NORMAL, Ill. – The top-seeded Illinois State volleyball team (15-5) used a 25-kill outing by Kaylee Martin and a strong defensive showing to come out on top of a four-set battle with I-74 rival and No. 4 seeded Bradley (12-7) in the semifinal round of the Missouri Valley Conference Volleyball Championship.
The Redbirds will face No. 6 Loyola Chicago in tomorrow's championship game. First serve is set for 5 p.m. at Redbird Arena and the match will be aired on ESPN+.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Set 1 >> A block by Sydney Holt and Stef Jankiewicz helped the Redbirds level the score at four-all, as neither team led by more than a point at the beginning of the match. Illinois State's third block, followed by an ace from Sarah Kushner, gave the Redbirds their largest lead, sitting at 9-5 advantage. The run continued for the Redbirds out of a Bradley-called timeout with a pair of kills from Holt and Kaylee Martin. Martin teamed up with Nicole Lund for ISU's fifth block of the match to push the Redbirds out in front, 18-7. A tip over the block by Kushner lifted the Redbirds to set point, before another kill from the sophomore ended a 3-0 scoring run by the Braves for a 25-13 opening set win.
Set 2 >> Bradley took an early lead over the Redbirds, but a kill from Martin on the outside gave ISU a one-point edge. Lund's second block – and Illinois State's seventh – pushed the Redbirds ahead, 8-5. The Braves climbed their way back to level it at 10-all as the back-and-forth battle continued through the middle of the set. After taking a 16-12 lead, Bradley responded with a 3-0 run to come within one of the Redbirds as Leah Johnson used her first timeout of the match. Illinois State regained a three-point lead, sitting at a 20-17 advantage for a timeout by the Braves, before Bradley crawled its way back to level it at 21-all. Kushner's 10th kill kept momentum alive for the Redbirds, but a pair of kills by Bradley sealed it, 25-23.
Set 3 >> Illinois State opened the third set on a 4-1 run with the help of two kills from Kaitlyn Prondzinski. A pair of kills on the slide by Lund kept the Redbirds out in front by six approaching the mid-way point of the set. ISU's ninth team block helped the Redbirds hold a 16-12 advantage, before the Braves responded to come within two. After an unsuccessful challenge by the Redbirds, Bradley came within one of ISU and tied it at 18-all with a kill on the right side. The Braves used a 3-0 run to reach set point, before a kill from Kushner ruined it to knot it at 24. Illinois State fought off two set points by Bradley and used a block by Prondzinski and Lund for the 27-25 comeback win.
Set 4 >> The Redbirds used a six-point run to jump ahead, 8-2, early in the fourth set, before the Braves responded with a run of their own. Illinois State used kills from three different Redbirds to charge ahead by 10, sitting at a 17-7 advantage. Back-to-back kills from Prondzinski started a 4-0 run by the Redbirds with Kendal Meier behind the service line, who delivered an ace for a commanding 20-9 lead. Three more kills from three different Redbirds, as well as a block by Martin and Holt lifted Illinois State to set point, before Martin's 25th kill helped the Redbirds grab the set, 25-10.
LEADING THE FLOCK
QUOTING COACH JOHNSON
On the team's blocking and overall performance…
"I was very proud of the way the team stayed aggressive at the net. That's something that we wanted to do and not get frustrated when they (Bradley) did get that tool kill, because I think that's one of their trademarks. Offensively, Kaylee Martin was turned into another gear in sets three and four, and just took over."
On facing one of the two teams ISU didn't see this season tomorrow…
"It will be nice to actually have a live scout. As you know, Bradley got to scout us live and we didn't have a match to scout against them. I always think a live scout is significantly better than just film. You see things differently that you don't pick up on film, especially body language or when a player is starting to fade, so I think that will be helpful for us."
For more information on the MVC Championship at Redbird Arena, please visit GoRedbirds.com.
Game dates, opponents, times and locations are subject to change. To view Illinois State's full schedule and find ways to follow the match, visit GoRedbirds.com.
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