After losing against No. 2 Nebraska, Illinois volleyball had four consecutive victories. After winning against Northwestern, Michigan, Michigan State and Indiana, Illinois added to its record and now stands at 12-5. Illinois swept Indiana earlier this week, putting its conference record at 4-3.
Now Illinois remains at home in Huff Hall to face Maryland on Sunday.
Graduate student outside hitter Raina Terry showed up and showed out against Indiana. With 16 kills and five blocks, she helped lead Illinois to victory. She has had a very impressive year since returning for a fifth season with the Illini.
Earlier this season, she obtained accolades for the Best Western Invitational MVP and the Cyclone Invitational MVP. She also made the Hyatt Place Invitational All-Tournament team and the Lippy Invite All-Tournament team and won Big Ten Player of the Week in September.
Another game leader against Indiana was junior outside hitter Averie Hernandez, who finished with 12 kills and one block. Additionally, freshman outside hitter Laynie Smith has made a name for herself with the Illini. Smith is making moves on the court as one of the younger players on the team. She was a leader against Indiana with six kills and has consistently shown up for the Illini.
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Illinois’ opponent Maryland holds a 10-8 overall record. They are currently struggling with a conference record of 1-6. With this in mind, Illinois could leverage extra force over Maryland as a Big Ten weakling.
The Terrapins are currently on a three-game losing streak against Wisconsin, Minnesota and USC. All three of those games were a complete annihilation, with 0-3 sweeps in each.
Overall, Maryland just does not put as many points up on the board as its opponents; its error rate is much higher. In its previous game versus USC, USC recorded 41 kills, whereas Maryland only had 30. For errors, USC recorded six, and Maryland put up 14.
A big player for Maryland is graduate student outside hitter Sam Csire. Against USC, she recorded 10 kills and one block. She’s tallying 179 kills this season with 23 block assists. Similarly, another impact player for Maryland is graduate student outside hitter Samantha Schnitta, who has recorded 223 kills and 37 block assists on the year.
The game will be streamed on Big Ten+ this Sunday at 1 p.m., with many Illini fans hoping the team can add to their conference record and win streak.
