The University of Illinois Springfield volleyball team won its home opener in straight sets on Friday night at TRAC. The Prairie Stars defeated McKendree by scores of 25-15, 25-18, and 25-18.
 
UIS never trailed at any point on the night. It set the tone early in set one with eight blocks and holding McKendee to a negative hitting percentage. The Prairie Stars offense led it to a big win in the second set. The final set was the closest of the night, but UIS scored seven of the final eight points for the win.
 
UIS finished the match hitting .292, compared to just .098 for the Bearcats. UIS finished with 12 total team blocks, including five blocks with three players. The Prairie Stars also had six more digs and three more kills, and took advantage of 12 McKendree serving errors.
 
The balanced offensive attack was led by Hannah Nicolaisen with eight kills and a .500 hitting percentage. Kenzie Hendon also had eight kills, followed by Brianna Bush and Ryleigh Warfel with six apiece. Becca Blakeley had a team-high 10 digs, and she tied with Regan Trueblood with 13 assists apiece. Bush had nine blocks in the contest, and Bush, Hendon, and Nicolaisen all had double-figure points.
 
UIS improves to 1-2 on the season and in GLVC play. The Prairie Stars' match on Saturday against Truman was postponed until later in the season. UIS will be in action again next Friday at home against nationally-ranked Lewis.