NORMAL, Ill. – Indiana State's Missouri Valley postseason run came to an end on Friday night as the No. 6 Sycamores fell to host No. 2 Illinois State in Redbird Arena, 18-25, 15-25, 20-25.
 
The Sycamores (18-12) rallied back in all three sets against the Redbirds (18-13) as Indiana State hoped to pick up their second win in Redbird Arena this season after previously topping Illinois State in the facility back on November 6. However, it wasn't meant to be as Illinois State took control of each of the three sets on Friday night in securing the berth in the MVC Championship match.
 
Mallory Keller paced the Sycamores offense throughout the match and finished with a team-high 10 kills and a .200 hitting percentage in the match. For her efforts throughout the MVC Championship, she earned All-Tournament accolades after finishing with 18 kills over two matches.

Kaitlyn Hamilton added six kills and a block, while Madeline Williams posted a match-high two service aces and seven digs. Chloe Mason (16) and Emma Kaelin (10) combined for 26 assists, while Melina Tedrow added a team-high 12 digs in the loss.
 
Tamara Otene led an Illinois State offense that hit .298 from the floor in the match with a team-high 14 kills. Katelyn Lefler (21) and Nora Janka (17) combined for 38 assists in the win, while Kaity Weimerskirch added a team-high 17 digs. Nicole Lund finished the night with seven kills and 10 block assists.
 
Illinois State jumped out to the 10-4 lead in the first set as the Redbirds utilized an 8-2 run highlighted by a pair of Otene kills. The Redbirds lead hit 20-12 on an Otene service ace before the Sycamores battled back late in the set. Kaitlyn Hamilton ended the Illinois State run with a kill and added another over the final stretch before the Redbirds closed out the frame on a Sycamore attack error.
 
The Redbirds momentum continued in the second set as Illinois State scored seven of the first eight points of the frame to jump to the early lead. Indiana State battled back to cut the margin down to four at 11-7 with a pair of Hamilton kills aiding in the 6-3 stretch. The Sycamores kept the margin at four points several times in the set, but were unable to close the gap as a Illinois State posted a pair of blocks late in the 25-15 set win.
 
The Redbirds jumped ahead to a 10-4 lead in the third set utilizing a 7-1 run mostly on Jessica D'Ambrose's serve. Illinois State led 16-9 in the set before the Sycamores battled their way back into the frame with a 6-2 run. Over the stretch, Keller and Hamilton both connected on kills, while Williams dropped in her second service ace of the game to cut the match down to 18-15. The teams continued to swap points as Illinois State hit match point at 24-18 on an Otene kill. The Sycamores kept the match alive with back-to-back points, before Illinois State closed out the win.
 
The Sycamores advanced to the MVC Championships semifinal round for the second time in program history following their first round sweep over Bradley. ISU's previous trip also ended in the semifinals back in 2017 when the Sycamores fell to Missouri State.
 
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