NORMAL, Ill. – The Illinois State volleyball team (13-10, 6-5 MVC) battled back from a 0-2 deficit against Bradley (11-11, 7-4 MVC) Friday night, forcing a fifth set with the Braves, before the visitors held off the Redbirds' comeback.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Set 1 >> Bradley opened the first set on a 5-1 scoring run, before Sydney Holt's second kill switched momentum in favor of the Redbirds as ISU responded with a 3-0 run of its own. The Redbirds used their first timeout of the set sitting at a 9-5 deficit, before Monica Miller registered her second kill and Emmy Ogogor won a jousting battle at the net. Bradley kept a four-point lead, before an attacking error by the Braves brought the Redbirds within one to force the visitors to use a timeout. A service ace by Kaylee Martin – ISU's first of the match – kept the Braves on their toes, before Bradley held on to secure the opening frame, 25-22.
Set 2 >> Martin registered her first kill of the match to open the second set, while Miller added her team-leading fourth kill, before the Braves bounced back with a 5-0 soring run to force ISU to use an early timeout. The run continued for Bradley, before Kendee Hilliard subbed into the match and tallied a kill to crush the Braves' seven-point run. A service ace by Kaity Weimerskirch brought the Redbirds within two, before Bradley jumped out to a 13-8 advantage. The Redbirds fought back to sit at a one-point deficit, but the Braves held on for another 25-22 set win.
Set 3 >> It was a back-and-forth battle in the third, as ISU held a 9-8 lead with a hitting error by the Braves. A pair of kills by Martin, leveled the set at 11-all, before the junior's second service ace of the set – and third of the match – gave ISU a 13-12 advantage. Heading into the media timeout, Bradley surged ahead for a 15-13 lead before another error by the Braves evened the set at 16-all. Martin's fourth kill of the frame helped the Redbirds take their largest lead, as ISU closed the third set on a 9-1 scoring run for a 25-18 win.
Set 4 >> The Redbirds opened the fourth set on a 4-1 run behind a kill and block from Ogogor, before surging ahead for an 8-2 advantage. Out of a Bradley-called timeout, the Braves responded with a scoring run of their own before ISU held on to a five-point cushion. Kills from four different Redbirds – Holt, Martin, Ogogor and Hilliard – pushed ISU out to its largest lead as Bradley called its final timeout, trailing 15-8. The Redbirds registered their ninth ace of the match – this time by Stef Jankiewicz – to help ISU sit at a 15-8 lead, while Hilliard's eighth kill gave the Redbirds a nine-point advantage. ISU sent the match to a deciding fifth set with a 25-17 fourth-set win.
Set 5 >> Jankiewicz delivered her second ace of the match and 10th for the Redbirds on the night – the second-most in a single match this season by ISU – to help ISU take an early lead. Despite kills from Miller, Martin and Holt, the Redbirds trailed 6-5, before using a timeout sitting at an 11-8 deficit. Ogogor tallied a kill on the overpass by Bradley, before the Braves returned the favor on an identical play to keep a three-point cushion. The Braves held on to fend off the ISU comeback, taking the fifth set, 15-10.
LEADING THE FLOCK
UP NEXT
Illinois State will hit the road for a match at Indiana State on Monday, before returning home next weekend to host UNI and Drake.
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