CARBONDALE, Ill. – Jaelyn Keene tallied a career-high 30 kills to help Illinois State rally from behind to earn a five-set win over Southern Illinois Friday night at Davies Gym. The Redbirds won by scores of 25-18, 24-26, 22-25, 25-11, 15-13 to extend their season-best winning streak to five matches.
Keene recorded 30 kills, against just three errors, for a .509 hitting percentage. She also chipped in five blocks and two aces to set a new career high with 34.5 points.
Stef Jankiewicz dished out 56 assists to go along with 18 digs. Sydney Holt added 10 kills and Courtney Pence led the Redbirds with 20 digs.
"It was a great team effort tonight. I'm so proud of how composed the team was in tight moments," said Illinois State head coach Leah Johnson. "We displayed great trust and chemistry."
Illinois State (14-9, 7-3 MVC) and Southern Illinois (4-16, 3-6) traded points early in the first set until the Redbirds used a 6-1 run to take control at 10-5. Five kills in the set from Holt and a kill on set point from Keene helped the visitors claim the opening set.
A back-and-forth second set came down to the wire. The Redbirds scored four-straight points to turn a two-point deficit into a two-point lead at 22-20. ISU got to a set point at 24-22, but the gritty Salukis fired off four-straight points, all courtesy of Andrea Estrada (three kills, one block) to even the match at one set apiece.
Southern Illinois grabbed an early lead in the third set, but the Redbirds slowly chipped away, eventually tying it on a kill from Keene, before taking a 22-21 lead when Keene and Jankiewicz teamed up for a block. The Salukis finished strong, though, scoring the final four points of the set, two on kills from Estrada. Â
The Redbirds rebounded quickly in the fourth set, winning the most lopsided set of the night. A 9-1 start set the tempo for the set and the Redbirds were never seriously threatened on their way to forcing a fifth set.
Illinois State carried momentum into the fifth, shooting out to a 4-1 lead. The Redbirds extended the lead to 9-3, but the stubborn Salukis fought back to get within one point. Keene's 30th kill of the match got the Redbirds to a match point, however, and a kill from Ali Line finished off the win.
The Redbirds are back in action Saturday night as they travel to take on league-leading Missouri State. The match will be broadcast live as part of The Valley on ESPN3 and links for live stats and video are available at GoRedbirds.com. Fans can also follow @RedbirdVB on Twitter for live updates and more.
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