NORMAL, Ill. – The Illinois State volleyball team (16-5) won its second-straight Missouri Valley Conference tournament title on April 3 to earn the league's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.
ABOUT THE OPENING ROUND
The Redbirds will be making the program's 16th NCAA Tournament appearance on Wednesday when they take on the Mountain West's UNLV (12-0) in the opening round. First serve between the Redbirds and the Rebels is set for 6 p.m. in Omaha, Nebraska.
FOLLOW ALONG
The match will be streamed live on ESPN3, with live stats and in-game updates also available for fans to follow along with.
BACK-TO-BACK-TO-BACK
For the first time since the 1996-1998 seasons, the Illinois State volleyball team will be making its third-consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance in 2020-21, after earning the program's fourth at-large bid in 2018 and 11th MVC tournament title in 2019.
THE BIG DANCE
Illinois State is 3-15 all-time in the NCAA Tournament, with trips in 1982, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1988, 1989, 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 1998, 2007, 2014, 2018 and 2019. In 2019, the Redbirds were swept by the No. 4 national seed, and eventual NCAA runners up, Wisconsin on their home court. Illinois State's most recent win at the big dance was in 2014, when the Redbirds battled back from an 0-2 deficit in an opening-round match against Marquette to win 3-2, before falling to Wisconsin in straight sets in the second round at UW Field House.
IMPACT PERFORMANCES
Outside hitter Kaylee Martin was named the MVC Volleyball Championship's Most Valuable Player, while setter Stef Jankiewicz and middle blocker Sydney Holt each earned a spot on the All-Tournament Team. Martin finished the tournament hitting at a .384 clip with 53 kills to average 4.82 kills per set. She also added 30 digs, five blocks and a trio of service aces in the three wins by the Redbirds.
TOURNEY CHAMPS (AGAIN)
The Redbirds won their second-straight MVC tournament title on April 3, besting Loyola Chicago in four sets at Redbird Arena. Illinois State now stands at 6-0 in MVC finals held in Normal, also winning on its home court in 1997, 1992, 1989, 1988 and 1983. The last time any host school won the MVC Tournament was Wichita State in 2013, while the Redbirds became the first team to win back-to-back titles since Wichita State won the 2015 and 2016 tournaments.
For updates on Illinois State Volleyball, follow the Redbirds on Twitter (@RedbirdVB) and Instagram (@redbirdvolleyball).
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