The University of Illinois Springfield volleyball team opened up the Warriors Classic in Detroit, Mich. with two victories on Friday. The Prairie Stars knocked off Tiffin in straight sets, and defeated the host school, Wayne State, in four games.
 
In the opener, the Prairie Stars played a complete game as they won by scores of 25-18, 25-23, and 25-14.
 
Defensively, UIS came out in the first set and recorded four blocks. That set the tone for the match as the Prairie Stars would finish with nine blocked shots, and Tiffin had a total of 25 hitting errors. The Dragons hit just .008 for the match, and never hit higher than .068 for a set. Offensively, five different players had six or more kills, and UIS hit .288.
 
The only close set in the match came in the second, as the Prairie Stars had to overcome a five-point deficit at one point. The two teams were tied at 23, before Taylor Bauer recorded a kill, and then had a block assist with Alli Splitt to end the set.
 
Bauer finished with a team-high 13 kills, and she hit over .500 with just one attack error in 21 attempts. Alyssa Hasler finished with nine kills and Rachel Cobert had eight. Tiffany Wentworth had team-highs of 34 assists and 11 digs, and also recorded the team's only service ace. Jailyn Borum collected 10 digs in the match, and Hasler had a team-high four blocks.
 
The balanced offensive attack continued in the second match when UIS defeated Wayne State by scores of 25-20, 22-25, 25-22, and 25-21.
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The Prairie Stars had five players with eight or more kills, and UIS hit .216 for the match, compared to .179 for the Warriors. The turning point of the match came right after Wayne State won the second set to tie the match. UIS immediately took the momentum back by winning the first seven points of the third set, and it never looked back from there.
 
Wentworth directed the offense and finished with 45 assists. Cobert led the team with 15 kills, and Splitt had 10 kills, no errors, and a .526 attacking percentage. Cobert also led the team will 11 digs, and Hasler had a match-high seven blocks.
 
UIS moves to 4-2 on the season. The Prairie Stars will face Wayne State again on Saturday, followed by a match against Kentucky State.