Laura Doornbos collected career highs with 17 kills, 12 digs and 6 blocks, but that wasn't enough to stave off Wichita State's 24-30, 30-21, 33-31, 31-33, 17-15 win in a Missouri Valley Conference volleyball match Saturday at the Heskett Center.
Erin Jones matched Doornbos' kill total, Staci Boyce added 16 and Jenny Kabbes had 14 to give the 'Birds, 10-10 overall, 7-6 in the Valley, four players in double figures. Jackie Brown led the Shockers, 13-11, 6-6 in the Valley, with 28 kills while Sara Younes added 19 kills and 4 service aces.
Jones, who became just the 11th Redbird to pass 900 digs for her career, had 16 for the match to give her 912 total. WSU had a 72-66 dig edge and 86-74 kill advantage, but the last three games--and the match--boiled down to individual plays.
With the match tied 1-1, Wichita led game three 20-19 when five straight Redbird kills-two by Doornbos--gave ISU a 24-20 lead. Brown sparked the match's longest run of points, nine, to put WSU at game point. But the 'Birds weren't finished yet. A Jones kill, a Doornbos/Emily Kabbes block and a Boyce kill sparked a 5-0 run to tie the game at 29-29. The teams swapped points twice before the Shockers pushed across back-to-back points to win.
After WSU led by as many as four three times in game four, the 'Birds rallied to face-down two match points and win. Jenny Kabbes and Boyce got the kills needed to save the match, while a Jones kill followed by a Kabbes/Kelly Rikli block sent the match to a deciding fifth game.
ISU led 13-11 and 14-12 in the final game, but couldn't get the final point. Doornbos' final kill gave the 'Birds a 15-14 lead and the 'Birds thought they had the match won when Jones slammed the ball off a Shocker block. Jones and Illinois State watched the ball land and thought it landed out; the officials ruled it in and the match continued. Wichita State earned the final two points on blocks to win.
Sharon Dingman applauded both teams' play.
"I feel great about how we are playing and how we played in this match," said Dingman. "It was an incredibly competitive match and (WSU Coach) Chris (Lamb) is an excellent tactitician who has brought players in who have bought into his system. We battled hard to get to that fifth game. It's a shame that it came down to one play."
It's the first time in four seasons the Redbirds have played three 'deuce' games in one match. Doornbos came on during those tight final three games, earning 16 of her 17 kills in games three, four and five.
The Redbirds return home to face Notre Dame, a team which has been either ranked or receiving votes in the national polls all season, in a 7 p.m. match Tuesday at Redbird Arena.
