Nov. 8, 2007
Final Stats
NORMAL, Ill. -
Junior setter Erin Lindsey recorded her 4,000th career set-assist on her first pass of the match Thursday night, as the Illinois State volleyball team (17-10, 9-7 MVC) took a 3-0 victory over Indiana State (3-21, 0-16 MVC) at Redbird Arena. Lindsey became just the fourth player in Illinois State volleyball history to reach the 4,000 career set-assist plateau.
The win was the second straight for the Redbirds and their sixth-consecutive victory over the Sycamores. Indiana State suffered its 29th-straight Missouri Valley Conference loss, dating back to last season.
Freshman outside hitter Mallory Leggett paced the Redbird offense, as the Maroa, Ill., native recorded 11 kills and a .320 hitting percentage. Sophomore libero Kasey Mollerus' 15 digs led the Illinois State defense, while Lindsey chipped in with 14 digs of her own and 36 assists.
The two teams traded leads early in game one, with Indiana State building as much as a three-point advantage (9-6), before the Illinois State offense began to take over and pushed the Redbirds back into the lead. ISU gained the deciding advantage in the game (10-9) off a key block from outside hitter Mallory Leggett and middle blocker Katie Seyller that highlighted an 8-0 run by the `Birds. The Sycamores threatened throughout the latter half of the game, getting to within two points (20-18) before Illinois State wrapped up the 30-23 game one victory with three kills in the final seven points from sophomore outside hitter Peggy Riessen.
Game two was another tightly-contested affair early on, as Illinois State once again saw an early lead slip away, with Indiana State battling back to tie the game at 7-7. Lindsey propelled the Redbirds back into the lead midway through the game with an 8-0 run from the service line that included three aces. Illinois State locked up the 30-19 game two victory with a 12-3 run. The Redbirds recorded six service aces in the game.
Illinois State fought off another Indiana State rally early in game three before picking up a 30-18 victory. Illinois State could not muster more than a four-point advantage (19-15) until the Redbirds pulled off a 12-2 run to conclude the frame. Senior middle blocker Kari Staehlin recorded a perfect 1.000 hitting percentage in game three with three kills in the frame. Indiana State helped the Redbirds throughout game three, as the Sycamores hit -.022 for the game, capping a .023 team hitting percentage in the match.
Illinois State will conclude the regular-season portion of its Valley schedule two weekends from now (Nov. 16-17) at Redbird Arena when it takes on Evansville Friday, Nov. 16, before a Saturday matchup with Southern Illinois (Nov. 17). Both matches are slated to start at 7 p.m.
NOTABLES:
Junior right side hitter M.C. Richmond was out of action for the first time in her Illinois State volleyball career Thursday night.
Freshman outside hitter Katie Culbertson made her second-straight start for the Redbirds, after recording her first-career start in a 3-0 sweep of Bradley last Saturday (Nov. 3) at Redbird Arena.
