It took four, tightly contested sets, but Murray State beat the Illinois State Redbirds in their conference opener at CEFCU Arena in Normal, Illinois on Sept. 27.
The Racers struggled early in the first set. Anytime they would fight back into the set, Illinois State retook the lead. Murray State went down 20-17 before they scored five straight points to take the lead 22-20. An Illinois State attack error and kills from Bailey DeMier and Ella Vogel saw the Racers take set one by a score of 25-22.
Set two was just as close as set one. Both the Racers and the Redbirds went on scoring runs to take the lead from each other early in the set. Illinois State scored six straight to take an 11-8 lead before the Racers scored six of the next nine points to tie up the set at 14. Murray State scored six of the next seven points to take a 20-15 lead. This set finished with the same score as the first, 25-22 Racers.
Murray State had all the momentum going into set three and the Redbirds were in need of a set to keep the match alive. Set three can be described as a game of runs. Both teams went on scoring streaks, but the Racers couldn’t finish the match. Illinois State never surrendered the lead after going down 2-1 and won the third set 25-19.
Set four was important for both teams. Murray State needed it to finish the match off, while Illinois State had an opportunity for a reverse sweep. The fourth set was back and forth between both teams, taking a slight lead before the other would tie the set again. The Racers would take a 21-20 but Illinois State stayed persistent. Despite their attempt, Murray State scored four straight points to finish the match.
Ella Vogel led the Racers with 17 kills, bringing her season total to 165. Bailey DeMier led the game with 46 assists, her fourth time with more than 40 assists this season.
With the win, Murray State moves to 6-4 on the season and 1-0 in the Missouri Valley Conference. The Racers next match is in Peoria, Illinois, when they play Bradley at the Renaissance Coliseum on Sept. 28 at 3 p.m.
