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Women's Volleyball
MVP Brown Leads Illini to Classic Title; Illini Top Creighton 3-1
Sept. 8, 2007
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - For the second straight year, the Illinois volleyball team hoisted the State Farm Illini Classic trophy, defeating Creighton 3-1 today at Huff Hall by game scores of 30-22, 17-30, 30-25, 30-22. The Illini were led by the offensive explosiveness of the tournament's Most Valuable Player senior middle blocker Vicki Brown, who finished the afternoon with 16 kills and four blocks. "Vicki has really come into her own this year," head coach Don Hardin said about the MVPs performance. "I don't think she realizes how much attention she draws from the opponent on every play, whether she gets the ball or not. She is one of those players that have the ability to agitate when you play against her. When a player like Vicki blocks you, you feel it. She did a great job today of trusting Lizzie on the set and just being there to put the ball down, while making some very athletic plays in the process." Illinois improved to 6-2 on the season and won their first tournament title of the season - 17th State Farm Illini Classic title overall - while Creighton dropped to 4-4. Freshman outside hitter Laura DeBruler paced all hitters with 18 kills and 10 digs to garner all-tournament honors, while junior Lizzie Bazzetta rounded out the Orange and Blue in the all-tournament spotlight, collecting 45 assists and 13 digs in her double-double performance. "Laura is just a phenomenal player," Hardin said about his freshman outside. "She has a knack for just feeling the game and knowing the right time to toss in her different shots. I think Laura, just as much as Vicki, deserves recognition for how much work she is putting in on the court for us, playing in the front row and in the backcourt. She had almost half the swings for our team today, so she definitely carried us when we needed her." While the offense for Illinois kept the Illini ahead of a feisty Creighton team throughout the match, it was the defense that proved to be the match decider. In the end, a total of five Illini picked up double-digit digs, with sophomore libero Ashley Edinger heading that defensive crew with 21 digs and three assists in the win. Senior outside hitter Amy Palash contributed to the scrappy defense as well, picking up 13, while junior defensive specialist Christine Anderson made her first appearance of the 2007 season, saving 14 of her own. "Our defense did a great job for us today," Brown said about the total team effort. "They really put us in the position to win today with how scrappy they played." In setting the scene for the championship bout, Illini faced a formidable opponent in the championship match in Creighton, whose only losses on the season have come against No. 1 Nebraska, No. 18 Cal-Poly and No. 25 Middle Tennessee. Both teams set up the championship meeting by winning on Friday, as Creighton knocked off Tennessee in the opening game - who was receiving 22 votes in the most recent AVCA poll - while the Illini made quick work of Marquette, 3-0.
Game one started out a little shaky for the Illini as Creighton took a quick 10-7 lead in the early goings. The Bluejays, however, folded under the Illini defense and solid block, allowing Illinois to take a 15-12 lead. Stepping to the service line, Bazzetta then tossed in a trio of tough serves that included an ace to pad the Illini lead at 18-13. Rolling from all facets of the game, Illinois would not let its game-one lead slip away as it received a free service error at game point to take the opening game 30-22. Coming out intent on leveling the match, Creighton opened game two with a barrage of kills, taking an early edge at 8-2. Illinois fought back with key kills from the outside by DeBruler, but the push continued to fall short as the Bluejays held a 13-8 lead. Suffering from off the mark passing, Illinois allowed Creighton to take a 20-10 lead. Continuing to pressure the Illini serve receive, the Bluejays closed the door on an Orange and Blue comeback with an ace on game point to even the affair, 1-1, with a game-two 30-17 victory. In game three it was Illinois who looked sharp coming out of the halftime break to take an early 13-10 lead. As the game continued to unravel, Creighton would fight back off costly free balls from Illinois miscues to take its first lead at 16-15. In a back-and-fourth game, it would be scrappy defense and a pair of knuckle ball serves from outside hitter Amy Palash that returned the edge to Illinois at 19-17. Down the stretch, Illinois made Creighton pay for costly serve receive difficulties, charging to a 25-20 lead when middle blocker Johannah Bangert crushed an over pass with authority. Bangert finished with nine kills and hit .421 for the day. Despite a brief comeback from the Bluejays, a service error handed Illinois the game-three 30-25 victory and a 2-1 lead in the match. In game four, Creighton played from behind again as Illinois owned an 11-6 advantage in the opening points. With the wheels coming off the wagon for the Bluejays, who continued to struggle from off the mark and poor service receive, Illinois looked at the finish line at 24-19. From there, Palash tossed in an ace and an unreturnable serve to give the Illini a 26-19 lead and it was all Illinois the remainder of the game. Riding the arms of DeBruler, who had eight kills in the decisive fourth game, the freshman issued the final dagger on a kill from the outside to seal the 30-22 victory, and the 3-1 match win. With the conclusion of the State Farm Illini Classic, Illinois now prepares for its next home match against Southern Illinois on Wednesday, Sept. 12, at Huff Hall. The midweek contest is the last non-conference home match of the season for the Fighting Illini who open Big Ten play on Sept. 19, when they host nationally ranked Wisconsin for a 7 p.m. rumble in Champaign.
2007 State Farm Illini Classic All-Tournament Team |
