when she posted 33 assists and 13 digs. Caroline Barnes added a team-best 14 digs, while Cari Bohm amassed six blocks. Jessica Nunge, Vanessa Pan, Barnes and Mosher each recorded an ace in the match, with Nunge pacing the squad with a pair.
How it happened
The Fighting Illini got off to a slow start, trailing 5-1 to begin the opening set. Offensive woes continued for Illinois, with the team taking a timeout with the deficit at six points. After trailing 15-5, a 3-0 turn sparked by a Terry kill led to Nebraska's first break of the frame. An ace from Mosher cut the Husker lead to five, but three straight points from the opposition led to the Orange and Blue's final timeout of the set, down 18-10. The Illini added a 3-0 rally with Nunge behind the service line, but it was not enough to overcome the deficit, as the Illini fell, 25-14, in the first set.
Nebraska held the momentum to start the second set, with Illinois burning its first timeout while trailing, 10-3. Back-to-back kills from Nunge helped the team come within four of the opposition, but a pair of aces from the Huskers put the Illini behind, 14-6. The Orange and Blue finished the frame hitting -.167 as a team and allowed a 6-0 run to close out the set, falling 25-14.
A 6-0 scoring run with Nunge serving helped the team earn the 7-4 edge in the third set, resulting in a Nebraska timeout. The Indiana native added a pair of points out of the break, including an ace to put the Illini ahead, 9-4. The teams went back-and-forth, but three straight points for the Huskers gave the opposition the 19-17 advantage, leading to the Fighting Illini's final timeout of the set. Both teams battled late in the frame, with a kill by Terry leveling the set at 21. A kill by Kayla Burbage helped the Orange and Blue fend off match point, and an error by Nebraska sent the set into extra points. Back-to-back kills from Terry helped the Illini end the frame on a 4-0 run and gave Illinois the 26-24 victory in the third set.
Illinois fell behind, 11-7, in the fourth frame, leading to a timeout for the Illini. Burbage began a 3-0 run for the Illini with a kill from the pin, putting the team within a pair of the Husker lead, before the opposition used a break of its own. Back and forth, the teams battled, but a long rally ending in a stuff by Mosher and Bohm led to Nebraska's final timeout of the set with the Illini trailing, 19-18. An ace from Nebraska forced the Orange and Blue's final timeout of the set, down 22-19. Despite an ace from Barnes cutting the Husker advantage to one, the Illini dropped the final frame, 25-22.
Up Next
Illinois returns to Huff Hall for a match against Ohio State on Wednesday night. First serve against the Buckeyes is slated for 8 p.m. on Big Ten Network.
Notes
- Starters: Brooke Mosher, Raina Terry, Kayla Burbage, Kennedy Collins, Lily Barry, Cari Bohm and Caroline Barnes
- Illinois moved to 6-4 with this lineup.
- The Illini wore long-sleeved navy jerseys, moving to 4-2 while donning those.
- The Illinois volleyball program moved to 8-34-1 against Nebraska all time.
- In four-set matches, the Illini are 6-3.
- Head coach Chris Tamas owns a 1-11 record against the Huskers.
- Barnes added double-digit digs for the 14th time this season, tallying 14 in the match.
- Terry amassed 20 kills, the 19th time in her career she hit the 20-kill mark.
- Of the outside hitter's 20 kills, 10 came in the third set, when she did not surrender a hitting error and posting a .625 clip.
- Attendance on Sunday afternoon was called at 8,584.
