IU volleyball goes 1-1 in conference matches

The IU volleyball team is now 3-3 in the Big Ten and 12-6 overall after splitting two conference matches this weekend. IU defeated Illinois on the road Friday night in a five-game thriller and lost to No. 9 Wisconsin in Madison, Wis., on Saturday night. \nSo far this season, two of the Hoosiers’ three conference wins have come on the road. Coach Sherry Dunbar said she knows how important it is to get a road victory in the conference.\n“It is easier to win at home in the Big Ten,” Dunbar said. “It is always good to win on the road and steal a victory.”\nComing off of a win against a hard-hitting Ohio State team, IU looked to carry its intensity level into the match against Illinois. \nSitting in the middle of the Big Ten, the Fighting Illini (10-4, 2-2) had a similar record to the Hoosiers’ coming into Friday’s match. Both teams fought hard and played even through the match, and it took the full five games to decide a winner.\nAfter the Hoosiers cut the Fighting Illini lead to one at 21-22 in game one, Ilinois went on a powerful\n8-3 run to take the game 24-30. IU then captured the second game 30-22 to tie the match 1-1 before heading into the locker room.\nSenior right side Lauren Ditteon, who contributed 17 kills in the match, said a road win is important to the team’s confidence.\n“Any win we get right now is huge,” she said. “This road competitiveness was great and so was our chemistry.”\nIllinois won game three, dominating the contest with a final score of 15-30. The Hoosiers pulled of a 30-23 win in game four, forcing a fifth and final game.\nWith the crowd working against them, Dunbar said her team knew game five was going to be one full of even and well-played volleyball. \nIllinois only trailed twice in the game, each time by only one point. The Hoosiers never gave up throughout the game, and when the Illini had match point, junior outside hitter Erica Short began a rally by throwing down an important kill.\n“Our never-give-up mentality was what we did the best against Illinois,” Short said. “Also, our communication and always-fight approach were important.”\nThe Hoosiers took the final two points to claim the game-five win – and the match – 16-14. Dunbar said the win was a key stride for the team.\n“This is a huge step in the direction we want to go,” she said. “I told them that they needed to do the things in game five that they did to get there.”\nTwenty-four hours later, the Hoosiers found themselves in Madison preparing to compete against the No. 9 Badgers, who sit at the top of the Big Ten. \nThe outcome was not as positive for the Hoosiers, as they were defeated in three games, 17-30, 31-33 and 16-30. IU only recorded five total team blocks to the Badgers’ 11.5, and the Hoosiers hit .107 compared to the Badgers’ .376.\nGame two was fiercely competitive, and the Hoosiers stayed with Wisconsin all the way through. Short delivered a hit to tie the game at 30-30, but the Hoosiers fell short in the end.\nDunbar said her team lacked the intensity it had in last weekend’s loss to No. 3 Penn State when they played Wisconsin.\n“The biggest thing I was disappointed with was the defensive intensity,” Dunbar said. “Good teams bring that good intensity every night. We waited on something to happen instead of making something happen. Tonight we didn’t bring it.”\nIU will now have three straight home games against Michigan State, Northwestern and rival Purdue.