The University of Illinois Springfield volleyball team used 13 blocks, including on some of the match's biggest points, to knock off Drury on Friday night at TRAC in four sets. The Prairie Stars won 25-23, 25-13, 21-25, and 25-23.
 
In the opening set, UIS trailed 21-19 when a block by Megan Krasowski and Hannah Nicolaisen got the team within one. That sparked a 6-2 run that won the set for the Prairie Stars, including back-to-back blocks by Brianna Bush to break a 22-22 tie.
 
UIS recorded four blocks in the second set in a 25-13. That set saw the Prairie Stars hit .517 offensively with no hitting errors for the game.
 
After Drury won set three, the fourth set saw eight ties and three lead changes. The final tie came at 17-17 when a kill by Ryleigh Warfel put the Prairie Stars up. On the next point, another block by Brianna Bush, with help from Becca Blakeley, helped the team go on a 3-0 run. Drury fought back to 24-23 late, by Nicolaisen finished the match with a kill.
 
UIS hit .225 for the match, and held Drury to a .164 mark. UIS had one more kill and five more blocks. The Prairie Stars also did not make a service reception error on the night.
 
Angela Denney finished with a team-high 16 kills, one more than Warfel. Nicolaisen's game-winning kill gave her 10 for the match, and she had a team-high .526 hitting percentage. Blakeley finished with 45 assists. Defensively, Nicolaisen had seven blocks, and Bush and Krasowski both had five. Five players had double-figure digs, led by Amanda McConnell with 27. Others were Denney, Krasowski, Blakeley, and Emma Konie.
 
UIS improves to 9-13 on the season and 5-6 in GLVC play. The Prairie Stars return to TRAC on Saturday afternoon to face Southwest Baptist on Senior Day.