Illini Come Up Short Against No. 9 Minnesota

CHAMPAIGN, Ill.– Illinois volleyball dropped an intense five-set battle with No. 9 Minnesota at Huff Hall on Sunday afternoon. 

With the loss, the Fighting Illini dropped to 11-13 overall and 6-8 in Big Ten play. The Golden Gophers improved to 15-7 this season and 10-4 against conference opponents.

Minnesota took an early 8-2 lead over Illinois thanks to a six-point run by the Gophers. The Illini used a timeout following a 3-0 rally for the Gophers that put the Orange and Blue behind by seven. Minnesota continued to build on its lead, and the Illini burned their final timeout trailing 21-13. The Gophers closed out the set scoring back-to-back points, handing the Fighting Illini the 25-15 setback in the opening frame.

Looking to rebound in the second set, the Illini held the 10-5 edge following a 3-0 run that began with a block by Jessica Nunge and Rylee Hinton. Three-straight Illinois attack errors put the Gophers behind by just a point, 11-10, but a 5-1 turn favored the Illini and resulted in Minnesota needing a timeout. Back-to-back Brooke Mosher kills extended the 18-11 advantage out of the break. The Gophers burned their final timeout after tallying a pair of attack errors with the Orange and Blue ahead 22-15. Illinois closed out the set on a 3-0 run with a block by Kennedy Collins and Mosher sealing the 25-16 triumph in the second stanza.

The team’s battled back-and-forth to start the third frame but at the media…