Illinois volleyball (18-10, 10-8) ended the weekend on a disappointing note. After opening with a dominant win over Rutgers, it was followed by a four-set loss to UCLA.

The win over Rutgers is the 17th for the program. Head coach Chris Tamas also stays undefeated against Rutgers, with his 10th straight win against them. In the other match, UCLA won its 12th straight game over Illinois, while Tamas’ debut against them ended in defeat.

The loss broke the tie between Illinois and No. 16 Minnesota in the Big Ten standings. Illinois has a chance to tie with Minnesota next.

Dominance to start

The set results for Illinois against Rutgers were extremely lopsided. In set two alone, Illinois notched a 19-point victory over Rutgers, with the final score of the set being 25-6.

The six points scored by Rutgers is the fewest a Big Ten team has scored this year. The previous low was eight points during Washington vs. Wisconsin and Minnesota vs. Michigan in the first set.

“You always like to have a few more plays, but I thought that the second set was about as good as you could ever play,” Tamas said. “I liked that we got to attack better from the service line, and I felt like that went away from us last weekend.”

Graduate student outside hitter Raina Terry came out dominant offensively. She paced the team in kills with 15. Freshman middle blocker Ashlyn Philpot was a monster on defense and paced the team in blocks with nine against Rutgers.

“We work on timing all the time in practice, and we kind of have a feel,” Philpot said. 

Disappointing to end

The highs of the Rutgers game came crashing down to reality after Saturday night against UCLA. Illinois stepped back into Huff Hall but encountered a team that played carefree volleyball. 

“You got a team on the other side of the net with nothing to lose, and they just were able to swing freely,” Tamas said. “We’re playing with a tournament bid on the line, and I thought we just played too tight. And so we just overplayed some balls.”

Terry again had a dominant performance with 22 kills, but that alone wasn’t enough for Illinois. Junior outside hitter Cheridyn Leverette was the leader for UCLA with 18 kills. 

Freshman outside hitter Laynie Smith felt like she was coming into her own against UCLA. She finished second on the team offensively with 12 kills against UCLA. 

“I’ve learned to get over the mental hurdles,” Smith said. “Knowing physically, I’m prepared and practiced and all that. Just really getting my mental game right has really helped me do better in the Big Ten season.”

What does this mean for the postseason?

At this stage, every game matters, especially on senior night against No. 16 Minnesota. 

A loss like this affects where the team stands coming into the postseason. With two games remaining, finishing strong is a must for the team. Illinois finishes its season against No. 16 Minnesota and a hungry Indiana team. Indiana is seeking revenge as it has already had a sweep loss against Illinois.

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