NORMAL, Ill. – With Evansville's five-set upset of UNI on Friday evening, the Illinois State volleyball team (24-6, 16-2 MVC) clinched the Missouri Valley Conference regular-season title.
On the final day of the MVC regular season Saturday, UNI toppled Indiana State to give the Panthers a share of the championship title with the Redbirds, as both teams finished with a 16-2 record during league play. The last time the title was shared was in 2013, when former Valley member Wichita State clinched a share with UNI.
After tie-breaking protocol, UNI will be the No. 1 seed heading into the MVC Championship this week in Springfield, Missouri, while Illinois State has locked up the No. 2 seed. The Redbirds and the Panthers have each secured a first-round bye, and will begin competition at the MVC Championship on Friday, Nov. 23.
The Redbirds are 39-26 overall in MVC tournament play, dating back to the 1982 season. With this mark, Illinois State is just one of three current league member institutions with a winning record in the conference's postseason tournament. Illinois State's No. 2 seed is its highest since the 2014 season, when the Redbirds secured the No. 1 overall seed with an 18-0 record during the conference slate that year. Prior to 2014, the last time Illinois State was given at least a No. 2 seed in the postseason tournament was in 2004.
Illinois State reached 20 wins during the regular season for the fourth time in five years, which included 14 straight-set wins, with nine of those occurring in Valley play, and a 12-match win streak. Senior Courtney Pence became the league's career digs leader with her fourth digs of the Redbirds' sweep of Loyola Chicago on Nov. 9, surpassing UNI's Ellie Blankenship's (2007-10) mark of 2,656.
For more information regarding the Valley's championship tournament, please visit the MVC's championship central page.
GoRedbirds.com and the Illinois State Redbirds App: Your sources for Illinois State tickets, Weisbecker Scholarship Fund gifts, multimedia, Redbird merchandise, photos and more.
