Illinois State Volleyball Starts MVC Play Undefeated With Back-to-Back Road Wins
Written by Quinn Flavin on September 27, 2026
NORMAL, Ill. — Illinois State volleyball won both its weekend matches, beating UIC 3-1 on Friday and Valparaiso 3-2 on Saturday. This is the first time that the team has started off the season 2-0 in Missouri Valley Conference play since 2019.
In its MVC opener, the Redbirds fought to take down the Flames in four sets with scores of 25-19, 23-25, 25-15 and 25-23.
Statistical leaders for that match include Jillian Ferrill with 16 kills, Oliwia Caputa with three aces, Abby Reck with six blocks, Ella Craggs with 20 assists and Sammi Bunch with 27 digs. ISU is now 22-13 all time against UIC, and has won the past two matches in Chicago.
In their second match of the weekend, the Redbirds battled to beat the Beacons in five sets with scores of 25-17, 18-25, 14-25, 25-15 and 15-10.
Stat leaders for that match include Ruth Ziegler with 16 kills and three aces, Oliwia Caputa and Abby Reck with three blocks each, Ella Craggs with 23 assists and Sammi Bunch with 16 digs. ISU is now 17-7 overall against Valparaiso, and have won the past two matches in Valparaiso.
The Redbirds will now look ahead to another weekend of MVC play, taking on Northern Iowa on Thursday and Drake on Friday at 6 p.m. at CEFCU Arena.
For all things Redbird Volleyball, stay tuned to WZND.com.
