Illinois volleyball (6-0) went 3-0 in the Cyclone Invitational improving to its first undefeated start through six contests since 2018 when they started the season 13-0. Redshirt junior setter Brooke Mosher recorded a triple-double, marking it the first one of her career and the first Illinois has had since 1998.
“I was just trying to do whatever I could to help my teammates, whether that was get a high dig, get a good set, good serve,” Mosher said. “Trying to get my teammates up into the best position that they could be. And I think everybody was doing the same thing.”
Graduate student outside hitter Raina Terry had back-to-back games where she recorded 20 or more kills during the set. Terry had 20 kills, two aces and one block. This 20-kill game is the 22nd of her career.
Terry, Mosher and freshman middle blocker Ashlyn Philpot were all named to the All-Tournament team, with Terry being named tournament MVP. This was the first time head coach Chris Tamas’ team played Wake Forest, doubling as the first time the two programs have met since 2003.
“We’ve got to make sure that we stick with our game plan, stick with our game,” Tamas said. “It’s harder than ever to try to perform in these environments with social media and everything too. They’re a good serving team, good on the front line, so we had to get past their front line.”
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During the first set, both teams went back and forth, but Illinois pulled away, coming off a 5-0 scoring run that helped it push ahead 8-6. After a Wake Forest timeout, the team’s lead was cut and Illinois called a timeout of its own while clinging to a 17-14 lead. Illinois won the set after the timeout, 25-17.
Set two saw Illinois fall behind 14-9 before they called a timeout to try and break Wake Forest’s scoring. The Illini put up three straight points after the timeout, which included a Terry ace that forced the Demon Deacons to call a timeout of their own. Back-to-back kills that came from freshman outside hitter Laynie Smith were not enough for Illinois to win set two (25-22).
In the following set, momentum fell in Illinois’ favor with a kill from graduate student defensive specialist Christina Martinez Mundo and saw Illinois lead 12-9. Wake Forest used its last timeout after back-to-back Illinois scores, which included a kill from Mosher. Wake Forest battled back, but it wasn’t enough for it to win set three. Illinois ended up on top with a score of 25-21.
After Wake Forest took set four 25-21, both teams were forced into the fifth and final set of the game which saw Illinois get out to a hot start with three straight kills (8-5). Terry put up her second ace of the night to help push the Illinois lead 10-5 before Wake Forest called timeout. This was not enough to break Illinois’ momentum, as it outscored Wake Forest 5-3 from that point forward, resulting in a 15-8 overall win in the fifth set.
Illinois will now travel down to Bowling Green, Ky., to take on Dayton and Western Kentucky in the Hyatt Place Invitational. Game one is on Friday, Sept. 13 at 1 p.m. and game two is on Saturday, Sept. 14 at 3 p.m.
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