Sept. 20, 2008
CARBONDALE, Ill. -
Junior outside hitter Peggy Riessen has nine kills and the Redbirds own a 9-2 blocking advantage, as the Illinois State volleyball team owns a 2-0 advantage at the intermission of Saturday's match against host Southern Illinois at Davies Gym.
Illinois State had seven blocks in the opening set, and pulled away late for a 25-19 win. The Redbirds jumped out to an early 5-1 lead, forcing SIU into its first timeout just six points into the match. The Salukis began making their run out of the break, capitalizing on a 9-5 spurt to take their first lead of the match, 11-10. ISU re-claimed the advantage at 12-11 following a service ace by Erin Lindsey, and extended its advantage to four, 17-13, after M.C. Richmond and Hailey Kelley assisted on a block.
The Salukis called another timeout, and settled for trading points with the Redbirds over the ensuing 10 possessions. After SIU trimmed the Redbirds' lead to three (22-19), head coach Melissa Myers used her first timeout, and ISU responded with a 3-0 run to end the set. Leggett had two blocks in the spree, including a solo termination to force set point at 24-19.
Riessen had five second-set kills to lead the Redbirds to a 25-20 win, and 2-0 lead in the best-of-five. Southern Illinois claimed the early 5-2 advantage in the opening stages of the second set, but ISU quickly knotted the score at 5-5 after forcing back-to-back Saluki attack errors. The Redbirds built an 11-8 lead with an ensuing 6-3 run. Culbertson and Hailey Kelley each had kills in the stretch.
After forcing the Salukis into their first timeout, ISU continued to put pressure on the hosts, extending its advantage to 19-14 after Riessen contributed a kill off the Salukis' front row block. But SIU fought back with a 4-2 spurt, and cut the Redbird lead to just three, 21-18. Illinois State finished the frame on a 4-2 spree, capped off by back-to-back kills by Lindsey to give the Redbirds the win.
