Oct. 2, 2010
No. 7 Illinois 3, No. 25 Northwestern 2
Site: Huff Hall Champaign, Ill.
Records: Northwestern (13-2, 3-1 Big Ten); Illinois (12-2, 4-0 Big Ten)
Up Next: vs. Iowa Friday, Oct. 8 7 p.m.
Northwestern at Illinois Box Score 
2010 Northwestern Volleyball Statistics
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. -- With sole possession of first place in the Big Ten on the line, 25th-ranked Northwestern and seventh-ranked Illinois staged another classic in the history of the rivalry. After taking the opening set, the Wildcats would rally to take set four, but ultimately came up just short, dropping a five-set heartbreaker to the Illini 25-22, 19-25, 28-30, 25-21, 11-15.
"I couldn't have asked for a better effort out of our girls tonight," said Keylor Chan. "Illinois showed why they are one of the top teams in the country, but we also showed that we can play with the top teams in the country. A couple bounces and a couple calls go a different way, and it's a completely different outcome. We just need to learn from this match tonight and take it forward. But these girls played their hearts out."
Freshman Stephanie Holthus (Burlington, Ill./Central) put together the best match of her young career, recording personal-bests in both kills (19) and digs (20). Sabel Moffett (Temecula, Calif./Chapparal) finished with 16 kills and six blocks on the night, including two solo blocks, moving her into sole possession of eight-place all-time in Northwestern history.
Naomi Johnson (Bloomington, Minn./Kennedy) was the third Wildcat to reach double-digit kills, posting 12 on the evening to complement her seven blocks. Madalyn Shalter (Ottawa, Ohio/Ottawa-Glandorf) finished with seven kills while tying her career-best with eight blocks and recording a personal-best 20 digs. Christina Kaelin (Louisville, Ky./Assumption) added six kills for the Wildcats.
Julie Chin (Naperville, Ill./North) came up big for Northwestern on the back row, setting a career-best with 26 digs after missing last night's game against Wisconsin with a partially dislocated shoulder. She was one of five 'Cats to reach double-digit dig totals as Elyse Glab (Chicago, Ill./Resurrection) finished with 19 and Alex Ayers (Playa del Rey, Calif./Marymont) posted 16.
The opening stanza began as a back and forth battle with the teams combined for five ties, including late in the set at 17-17. Four-straight points for Illinois gave the Illini the lead at 21-17, but Northwestern responded with six-straight of its own, capped by a pair of blocks from Moffett to take the opener 25-22. Holthus recorded six kills to complement six digs, with Johnson adding four kills for the' Cats.
Northwestern and Illinois exchanged points through the opening part of set two as the Wildcats held a 14-13 edge and forced an Illini timeout. Whatever was said during the break worked for Illinois, as it would record 11 of the next 14 points to break the set open at 24-17 before fending off a late Northwestern rally, taking the 25-19 decision.
Despite the shift in momentum, it was the Wildcats that pounced out to the quick start in set three, building a five-point advantage on the Illini at 16-11 off six kills from Holthus. Leading 19-14, Northwestern surrendered eight of the next 10 points to Illinois to fall behind by one at 22-21. Tied at 28, after fighting off four set points, Northwestern dropped the final two points as the Illini took the set 30-28, despite eight kills from Holthus.
Northwestern again slowly built itself a cushion in set four, leading 20-16 late. The 'Cats would extend the advantage to seven at 24-17 off a block from Moffett and a kill from Kaelin, then held off a late Illini rally with a kill from Moffett to take the fourth stanza 25-21 and force the decisive fifth set.
Another back-and-forth start played out in set five, but a 3-0 run put Illinois up 7-4, and that would prove to be all the cushion the Illini would need. Northwestern would rally to tie the set at 11, but Illinois notched the match's final four points to take the decisive set 15-11.
Northwestern continues its Big Ten schedule with a pair of home matches this upcoming weekend at Welsh-Ryan Arena. The Wildcats host Iowa on Friday, Oct. 8, at 7 p.m. in the 2010 volleyball Chipotle BIG GAME. NU then faces 17th-ranked Minnesota on Sunday, Oct. 10, at 1 p.m. in a match that will broadcast tape delayed on the Big Ten Network.
********************
Be the first to know what's going on with the 'Cats! -- Follow @NU_Sports on Twitter and become a fan of Northwestern Volleyball on Facebook! Get the latest news, schedule updates, video and interact with NU. For more information on following specific Northwestern teams online, visit our Social Media page!