SPRINGFIELD, IL - The Prairie Stars came back from a two-set deficit against the no. 18 Lewis Flyers to force a fifth set but eventually dropped a 3-2 decision to the Flyers Friday night at the Recreation and Athletic Center.

The Basics
The Result: Lewis 3-2 (25-11, 25-19, 20-25, 14-25, 15-8)
Records: Lewis (22-1, 10-0 GLVC), UIS (5-18, 2-8 GLVC)
Location: Springfield, Ill. - TRAC

UIS Top Performers

• Junior Ashley Beaton (Wildwood, Mo.): finished with a team-high 13 kills, her first double-digit kill performance since September 18.
• Junior Nora Palermo (West Chicago, Ill.): tallied eight kills on 31 to go with a pair of aces and four digs.
• Sophomore Ally Vicsik (Elkhart, Ind.): collected a team-high 15 digs to only one reception error.

How It Happened

• A kill by Nora Palermo tied the first set at 5-5, but the visiting Flyers used a 4-0 run to take control in the early going. The Prairie Stars continued to trail by four, 12-8, when the no. 18 Flyers unleashed a 13-3 run to take the first set, 25-11.
• Lewis rode the momentum to a 7-3 lead in the second stanza, eventually extending the lead to seven, 13-6. A kill and then an ace from freshman Alyssa Hasler (South Bend, Ind.) kick started a 4-0 run for the hosts to pull back within three, 13-10. The teams traded points and a 3-0 run by the Flyers late gave the visitors a 25-19 second set win.
• The Prairie Stars began the turnaround in the third set. With the score tied 7-7, UIS scored six straight points, using kills from freshman Emma Burkle (Crystal Lake, Ill.) and Hasler, to take a 13-7 lead.
• UIS extended its lead to as many as eight, 18-10, after a service ace from sophomore Lexi Hall (Champaign, Ill.). Lewis fought back to pull within four but that's as close as the Flyers got as UIS took the third set, 25-20.
• In the fourth set, early runs from both teams saw the Prairie Stars ahead, 6-4. Trailing 8-5 later in the stanza, Lewis broke off a 4-0 run to retake the lead, 9-8. A Lewis error and an ace by Nora Palermo started an 11-3 run for the hosts that broke the fourth set wide open. The Prairie Stars finished off the set with five of the final six points to force a decisive fifth set.
• UIS fell behind early in the final set and was never able to recover. Three attack errors gave the Flyers an early 4-1 lead, which they later stretched to five, 11-6. After a pair of attack errors on the Flyers cut the UIS deficit to just three, 11-8, the visitors scored four straight to take the set and the match.

Coming Up Next

• The Prairie Stars host Wisconsin Parkside tomorrow at 3 p.m. at the Recreation and Athletic Center.