PISCATAWAY, N.J. – Illinois closed its time on the East Coast with a road sweep over Rutgers on Saturday night at Jersey Mike's Arena. The Fighting Illini are now 5-1 in conference play, their best start since 2011.
Taylor de Boer led the Illini with 16 kills, her sixth straight outing with double-digit kills. Swinging at a .379 clip, she also added two blocks.
Alyssa Aguayo also finished in double figures with 11 kills, three digs, a block, and an assist alongside a .333 hitting percentage.
Ashlyn Philpot amassed six kills, three blocks, and two digs. Kayla Burbage totaled four kills, five blocks, and a dig.
Kenna Phelan tallied 32 assists, nine digs, three kills, and a block, while Averie Hernandez tied her career-high with four aces.Â
With the Scarlet Knights holding an early one-point advantage in the opening set, the Illini used an 8-0 run with Kenzie Cogan at the service line to pull away and establish a 14-7 lead. The hosts stormed back with a 6-0 run, eventually tying the frame at 16, but the Orange and Blue answered right back. A 5-1 stretch from the away side put the set out of reach, with the Illini closing out the frame, 25-20.
In the second set, Illinois posted a 7-2 run to grab a 13-8 advantage. Though Rutgers accounted for the next two points, the Illini rattled off a 3-0 stretch to lengthen their lead to six. Though the Scarlet Knights halved their deficit shortly after, the Orange and Blue never trailed in the set en route to a 25-20 decision.
After scoring the first three points of the third frame, the Illini pieced together a 6-0 run to take an 11-4 edge. Rutgers responded with a strong scoring stretch, reducing its deficit to one, 14-13, before eventually tying the set at 19. With the frame knotted at 22, the Illini claimed three of the final four points of the night to close out the sweep.
NOTES
- Taylor de Boer led the Illini with 16 kills while also adding two blocks
- Had double-digit kills for the 13th time this season.
- Has 10+ kills in all six Big Ten matches and in eight of her last nine appearances overall.Â
- Has a block in nine of the last 10 matches and in 11 matches overall.
- Kenna Phelan tallied 32 assists, nine digs, three digs, and a block.
- Has at least eight digs in 10 outings this season.
- Has 8+ digs in three straight outings and in four of the last five.
- Posted at least three kills for the fifth time this season.
- Has multiple kills in each of the last three matches and in 10 appearances overall.
- Averie Hernandez collected four aces, an assist, a dig, and a block.
- Equaled her career-high with four aces.
- Her four aces are a new season-high.
- Has multiple aces in four matches this season.
- Kayla Burbage totaled four kills, five blocks, and a dig.
- Had 5+ blocks for the fourth time this season.
- Has made at least five blocks in each of the last three matches, a season-best streak.
- Has at least five blocks in four outings this season.
- Has at least three blocks in each of the last 10 matches.
- Has multiple blocks in 12 straight matches and in 14 appearances overall.
- Kenzie Cogan finished the night with seven digs.
- Has 7+ digs in four straight matches in five of her last six appearances.
- Ashlyn Philpot amassed six kills, three blocks, and two digs.
- Logged at least three blocks for the 12th time this season and for the fifth consecutive match.
- Made multiple digs for the fifth time this season.
- Has multiple digs in three straight outings.
- Alyssa Aguayo notched 11 kills, three digs, a block, and an assist alongside a .333 hitting percentage.
- Tallied 10+ kills for the 11th time this season.
- Has a block in each of the last five matches and in 13 appearances overall.
- Illinois finished with a .307 hitting percentage as a team, hitting at least .300 for the fifth time this season.
- The Illini have hit over .300 in three Big Ten matches this season.
- With a 5-1 Big Ten record, the Illini are off to their best start to conference play since 2011, when Illinois won its first nine Big Ten matches.
- Head coach Chris Tamas moved to 159-99 overall during his time at the helm of the Illini.
- Illinois extended its winning streak to three matches, tied for its longest streak of the season.
- The Illini moved to 18-1 all-time against Rutgers.
- UI holds a 9-0 record against the Scarlet Knights away from home.
- Illinois has won its last 18 matches against Rutgers.
- Illinois is now 5-1 in three-set matches this season.
- Illinois is now 5-2 in true road matches this season.
- The Illini moved to 3-0 when wearing navy sleeveless jerseys.
UP NEXT
Illinois (10-5, 5-1 B1G) resumes its four-match road swing next weekend with trips to Ohio State on Friday and Northwestern on Sunday. Both matches will stream on B1G+.
