Volleyball Takes Win Streak to Michigan

MOUNT PLEASANT, Mich. - The Illinois State volleyball team brings a two-match win streak into Michigan for a trio of games, the first two against Central Michigan on Friday and Saturday, followed by a Sunday afternoon battle with Eastern Michigan.

WEEKEND SCHEDULE

Friday, September 4 - 3 p.m. (CT) - at Central Michigan - WATCH | STATS
Saturday, September 5 - 11 a.m. (CT) - at Central Michigan - WATCH | STATS
Sunday, September 6 - 1:30 p.m. (CT) - at Eastern Michigan - STATS

QUICK HITTERS

• Ruth Ziegler, in addition to being named to the Seton Hall Tournament All-Tournament Team, was also named the Missouri Valley Conference Player of the Week
• Prior to her team's opening game of the season, Illinois State head volleyball coach Allie Matters - who was returning to play the tournament at her alma mater - was announced as a member of the 2027 class of the Seton Hall Athletics Hall of Fame
• When Illinois State plays at the Oakland Invite Volleyball Tournament, Abby Reck will play against each of her younger sisters, as one of her younger twin sisters (Molly) plays at Oakland, and the other twin (Mallory) plays for Marist. The three of them were all High School teammates with Illinois State setter Ella Craggs
• Illinois State junior opposite Ruth Ziegler was named to the Missouri Valley Conference Preseason All-Conference Team
• The Redbirds were picked to finish sixth of 11 schools in the 2026 MVC Preseason Coaches Poll
• Illinois State closed the 2025 season by winning six of its last eight games, including four in a row by 3-0 sweeps, eventually falling in the semifinals of the MVC Tournament to eventual champion Northern Iowa
• Late last season against Bradley (Oct. 28), Murray State (Oct. 31), and Evansville (Nov. 7) the Illinois State Redbirds had three consecutive matches hitting above .300. Since 1996 that was tied for the second-longest such streak in program history, behind only four straight from the 2003 season
• Through three matches of the 2026 season, the Illinois State volleyball team has an attack percentage of .298, which ranks 33rd in the NCAA overall, and 19th among schools with at least three matches played.
• Against NJIT, Illinois State had a team attack percentage of .419, which is the
25th-highest in a match in the NCAA this season, and highest in the Missouri Valley Conference.
• This season, with two international student-athletes on the roster (Emilija Arsic from Belgrade, Serbia, and Oliwia Caputa from Zwiec, Poland), it marks the fourth consecutive season that the ISU volleyball roster has had at least two international players on it. The Redbirds have had at least one international student-athlete every season since 2020.
• Illinois State returns each of its top two assist leaders last season, as Ella Craggs had 671 and Audrey Clark had 475. The duo's total - 1,146 - is the most of any returning pair on the MVC, with the Belmont duo of Jordan Czajkowski and Alivia Keegan sitting just behind the Redbirds with 1,120. There are just four schools in the MVC to return two setters with 200+ assists.
 

OPENING PLAYER OF THE WEEK

Illinois State junior opposite Ruth Ziegler has been named the Missouri Valley Conference Player of the Week for the opening week of MVC play, announced by the conference office on Monday afternoon. Named to the Seton Hall Tournament All-Tournament Team, Ziegler is one of two players in the MVC to rank inside of the top-10 in both hitting percentage (third) and kills per set (ninth). She is a strong part of the Redbird offense that leads the MVC in hitting percentage after the first week of the season, including back-to-back matches hitting over .300 to close the Seton Hall Tournament (Illinois State had two of the three matches during the week in which a team hit .300 or better). Her three service aces against Fairleigh Dickinson are a career-high, and the first of her collegiate career, while her 12 kills in the finale are tied for the fourth-most in a three-set match in the MVC through the opening week, and her 17 points are the most in a three-set match in the conference. She is an integral part of ISU's .419 attack percentage against NJIT, which is the 24th-highest attack percentage in the country over the opening weekend of the year.

HIGH PERCENTAGE THROUGH THREE MATCHES

Through three matches of the 2026 season, the Illinois State volleyball team has an attack percentage of .298, which ranks 33rd in the NCAA overall, and 19th among schools with at least three matches played. 

.300 IN A ROW

The Redbirds have hit .300 or better in each of their last two matches (.419 against NJIT and .301 FDU), tied for the ninth-longest streak of such matches in program history. Last season the Redbirds had a streak of three consecutive .300 matches. The school record for consecutive matches hitting .300 or better came in 2003 with four.
 

BIG HITTING DAY

Against NJIT, Illinois State had a team attack percentage of .419, which is the 25th-highest in a match in the NCAA this season, and highest in the Missouri Valley Conference.

ILLINOIS STATE INTERNATIONAL STUDENT-ATHLETES

This season, with two international student-athletes on the roster (Emilija Arsic from Belgrade, Serbia, and Oliwia Caputa from Zwiec, Poland), it marks the fourth consecutive season that the ISU volleyball roster has had at least two international players on it. The Redbirds have had at least one international student-athlete every season since 2020.

RETURNING THE SETTERS

Illinois State returns each of its top two assist leaders last season, as Ella Craggs had 671 and Audrey Clark had 475. The duo's total - 1,146 - is the most of any returning pair on the MVC, with the Belmont duo of Jordan Czajkowski and Alivia Keegan sitting just behind the Redbirds with 1,120. There are just four schools in the MVC to return two setters with 200+ assists.

REDBIRDS PICKED SIXTH

The Illinois State volleyball team has been selected to finish sixth in the MVC, according to the conference's preseason coaches poll. Northern Iowa was picked to finish first, earning 119 points and nine first place votes, while Drake and UIC picked up the two remaining first place votes. Five other schools: Bradley, Evansville, Indiana State, Murray State, and Southern Illinois were picked behind Illinois State; however, those results were not made available to the public.
 

PRESEASON ALL-MVC

Illinois State junior opposite Ruth Ziegler has been named to the Missouri Valley Conference preseason All-Conference Team, as the Redbirds were picked to finish sixth in the poll conducted of the 11 MVC head coaches. Ziegler, who had 219 kills to lead all ISU returners, had a .248 attack percentage on the season to go with 53 blocks and 247 total points. The Gurnee, Illinois, native, earned MVC All-Tournament honors last season for ISU.

HALL OF FAME COACH

Prior to her team's match against Seton Hall, head coach Allie Matters' alma mater, it was announced publicly that Matters was going to be a member of the Seton Hall Athletics Hall of Fame Class of 2027. Matters played four seasons with the Pirates, twice earning All-Big East honors as a libero, and earning Seton Hall Athlete of the Year honors as a junior and senior.