The in-state showdown between Illinois (12-5, 7-1) and Northwestern (13-7, 3-5) delivered three close sets. Fortunately for the Illini, they found a way to take all three en route to a sweep of the Wildcats.
The sweep marks the sixth Sunday victory for the Illini out of seven games, as well as their fifth consecutive win. They are buzzing as they return home to face more stiff Big Ten competition.
Containing ‘Cats
Wildcats graduate student outside hitter Ayah Elnady came away with 12 kills on the day, but the Illini defense kept the rest of their front row in check. They could have used a few more kills from freshman outside hitter Bella Bullington and junior outside hitter Campbell Paris, as they did not factor as much into the scoring.
Graduate middle blocker Kayla Burbage demonstrated why her position is called that, nailing her assignments and denying four Wildcat attacks. Freshman outside hitter Alyssa Aguayo and redshirt sophomore opposite Auburn Tomkinson also understood the assignment, assisting five blocks combined.
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Late in set three, the Wildcats were hanging tight with the Illini, but couldn’t get out of their own way. A big factor in set wins and losses is errors, and while leading by one, Paris committed a crucial attack error to tie the score at 22. That would become the theme of the end of this match, as four of Illinois’ last six points were thanks to unforced errors by the opposition.
With Illinois in front, 26-25, Bullington got a chance from the right side, but mishit the ball. It hit out of bounds a few feet off the sideline to end the match.
Steady Offense
Another big player in match results is service aces. Senior outside hitter Averie Hernandez blasted two aces, in addition to two kills, to relieve some of the pressure on the big arms. Redshirt sophomore outside hitter Taylor de Boer attacked with authority, swinging home 14 kills, including two to help clinch set one.
The ending of set two got dicey as Illinois led 24-18. There was a moment earlier in the season against Iowa State where it led by the same mark, but allowed an 8-0 run to fall two sets down. That nearly surfaced once again as the Wildcats made a fiery 4-0 run to cut the lead to two.
Enter Aguayo, who not only made her mark blocking, but got a perfect set from junior setter Kenna Phelan into the left pen and placed it perfectly in the corner to stymie the run and end the set.
Similar to Aguayo, Tomkinson swung with a purpose, registering six kills on the day. Meanwhile, Phelan’s 31 assists bump her season total up to 620. Her average is up to just over 37 assists per match. If she continues at this pace, this will put her over 1,000 assists in 2025.
Back at Huff Hall
The Illini are more than happy to be returning to their home court following the trip. The back-to-back starts on Friday against No. 12 Purdue (15-3, 6-2), immediately followed by a tilt with Michigan (12-7, 2-6) the next day. Both matches are set for 7 p.m.
