NORMAL, Ill. – The IUPUI volleyball team looked to position itself for a tournament title with a good showing Friday night against Illinois State, but the tournament host Redbirds were clicking on all cylinders en route to claiming a 3-0 win over IUPUI in the final match of the day at the Country Financial Redbird Classic.
The loss snapped IUPUI's three-match winning streak and dropped its record to 6-4, while Illinois State continued their impressive play early in the season while improving to 6-2.
Kaitlyn Hickey led the way with 12 kills bettering the next Jag by six kills. Playing in her hometown,
Logan Walling had six kills and hit .417, but passing woes in the first two sets made it difficult to get IUPUI's middle hitters involved consistently throughout the match.
The home team came out sharp in their first night match in front of their home crowd and jumped on IUPUI early taking a 16-7 lead forcing the Jags to use both of their timeouts. An ISU attack error and a kill from Hickey made it 18-11 Redbirds, but IUPUI never really threatened and Illinois State cruised to a 25-14 opening-set win. The Jags struggled hitting just .073 in the first set compared to ISU hitting .375.
The second set was déjà vu as some IUPUI errors coupled with impressive offense from the Redbirds resulted in a 9-4 ISU lead forcing a Jags timeout. Hickey picked up three kills as IUPUI appeared to find an offensive rhythm, but Illinois State was able to continue hitting at a high clip as it expanded its margin to 18-10. Better passing allowed for the Jags to operate more efficiently as
Alexis Mapes was able to get Walling and
Kori Waelbroeck involved helping IUPUI close within three at 24-21. However, Ashley Rosch hammered down a kill to close out a 25-21 second-set win for Illinois State.
Out of the break, the Jags played with more intensity and jumped out to a 3-0 lead thanks in part to a kill and a block from
Abby Horn. ISU retaliated with three straight points and nine ties followed until another three-point Redbirds run gave them a 15-12 advantage. Six side outs ensued, but another brief Illinois State run opened a 21-15 lead forcing another IUPUI timeout. The bounces continued to go the Redbirds way and ISU eventually pulled out a 25-17 victory.
The Jaguars conclude the Country Financial Redbird Classic on Saturday, Sept. 12, at 11 a.m. ET, when they take on Youngstown State.
