BOX SCORE (HTML)
BOX SCORE (PDF)
Play-By-Play
CHICAGO, Ill. - Down 1-0, the Western Illinois volleyball team hit .247 in three victories to collect a 3-2 (14-25, 25-23, 25-21, 15-25, 15-11) road win over in-state rival Chicago State Monday night at the Dickens Center.
The Fighting Leathernecks (8-17), who have won two straight matches, received clutch performances from their junior class. Western received double-digit kill outings from Krissy Bergquist (15 kills), Cait Egan (14 kills) and Brooke Stittleburg (15 kills), and Alyssa Holum quarterbacked the Leatherneck offense with a career-high 42 assists. The Fighting Leathernecks have now won 12 straight matchups with the Cougars (0-28).
"Chicago State played their best match of the season
tonight," Western Illinois head coach Kym McKay said. "They had the home court
advantage and did a lot of solid things on their side of the net. We were
fortunate to control the match at pivotal times and get a win."
"We kept our anxieties in check and allowed our performance
to remain consistent," McKay added. "Chicago State kept the pressure on us and
we were able to execute despite the challenges. It was good to see the
players pull through."
Bergquist led the Western offensive attack for the first time since Sept. 4 at Troy. It was Bergquist's first double-digit outing since an 11-kill performance on Sept. 5 vs. McNeese State. Egan was the Leathernecks most efficient offensive threat as she posted a .333 attack percentage on 33 attempts. Stittleburg was in double-digits for the first time since a 24-kill outing against UMKC on Oct. 15.
Defensively, senior Ellen Miller had a match-high 20 digs to record her ninth straight double-digit outing. Miller now owns 1,068 career digs and moved past Kim Phillips (1989-93) into eighth place all-time in program history. At the service line, Megan Toczek, Heather Smith and Stittleburg had two aces apiece.
Despite recording the same amount of kills as Chicago State in the first set, the Cougars posted a comfortable 25-14 victory by collecting four service aces and four total blocks. With Western ahead 7-6, the Cougars' Shandella Darring had three aces in a 5-0 run that put Chicago State up 11-7. The Leathernecks got as close as 12-10 following a Krissy Bergquist kill, but strong serving from Mysta Townsell put the Cougars up 17-11 and Chicago State pulled away for the victory. The Cougars hit .214 in the opening frame and held the Leathernecks to a -.026 attack percentage.
The Cougars used the momentum from the first set to run out to a 14-10 lead in the second set, but Megan Toczek had two aces and Bergquist recorded three kills during an 8-1 run that put the Leathernecks up 18-15. The Cougars got as close as 23-22 following a service ace, but two Chicago State errors gave Western a 25-23 second set victory. Chicago State hit .480 in the set, but Western used five service aces to stay in control and ultimately tie the match at 1-1.
Western led the whole way and had 18 kills in a 25-21 third set victory. Stittleburg had seven kills on 12 attempts and the Fighting Leathernecks hit .317 in the set. Despite holding a 12-10 advantage in kills in the fourth set, Western never led after the first serve in a 25-15 Chicago State victory. The Cougars hit .296, collected three service aces and posted two more total blocks in the win.
In the final stanza, the Leathernecks ran out to a 5-1 lead behind two kills apiece from Toczek and Allison Gilbert, and held Chicago State to just five kills in a 15-11 fifth set victory.
Western Illinois jumps back into Summit League action this weekend as the Fighting Leathernecks travel to take on IPFW Friday and Oakland Saturday. Friday's match starts at 6 p.m. and Saturday's contest begins at 4 p.m.
