SAINT LOUIS, Mo. – Illinois State volleyball opened its time at the Billiken Invitational by claiming a pair of victories, as the Redbirds defeated Xavier 3-1, before pulling out a sweep against Army with a 3-0 win on Friday.
The Redbirds move to 3-3 on the season while Xavier falls to 0-4 and Army drops to 2-3 in 2024.
Match 1 (ISU v. Xavier)
Illinois State came out strong throughout the whole match, as the Redbirds picked up the four-set win: 25-23, 17-25, 25-18, 25-21.
In set one, neither program led by more than three (16-13) but Xavier fought back to take a late lead at 18-17. Facing a two-point (20-18) deficit late, the Redbirds closed the set out on a 7-3 run to take a 1-0 advantage.
The Redbirds jumped out to a lead on the first point of the second set, and while things remained close for much of it, Xavier closed the set on a 7-4 run to tie the match at one set apiece.
Set three would be a set of runs as Xavier got off to a strong start and would be the first to double digits. However, the Musketeers could not contain the Illinois State scoring towards the end, as the Redbirds exploded on an 11-4 run after being tied 14-14 to win 25-18 and take a two-to-one set lead. Â
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In the final set, the score would remain tight for most of the action. Despite ISU pulling ahead 20-14, the Musketeers would not go quietly as they cut the lead to 20-18 before ISU scored five of the final eight points to win 25-21 for the victory.
ILLINOIS STATE STATS LEADERS (vs Xavier)
Kills: Aida Shadewald (16)
Digs: Sammi Bunch (21)
Assists: Mekaila Aupiu (46)
Service Aces: Aida Shadewald (3)
Total Blocks: Aida Shadewald (4)
ILLINOIS STATE NOTES (vs Xavier)
- Illinois State (.186) was outhit by Xavier (.191)
- This is Illinois State's first win over Xavier in program history
- Junior Sammi Bunch dug a career high 21 balls, surpassing her previous career best of 16
- Senior Mekaila Aupiu ties her career high in assists with 46
Match 2 (ISU v. Army)
Illinois State remained resilient throughout the whole match, as the Redbirds picked up the sweep: 25-20, 25-20, 32-30.
In set one, the Redbirds jumped out to a lead with three of the first four points as the two sides remained separated by no more than four points throughout much of the set. As ISU forced an Army timeout at 21-17, the Redbirds remained ahead to take a 1-0 advantage with a 25-20 set win.
The second set was much like the first, as the Redbirds jumped ahead early 4-1 and remained in the lead until the Black Knights tied the score at 18-18. However, Army was no match for the Redbirds scoring attack as ISU closed the set on a 7-2 run to extend their lead to two.
In the final set, the two sides would trade the lead back-and-forth until 18-16 as Illinois State remained in the lead as they forced match point at 24-19. Army would battle back with six straight points to take a 25-24 lead.
The set would require extra points as it would ultimately be Illinois State pulling out the 32-30 win, securing their first sweep of the 2024 season, and the win over Army in the first-ever meeting between the programs.
ILLINOIS STATE STATS LEADERS (vs Army)
Kills: Aida Shadewald (12)
Digs: Sammi Bunch/Colleen Hege (9)
Assists: Mekaila Aupiu (38)
Service Aces: Sammi Bunch (2)
Total Blocks: Maggie McCrary (6)
ILLINOIS STATE NOTES (vs Army)
- Illinois State (.227) was outhit by Army (.235)
- Illinois State finished with nine blocks to Army's five
- Sophomore Caitlyn Little set a new three-set career high in kills (10)
- The 32 points are the first time ISU has scored 30+ points to win a set since Nov. 9, 2019, versus Drake (31).
UP NEXT
Illinois State wraps up the Billiken Invitational with a matchup against host Saint Louis on Saturday at 2:30 p.m. CT. Saturday's match will be streamed via ESPN+.
For all the latest on Illinois State volleyball, stay tuned at GoRedbirds.com and follow the team on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and TikTok.
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