Illinois State Drops MVC Opener versus Drake

NORMAL, Ill. - Illinois State volleyball fell to Drake in its Missouri Valley Conference opener in four sets on Friday at CEFCU Arena.

The Redbirds (2-11 overall, 0-1 MVC) were led by 16 kills from sophomore Aida Shadewald and 12 kills from graduate student Kara Cooper. Sophomore Emily Weber notched her seventh match with 30+ assists, finishing with a team-high 34 Friday night.

The first set saw both teams trade back-and-forth leads as the Redbirds sat with set point before the Bulldogs tied it up at 24 apiece. From there, the Bulldogs took a 25-24 lead before the home team rattled off three straight points and take the first set 27-25.

However, the next three sets saw the Drake offense get better each set, as the visitors took all three sets and the first MVC victory of the season.

Drake (8-5, 1-0 MVC overall) was picked second in the MVC preseason poll.

SET SCORES

Illinois State falls to Drake (1-3): 27-25, 19-25, 15-25, 17-25

ILLINOIS STATE STATS LEADERS

Kills: Aida Shadewald (16)

Digs: Mari Hinkle (23)

Assists: Emily Weber (34)

Service Aces: Three players (1)

Total Blocks: Cassie Jordan/Hannah Reichensperger (3)

ILLINOIS STATE NOTES

- Illinois State (.144) was outhit by Drake (.290)

- Graduate student Mari Hinkle added 23 to her collegiate career total, as the Rosemount, Minn. native now sits only 12 digs away from 1,000 career digs.

- Junior Megan Haynes notched her first career ace to end the first set, which also was part of her first two serves as a Redbird.

UP NEXT

Illinois State will look to get back on track versus UNI tomorrow night, September 23, at 7:00 p.m. inside CEFCU Arena.

For all latest on Illinois State volleyball, stay tuned at GoRedbirds.com and follow the team on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and TikTok.

GoRedbirds.com and the Illinois State Redbirds App:  Your sources for Illinois State tickets, Weisbecker Athletic Fund gifts, multimedia, Redbird merchandise, photos and more.