SOUTH ORANGE, N.J. – The Illinois State Redbirds got 14 kills from freshman Jillian Ferrill, as the team had an attack percentage of .419 for the match, running away with a three-set win over the NJIT Highlanders on Saturday morning by scores of 25-15, 25-18, and 25-13.
HOW IT HAPPENED
First Set (25-15): The opening set of the match saw three ties and two lead changes through the first nine combined points of the frame before ISU ran off four consecutive points to turn a 4-3 NJIT lead into a 7-4 ISU advantage. The Redbirds would not trail again in the set – one that saw ISU finish with a stellar .581 attack percentage.
Second Set (25-18): In another back-and-forth start to a set, the teams saw themselves tied at seven before the Highlanders scored seven of the next eight points to stretch to a 14-8 lead. The lead remained at four at 15-11 before the Redbirds put their foot on the gas pedal, and outscored NJIT 14-3 over the rest of the set, including a run of nine consecutive points to push ahead for the seven-point second-set win.
Third Set (25-13): ISU trailed at 1-0 to start the third set, but a 4-0 run put ISU on top, as the Birds would not relinquish the lead in the runaway third-set win.
KEY STATISTICS
- Illinois State started with the lineup of 1 Ruth Ziegler, 6 Logan Grevengoed, 7 Sidney Wright, 10 Oliwia Caputa, 11 Jillian Gregory, 21 Audrey Clark, and liberos Sammi Bunch and Peyton Turner
- The start was the first of the career for Wright
- ISU's attack percentage in the match was the first time that a Redbird squad has hit over .400 since September 15, 2023, when the Birds had a .505 attack percentage against St. Thomas
- The match was the first meeting all-time against NJIT
- The game was the first collegiate appearance for freshman Alaina Kramer, and the first appearance as a Redbird for Ayla Klingenberg
- Jillian Ferrill's 14 kills are a career-high for the freshman, as she also had a .591 attack percentage (14 kills, 1 error, 22 attempts)
- Audrey Clark dished out a match-high 15 assists, while Ella Craggs added 14
- Clark tied a career-high with three service aces, as all three came during ISU's 9-0 run in the second set
- Six different players had at least four digs for ISU in the lopsided win, including a team-high six from Craggs, and five each from Bunch, Caputa, and Clark
- Wright had four blocks for ISU – a team-high – while Grevengoed had three, as Ziegler and Klingenberg each had two
NEXT UP
The Redbirds close out play in the NJIT Tournament on Sunday morning at 11 a.m. (CT) against Fairleigh Dickinson University.
