Oxford, Ms. No. 17 Illinois volleyball fell to No. 9 Georgia Tech in straight sets at the Ole Miss Invitational to open the 2022 campaign. Kayla Burbage – a transfer from Missouri – provided an 11-kill .450-hitting clip for the Illini from the Gillum Athletic Performance Center.
Illinois moves to 4-1 against Georgia Tech following first meeting in 21St Century. The Illini are an all-time 38-11 on the season, including a 5-1 mark as head coach. Chris Thomas.
Jessica Nunn Georgia Tech hit a kill to open the period for the Illini to force a timeout earlier before pushing out to a quick 8-4 lead. After halftime, the Orange and Blue Yellow Jackets posted a 4-0 run to tie the score before hitting double digits for the first time. The Illini used an 18-13 second period of the frame to pull back to within 23-21 before forcing a Tech layup following a combined block. Kayla Burbage And Kyla Swanson. Georgia Tech would score two quick points to win the first set 25-21.
Georgia Tech led wire-to-wire in set two. The Illini would take a 15-8 halftime lead through the frame, but the Yellow Jackets couldn’t slow down the offense. Georgia Tech hit .591 to the Illini’s .308 rate. Late in the frame, Brooke Mosher She hits the kill for the first time in her Illinois career.
Illinois came out of the break to strike first in the third frame and held several early leads. Georgia Tech held the score 9-9 for the first time to hit double digits. Line Terry And Kennedy Collins Corrected item returned correctly. A Kyla Swanson Kill tied the frame at 15-15, but the Yellow Jackets would hit for the next three points to pull ahead late. GT closed the frame with a 7-1 run to claim the game with a 25-17 victory.
The third period ended with 15 plays and five lead changes, bringing the game total to 20 and 8.
Diana Brown 41 registeredSt She had a career double, 29 assists and a team-best 10 digs. Burbage teamed with Brown for 11 kills on 20 swings for a .450 clip in her Illini debut.
Line Terry And Jessica Nunn Each added seven kills for the Orange and Blue, while Swanson and Collins both collected five. Swanson worked to a .556 hitting percentage, taking nine errorless swings.
At the net, Collins had three blocks — one solo — while Terry added two.
Illinois closes out the weekend with a 1 pm CT matchup against host Ole Miss. The Rebels fell to Georgia Tech in four sets on Friday night.
Notes:
– Starters:- Kennedy Collins, Diana Brown, Kyla Swanson, Kayla Burbage, Carolyn Barnes, Line Terry, Jessica Nunn
– The last time the Illini opened the season against a ranked opponent was 2019 at No. 19 Tennessee, a five-set win. At the time, Illinois was ranked sixth.
– Illinois is now 38-11 in all-time openers.
– For the first time since 2019, teams returned to switch seats between women.
– Illinois was one of three Big Ten teams in a Top-25 matchup this weekend.
