TERRE HAUTE, Ind. – The Illinois State volleyball team (16-6, 6-3) defeated Indiana State (14-10, 3-6) Tuesday night inside ISU Arena, 3-1. The Redbirds brought down the Sycamores with set scores of 25-20, 23-25, 25-16, 25-21. The Redbirds had a season-high 14 blocks in the win.
The Redbirds were led by Lexi Varga, who posted 14 kills and six blocks. Ashley Rosch and Jaelyn Keene joined Varga with double-digit kills, with 10 apiece.
The first set was a seesaw affair. Illinois State led at the 15-14 mark; preceding that mark there were 12 ties and the largest lead was two points. After a media timeout, Illinois State scored three-straight points to gain its largest lead of the set, at 18-14. The Redbirds went on to take the set, 25-20, behind Aly Dawson's six kills.
The second set was much like the first. There were 10 ties, but this time the Redbirds trailed 13-15 heading into the media timeout. Out of the break, Indiana State push its lead up to 20-17. The Redbirds scratched and clawed their way back into the set, however, with some great defense from Courtney Pence and Rosch. With the Redbirds trailing by one, Varga came up with a kill to tie the score, at 23-23. The Sycamores ended up taking the next two points and the set, 25-23.
Illinois State scored three-straight points to start the third set. The Sycamores tied the Redbirds at 5-5, but the Redbirds pulled away with more strong defense. Illinois State recorded five blocks in the set on its way to a 25-16 set win.
The Sycamores jumped out to a 13-5 lead in the fourth set. Indiana State led by eight points twice in the set, but the Redbirds battled back with their block, rattling off five more in the set. The Redbirds came all the way back and took the lead on a Kaitlyn Hunt service ace, at 21-20. Illinois State held on and won the fourth set, 25-21, and the match in four sets.
The Redbirds will come back home to Redbird Arena for a pair of conference matches Friday and Saturday, against Wichita State and Missouri State. Friday's match is set for 6 p.m., with Saturday's slated for 7 p.m. Links for live stats and audio are available at GoRedbirds.com, and fans can receive live updates by following @RedbirdVB on Twitter.
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