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Illinois State University Athletics

Volleyball vs Drake
Keelen Barlow, ISU Athletics
3
Winner Drake DRA 7-8,2-1 MVC
2
Illinois St. ILS 11-4,2-2 MVC
Winner
Drake DRA
7-8,2-1 MVC
3
Final
2
Illinois St. ILS
11-4,2-2 MVC
Set Scores
Team 1 2 3 4 5 F
Drake DRA 20 25 25 13 15 (3)
Illinois St. ILS 25 20 15 25 12 (2)

Game Recap: Volleyball | | Bill Salyer

Redbirds Fall in Five-Set Thriller with Drake

NORMAL, Ill. – Three players recorded double-digit kills – including a season-high 14 from Jillian Gregory; however, for the first time this season the Redbirds fell in five sets, dropping a 25-20, 20-25, 15-25, 25-13, 12-15 heartbreaker to the Drake Bulldogs on Friday evening.

HOW IT HAPPENED

First Set (25-20): After trading the lead back and forth for the first 10 points of the set, the Redbirds ran off four consecutive points to turn a 5-4 deficit into an 8-5 lead. The lead grew to as many as seven at 17-10, as ISU off a late Bulldog rally for a 25-20 opening set win.

Second Set (20-25): The teams went back and forth to start the second set, before ISU ran off four consecutive to turn a 4-4 tie into an 8-4 advantage. The Redbirds held their lead until the Bulldogs went on a 6-0 run to stretch ahead 14-11. The visitors extended the lead to as many as five points at 21-16; however, the Redbirds would not go quietly, cutting the gap to as few as three (21-18) in the four-point Drake set win.

Third Set (15-25): The Redbirds jumped out quickly in the third set, leading 6-2 through the first eight points of the frame, before Drake fought back using a 10-0 scoring run, turning a 7-3 deficit into a 13-7 advantage. The visitors extended their advantage to as many as 10 in the 25-15 Bulldog set victory.

Fourth Set (25-13): ISU jumped ahead early in the fourth set, leading by two early, extending their lead to as many as six points at 11-5. The visitors from Des Moines answered with a 4-0 run, closing the gap to two at 11-9. ISU answered back with a nine-point run of their own, including three service aces from Sammi Bunch, to extend the margin to its high-mark of the set at 20-9, running away with the 25-13 fourth-set win.

Fifth Set (12-15): Drake scored the first two points of the deciding fifth set, before the Redbirds quickly answered with two of their own, including Bunch's career-high fifth service ace. ISU's run was countered by another Drake 2-0 run, pushing the Bulldog lead to 4-2. After trading points back and forth, Drake ran off four consecutive points to extend to a 9-4 lead as the Redbirds began chipping away at the deficit, closing the gap to one at 11-10 behind a 3-0 ISU run. Drake scored two in a row, and the Redbirds cut the gap to as few as one, but could not overcome the full deficit in the close finish.

KEY STATISTICS

  • Illinois State opened with the lineup of 1 Ruth Ziegler, 6 Logan Grevengoed, 9 Ella Craggs, 10 Oliwia Caputa, 11 Jillian Gregory, 16 Abby Reck and liberos 5 Sammi Bunch and 12 Ellie Burr
  • Illinois State falls to 11-4 this season, 2-2 in the MVC, and 64-20 all-time against the Bulldogs
  • ISU had two players with double-doubles (Ella Craggs and Oliwia Caputa) for the second time this season
  • The Redbirds had three players with double-digit digs for the first time since ISU's five-set win over Eastern Michigan on September 6
  • Illinois State had two players with 20+ digs in the same match for the first time since September 13, 2024 against Milwaukee when Sammi Bunch (26) and Aida Shadewald (21) accomplished the feat
  • Jillian Gregory knocked down a season-high 14 kills
  • Caputa set a career-high with 20 digs, while adding 11 kills for her second double-double of the season
  • Sammi Bunch served up a career-high five service aces, while adding 23 digs, her eighth consecutive double-digit dig contest, and her ninth this year
    • The 20 digs are the fourth time this season that she has had 20+ digs in a match
  • Ruth Ziegler – the MVC leader in service aces – added two more in the match, giving her 29 for the year
    • She added 12 kills, her sixth double-digit kill match this season, while also adding three blocks
  • Ella Craggs gave out 26 assists, giving her 948 for her career, and added 14 digs for her fifth double-double of the season, and the fourth in her last five matches
    • It was her 14th consecutive match with double-digit assists
  • Logan Grevengoed knocked down eight kills, giving her 496 for her career, as she approaches the 500-kill milestone for her career
  • Audrey Clark gave out 15 assists, her 11th match this season with a double-figure assist total

NEXT UP

After two matches in two days, the Redbirds return to the court on Tuesday, October 8, when ISU hosts I-74 rival Bradley with a 6 p.m. first serve inside CEFCU Arena.

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