Oct. 12, 2011
NORMAL, Ill. - The Illinois State volleyball team (12-8, 4-4 MVC) will host Missouri Valley Conference opponent Indiana State. The Redbirds will take on Indiana State Thursday at 7:05 p.m. (CST) during Illinois States’ homecoming week.
Illinois State finished 2-0 last week after defeating Evansville and Southern Illinois in four sets. The Redbirds displayed a balanced offensive attack with five players producing five or more kills in back-to-back matches. Sophomore LeighAnn Hranka impacted Illinois State’s all around performance by notching 33 kills and 33 digs in two matches. Hranka led the team to a victory against Evansville after posting 15 kills, 16 digs, and a team high hitting percentage (.233). She averaged over four kills and four digs per set and compiled back-to-back double-doubles (digs/kills), marking her sixth double-double of the season.
Defensive efforts were controlled by junior Jenny Menendez, who led all players in digs (26) against Evansville and matched the dig high (23) against Southern Illinois. Menendez recorded a total of 49 digs on the weekend and added nine assists and two service aces. Illinois State ranks in the top five in three MVC statistics including opponent hitting percentage (.162), service aces (1.08 per set), and blocking (2.22 per set).
“Indiana State has good defense and multiple players hitting at high efficiencies,” said head coach Melissa Myers. “Knowing theses aspects, we need to keep our offensive game in check and expect some long rallies.
Indiana State is coming off of a 1-1 weekend after defeating Evansville (3-1), but fell to Southern Illinois (3-1). The Sycamores have an overall record of 10-9 and a 2-6 record in the MVC. Senior Stacy Qualizza leads Indiana State in hitting percentage (.371) and total blocks (41). Qualizza recorded the fifth-best single-game hitting percentage against Evansville after posting 17 kills for a .571 hitting percentage. Senior Shelbi Fouty currently leads the Sycamores in assists (438) after tallying her sixth double-double (digs/assists) with 41 assists and 21 digs against Southern Illinois. Indiana State ranks fourth in opponent hitting percentage (.166) and second in service aces (1.35 per set) in Valley statistics. The last meeting between the two teams was Nov. 19, 2001, with Illinois State winning in three sets.
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