CEDAR FALLS, Iowa – The Illinois State volleyball team won the opening set but dropped the next three to No. 22 Northern Iowa as the Redbirds fell to the nationally-ranked Panthers in a Missouri Valley Conference match at the McLeod Center Saturday night. UNI won by scores of 20-25, 26-24, 25-13, 25-21.
Lexi Wallen and Sydney Holt tallied 12 kills apiece for the Redbirds, while Jaelyn Keene chipped in 11. Stef Jankiewicz dished out 47 assists. Courtney Pence and Wallen notched 20 digs apiece. Wallen's 20 digs were a career high.
"Our team executed the game plan at a high level in the first two sets," said Illinois State head coach Leah Johnson. "We missed an opportunity to go into the break up two sets. We battled in sets three and four, but offensively, they scored out of system at an exceptional clip and that was the difference."
Illinois State (9-9, 2-3 MVC) built an early lead in the first set, and then padded it with a four-point run that made it 12-6. After UNI (14-4, 4-0 MVC) cut its deficit to four at 16-12, the Redbirds ran off five-straight points to go up 21-12. The feisty Panthers didn't give up, and forced a pair of ISU timeouts late, but the Redbirds claimed the opening set with a kill from Machayla Leonard on set point.
The lead ping-ponged back and forth throughout the second set, with 14 tied scores and five lead changes. Illinois State pushed ahead late with a three-point run that gave the Redbirds a 23-21 lead, but UNI answered with a three-point run of its own to get to a set point at 24-23. A Panther service error evened it back up at 24-24, but UNI scored the next two points to even the match at one set apiece.
UNI shot out to a 5-0 lead and never looked back in the third set. Illinois State got within three at 11-8 but the Panthers scored 10 of the next 12 points to make it a 21-10 advantage. The Redbirds never seriously threatened again as UNI went up 2-1 in the match.
The Panthers used a 5-1 mid-set run to take a 19-14 lead in the fourth set. Illinois State pushed back with four points in a row to get within one at 19-18. The teams traded the next four points, but Northern Iowa finished the match by scoring four of the final five points to seal the win.
The Redbirds return home next weekend to host Loyola Chicago on Friday and MVC newcomer Valparaiso on Saturday. Fans can purchase tickets for this weekend's matches online at GoRedbirds.com/Tickets, by calling (309) 438-8000, or by visiting the ticket office, located at the north entrance to Redbird Arena.
GoRedbirds.com: Your online source for Illinois State Athletics tickets, Weisbecker Scholarship Fund gifts, multimedia, Redbird merchandise, photos and more.
