Miami Ohio University Athletics
Miami University
University of Illinois
Miami Drops Three-Game Match to No. 19 Illinois
9/4/2004 12:00:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
Sept. 4, 2004
OXFORD, Ohio--In the final match of the Miami University "Hurricane Frances" Volleyball Classic, Miami fell in three games to No. 19 Illinois, 26-30, 18-30, 23-30. The RedHawks evened their record to 1-1, while the Illini improved to 3-0 and captured the tournament championship after defeating TCU earlier on Saturday in four games. Miami defeated TCU on Friday evening in four games and finished second in the tournament. Despite out-hitting Illinois in the first game with 18 kills to the Illinois' 14 and a .351 hitting percentage to Illinois' .235, four Illini service aces and five RedHawk service errors proved costly for Miami. Miami was within two points of Illinois near the end, 26-28, but Rasa Virsilaite collected a kill and Erin Virtue and Jen Hynds teamed up on a block to end the game in favor of the Illini, 30-26. Sophomore middle hitter Lauren Slusser (Columbus Grove, Ohio/Columbus Grove) knocked down six of Miami's 18 kills and boasted a scorching .857 hitting percentage, connecting on all but one attempt with no attack errors. The RedHawks also were solid on the block, paced by freshman middle hitter Carli Reihman (Cincinnati, Ohio/Ursuline Academy), who knocked down four blocks for the `Hawks in the first set. In the second game, Miami was within one early in the set, 10-11, but Illinois went on a 9-5 run to post a 20-15 lead. From there, Illinois outscored Miami 10-3 to collect the 30-18 Game Two win. Slusser again paced the Miami attack with four kills. Rachel VanMeter posted six kills to lead Illinois. Illinois notched a 6.0 to 1.0 advantage in blocks in the third game to help boost the Illini to a 30-23 win. Hynds and Meghan Macdonald each tallied three blocks to lead Illinois at the net. Illinois went on a 9-1 run to build its lead to seven early in the game, 15-8. Miami chipped away at the Illini advantage and pulled within two, 19-21, but the lead was too much to surmount as Illinois outscored Miami 9-4 down the stretch. Slusser paced the RedHawks with a team-best 13 kills and a .688 hitting percentage. Junior libero Suzy Wolford (Batavia, Ill./Batavia) tallied 10 digs for Miami, while Reihman added six blocks. For Illinois, Rachel VanMeter posted 15 kills and five blocks, while Virsilaite added 11 kills. Macdonald led all players with eight blocks and four service aces, while Virtue tallied a match-best 40 assists. VanMeter was tabbed the tournament MVP, while teammates Virsilaite and Lauren Harks were named to the all-tournament team. Slusser and Reihman represented Miami on the all-tournament team, while Dominika Szabo and Talaya Whitfield from TCU were named to the all-tournament team. Miami returns to action at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Sept. 7 at local foe Cincinnati.
