UIS recorded 3-1 victories over Thomas More and Lake Superior State on Friday in Hammond, Ind., posting 11 service aces and eight blocks against Thomas More before finishing with 15 aces against LSSU.
In the opening game of the Midwest Regional Crossover, UIS (5-14, 1-7 GLVC) defeated Thomas More (7-11, 3-6 G-MAC) by set scores of 25-22, 25-19, 19-25 and 25-22. The Prairie Stars broke multiple ties in the first set, including at 22-22 with kills from
Alyssa Gray and
Maddie Mendelblatt. UIS used service aces from
Eva Huerta and Gray during a late stretch in the second set, then closed the fourth after Thomas More cut the margin from 20-14 to 20-18.
Kendall Johnson led the Prairie Stars against Thomas More with 12 kills, five aces and 17.5 points.
Khadijah Blue had 10 kills on a .556 hitting percentage, two aces and five total blocks, while Gray added 11 kills and nine digs.
Emma Frazier collected 16 digs.
UIS (6-14, 1-7 GLVC) earned a 21-25, 25-21, 25-15, 25-14 victory over Lake Superior State (4-16, 1-9 GLIAC). After dropping the first set, the Prairie Stars used a 7-0 run to build a 21-10 lead in the second, with Johnson recording four aces during six consecutive service points. UIS moved ahead 11-6 after trailing 6-4 in the third set, then erased an 8-5 deficit in the fourth before Gray's kill completed the match.
Johnson finished the LSSU match with 14 kills, seven aces, 21 points and 13 digs. Blue recorded 13 kills on a .440 hitting percentage and four block assists, Gray had 12 kills, four aces and 16.5 points, and Frazier collected a team-high 18 digs.
Head coach Laura Ulrich praised the team's effort from the service line.
"We spent a lot of time working on serving tougher in practice this week, among other things, and it was great to see that investment pay off today. These young women have been working very hard to improve their play, and we're proud of the competitive grit they've been showing in the gym lately. It feels good to see that hard work show up in the win column!"
Up next, the Prairie Stars face Purdue Northwest to close out the tournament on Saturday.
Â
