Indiana University Athletics
Indiana University
Illinois
Illinois Tops Hoosiers in Champaign
11/15/2008 12:00:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
A bright spot for Indiana was the superb play of Kelsey Hall though as the Murrieta, Calif., native etched her name into the IU record books with her effort from the defensive backcourt. Hall dug 24 balls on the night, the second most in school history for a three-set match. She was just one dig away from tying Lynn Crawley for the top spot. Interestingly, Crawley's 25 digs also came at Illinois (Nov. 11, 1994). It marks a career-high for Hall in any match no matter the number of sets. Her previous best dig total was 20, a number she compiled in last season's five-set IU win at, you guessed it, Illinois. Hall also added eight kills and successfully received 22 of 23 service receptions in the contest.
The first two sets were a struggle for both teams offensively, neither squad able to hit over .100 in either frame. Ashley Benson's three blocks in the opening set played a large role in limiting the Fighting Illini. The score was tight in the earlier goings of set number one, but several runs of three or more points by Illinois gave them the first of three 25-19 sets.
Hall really began to heat up in the second stanza, digging an impressive nine balls. Illinois was able to snag the first four points of the set though en route to leading the entire way. The Hoosiers battled back from a few large deficits early, coming all the way back to knot the score at 15-15 off a kill by Benson. Ten of the next 14 points went over to the Illini side, however, for a 25-19 final score.
Illinois once again went ahead 4-0 in the third frame. They then held the lead the remainder of the set, but by no fault of Hall and her whopping 11 digs in the final set alone. Erica Short became the offensive focus, taking 26 swings and connecting for five kills to push her match total to a team-high 14 put-aways. Hall narrowed the gap to a lone point at 14-15 with a shot down the line that caught the tape. Illinois responded immediately by taking the next four points and eventually completing another 25-19 set winner.
With four matches left in the regular season, the Cream and Crimson are still in contention for an NCAA Tournament at-large bid and sit in a three-way tie for seventh place in the conference standings. Indiana will host Wisconsin and Northwestern next weekend inside University Gym before hitting the road for the final weekend of the regular season, heading to Michigan and Ohio State.
Players Mentioned
