NORMAL, Ill. – The Illinois State volleyball team extended its winning streak to a season-best four matches after earning a 3-1 win over visiting Bradley Friday night at Redbird Arena. Illinois State won by scores of 25-18, 25-13, 13-25, 25-19.
Jaelyn Keene churned out team highs of 14 kills and six blocks, while Ella Francis and Sydney Holt chipped in 10 kills apiece. Lexi Wallen contributed three aces, Stef Jankiewicz dished out 35 assists and Courtney Pence led all players with 16 digs.
"We're working to be steadier, creating more urgency to win points in a row, never backing down," said Illinois State head coach Leah Johnson. "I think that's been what has propelled us over these four wins."
An early seven-point run staked Illinois State (13-9, 6-3 MVC) to an 8-2 lead. Bradley (8-15, 1-8) never got closer than three points from the lead the rest of the way. Holt and Keene combined for 11 of Illinois State's 17 kills in the opening set, which was clinched with a set-winning kill from Francis.
Back and forth early on, the second set turned with a 7-1 mid-set binge from the Redbirds, which translated to a 16-8 lead. Illinois State finished strong, too, scoring the final seven points of the second set to take a 2-0 lead into the break.
Bradley rebounded in the third set. The Braves used a 7-1 lead to grab an early 11-6 advantage. After Redbird kills from Ali Line and Francis, the visitors ran off seven points in a row to pull away for good.
The Redbirds bounced back in the fourth set, though. A three-point run gave the Redbirds a 13-11 lead the team refused to surrender the rest of the way. Kills down the stretch from Keene, Holt and Francis kept the Redbirds on track to finish the match in the fourth set, and a service ace from Keene finished off the win.
The Redbirds return to action next weekend with matches at Southern Illinois on Friday and Missouri State on Saturday. Links for live stats and video for both matches are available at GoRedbirds.com, and fans can follow @RedbirdVB on Twitter for live updates and more.
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