Redbirds Fall Short in Linda Herman Classic with MVC Opener on the Horizon

NORMAL, Ill. – Illinois State Volleyball (4-5) ran the gauntlet against three tough opponents this weekend at the Linda Herman Classic and came away with their eyes on the rest of the season.

This past weekend the Redbirds hosted the Linda Herman Classic at CEFCU Arena, ISU’s annual out of conference home tournament that signifies the nearing of conference play in the MVC.

This season, like many in the past played host to some high-powered visitors, including the University of Miami Hurricanes (7-1), the Cincinnati University Bearcats (6-2), and in state rival the University of Illinois (4-3). The results overall were less than ideal for the birds going (0-3) in their three matches, but optimism remains high despite the losses.

In match one ISU came out of the gate hot leading set one against the Miami Hurricanes 5-2, after a few costly service errors the ‘canes were able to storm back and take set number one 25-22. ISU’s best set of the match was set two which was a rather comfortable victory for the redbirds reaching a match high eight-point lead (24-16) before ultimately winning (25-20). The birds would go on to lose the next two sets in non-glamorous fashion showing flashes of the team that began the season winning three straight but ultimately the Miami attack was too much culminating in a lack luster 25-13 fourth set loss. This would become a pattern for Illinois State throughout the tournament showing their talent but ultimately failing to stretch consistent play together.

In match two against the Cincinnati Bearcats, it would look like more of the same, and one could have had a sense of déjà vu when seeing how the match shook out. A first set loss that led to a second set victory only to run out of steam in the third and fourth sets and going away rather quietly.

“I was pretty disappointed with our warmup tonight”, coach matters said post-match. “We watched Cincinnati play Illinois [on Saturday] … and I didn’t think that Cincinnati surprised us, but I just didn’t think we were working hard enough to match their energy”.

In the match, Coach Matters chose to start freshman Ne’Khaela Rogers instead of veteran Hannah Reichensperger and she showed out recording a career high 14 kills in the match hitting .407 and dominating the second set. This is something Matters said she’s been wanting to try for a while and plans to institute moving forward giving all three of her blockers in Reichensperger, Rogers, and reigning MVC freshman of the year Khennedi Guest even time up front and giving rest when they need it.

When asked about her career night on offense Rogers spoke to her progress as a player saying, “I feel really confident in my blocking ability, but if I want to improve as a player, I have to be a better hitter… I know my blocking will be there for me, so I just want to keep getting better as a hitter”.

In the final match of the weekend the Redbirds took on the Fighting Illini of Urbana-Champaign and this match was all team from down south from the opening serve. Illinois State failed to reach 20 points in the first two sets, committing 20 total errors including 13 in set number one. The birds tried to pull off the reverse sweep in the third, taking Illinois to the limit twice before falling in extra points 26-24.

To put the weekend in a bit of perspective, the Redbirds were without star player Aida Schadewald as she continues to recover from an ankle injury she sustained in Iowa. Coach Matters told the media Aida is improving every day, and she wants to make sure she is one hundred percent before conference play starts on the 26^th. Also out for the birds was Sammi Bunch who will miss this season with a torn ACL and Madison Smith who injured her non-hitting elbow and will undergo imaging to determine the extent of the injury.

So combining injury with tough opponents along with inconsistency on offense and behind the service line and an 0-3 homestand is what came out of it.

Despite overall number many bright spots light up the court this weekend, the aforementioned Ne’Khaela Rogers showed her potential to be a regular on this team for years to come. Sophomore Khennedi Guest continues to impress up front for the birds, and Caitlyn Little has carried a major workload for ISU with the injuries to Shadewald, and Bunch and her contributions cannot go unnoticed.

Illinois State next will go back on the road to conclude out of conference play at the Dayton Flyer Invitational hosted by the University of Dayton in Ohio. ISU will play twice on Friday (10 a.m. and 4 p.m.) against UC Santa Barbara and Wright state, before a noon matchup against the host team on Saturday at noon.

This tournament serves as a good opportunity to reset and they are going to need it, because just like that next weekend MVC play hits the ground running as the Redbirds will travel to Tarra Haute, Indiana to face the Indiana State Sycamores.

For all things Redbird Volleyball, stay tuned to wznd.com.