IU outkills opponent but still loses

Weekend Recap
Struggles continued throughout the weekend for the IU women’s volleyball team as it lost to Northwestern and No. 5 Illinois, extending the losing streak to 16 games.

On Friday, IU  in straight sets to Northwestern.

Against the Illini on Saturday, the Hoosiers responded to losing the first set by battling back to even the match at a set a piece. Sophomore Jade Henderson tallied five kills in the set.

The Illini won the next two sets (25-22 and 25-16), but the Hoosiers competed throughout the match.

Defensively, senior Caitlin Cox and junior Whitney Granado led in digs with 17 and 10, respectively. Granado had 37 assists for a double-double.

Junior Kelci Marschall dominated both matches this weekend, racking up back-to-back 15-kill performances, both game highs. Marschall added three aces to round out her best statistical weekend of the year.
            
What’s next for the Hoosiers
The Hoosiers will finish a four-game home stand against No. 2 Nebraska and Iowa next weekend.

The Cornhuskers (18-2) swept the Hoosiers earlier in the season.
Saturday’s match against the Hawkeyes will officially be senior night for the IU women’s volleyball team.
 
Quote of Note
“Part of it is, they get in a panic mode,” IU Coach Sherry Dunbar said about why the Hoosiers couldn’t stop long runs by Northwestern. “They have to learn to play with a control where they don’t get out of control for those points where they go on a run. Statistically, (the first two sets) were the best two sets we’ve had in the Big Ten, but we had 22 errors to their five errors. That’s where the panic sets in.”

Notable Number
91. The amount of kills IU had during weekend play. The Hoosiers out-killed both of their opponents (40-36 kills against Northwestern and 51-47 kills against Illinois).

-Mike Norman