Nov. 13, 2010
Box Score
CEDAR FALLS, Iowa -
Illinois State (17-13, 7-10 MVC) won the first set from No. 12 Northern Iowa (26-2, 16-0 MVC), but couldn't sustain the momentum, falling in four sets (25-19, 17-25, 23-25, 14-25) Friday evening.
Senior Mallory Leggett led ISU once again with 16 kills to go along with 10 digs and an ace. Freshman Shannon McGlaughlin also recorded a double-double with 14 kills and 13 digs. Junior Kristin Stauter recorded team highs of 36 set-assists and 19 digs. Sophomore Jenny Menendez added 14 digs.
"We knew we had to start strong against a team as tough as Northern Iowa, so winning the first set was huge," said head coach Melissa Myers. "When you beat a team like this in the first set, you have to expect they will come back even harder in the second set and they did. Northern Iowa had a big comeback in the third set and carried that momentum into the fourth set. Winning a set on the road against Northern Iowa is good, especially after a tough loss at Bradley, but we need to be able to avoid some of the mistakes we made in order to win."
Kills by four different Redbirds and five UNI errors fueled a 9-1 Redbird run that put them ahead 11-6 in the first set. Two kills by Leggett, two more UNI errors and a Menendez service ace stretched the lead to 17-9. After a timeout, UNI started its comeback with a 6-1 run, fueled by four kills, to pull within four, 19-15. Kills by McGlaughlin and freshman LeighAnn Hranka stopped the UNI run. A Redbird block and a Leggett kill gave ISU set point, 24-18, and Leggett finished it with a kill two points later. ISU held a slight advantage in kills, 13-12, but committed half as many errors as the Panthers in the set.
Four kills and two ISU errors gave UNI a 6-1 lead to start the second set. Four more kills and a bad set stretched the lead to 13-4 and forced a Redbird timeout. Three Leggett kills cut the deficit down to 14-8, but the Panthers held the lead at six. Four kills and a block brought the UNI lead to double-digits for the first time, 23-12. A kill and a bad ISU set won it for UNI, 25-17, and tied the match going into the break.
ISU streaked out to a 5-0 lead in the third set, courtesy of kills from Hranka and McGlaughlin and three UNI errors. After the Panthers pulled within three, ISU answered with six-straight points to stretch its lead to 15-6. Leggett had two kills, junior Tabitha Visk had one and Menendez, who served all six points, added an ace. Northern Iowa began to chip away at the lead with three three-point spurts and then two Redbird errors gave UNI the lead for the first time in the set, 23-22. A UNI error tied it at 23, but the Panthers completed the comeback with a kill and a block for a 25-23 win.
The fourth set was close early on, until seven-straight Panther points gave them an eight-point edge, 15-7. Three-straight Panther kills stretched the lead to double-digits, 18-8. Illinois State could get no closer than nine the rest of the way, as Northern Iowa cruised to a 25-14 set win and a 3-1 match victory.
