The University of Illinois Springfield volleyball team won both of its matches during day one of the 2018 Midwest Region Crossover in Indianapolis, Ind. The Prairie Stars defeated Ashland by a 3-1 score, and then defeated Grand Valley State by a 3-0 margin.
 
UIS started out slow in its first match against Ashland but got back on track and won by scores of 17-25, 25-21, 25-18, and 25-21. It fell behind 9-3 early in the first set, and it could not get back into that game. After that set though, it was all Prairie Stars as they never trailed again in a set, and was tied just seven times in the final three games. UIS had a .292 hitting percentage in sets two, three, and four, and averaged nearly 18 kills in that span. Defensively, the team held the Eagles to just over 12 kills in those sets.
 
For the match, the Prairie Stars finished with a .259 hitting percentage, compared to a .220 mark for Ashland. UIS had nine more kills and five more blocks in the victory over a program that was receiving votes in the latest national poll.
 
UIS won with a balanced team effort. Five of its six starters had double-figure points, and the sixth, setter Tiffany Wentworth, averaged 13.0 assists a set. Rachel Cobert led the team with 14 kills and 17 points. She had a .345 hitting percentage and had a double-double after also recording 13 digs.
 
Alli Splitt hit .400 for the match and had 13 kills. Brianna Bush had 12 kills, followed by Taylor Bauer with 11. Alyssa Hasler had a team-high six blocks and finished with 13 points. Wentworth finished with 52 assists, and Jailyn Borum had 22 digs. Jenny Rush was also in double-figures with 11 digs.
 
In the second match, UIS had one of its top offensive performances of the season in a 25-10, 25-23, and 25-23 victory over Grand Valley State. UIS hit .323 for the contest, and had nearly 18 kills a set, including 20 each in sets two and three. The Prairie Stars finished with 17 more kills than the Lakes, and, defensively, had five more blocks and 19 more digs.
 
Bauer led the team with 14 kills and Splitt was in double-figures with 11. Wentworth had a team-high 44 assists and five blocks, and she also had six kills in seven attempts. Other leaders included Splitt with two services aces and Borum with 19 digs. Cobert and Rush also had double-figure dig totals.
 
UIS improves to 17-4 on the season with the victory. The Prairie Stars conclude play at the 2018 Midwest Region Crossover with a contest versus Findlay.