Chambana Sun

Illinois will host Michigan State at Huff Hall on Sunday, October 5, for its annual Pink Match. The match is scheduled to begin at 1 p.m. CT and will be streamed on B1G+. This event marks Illinois' second Big Ten home match of the season.

The Illini are coming off a loss to No. 7 Wisconsin in straight sets on the road, which brought their conference record to 2-1 and overall season record to 7-5. Taylor de Boer led Illinois with 13 kills in that match, her tenth double-digit kill performance this season. Auburn Tomkinson contributed seven kills and three blocks, while Alyssa Aguayo recorded six kills, six digs, two assists, an ace, and a block.

Michigan State enters Sunday's contest with a 12-1 record this season. The Spartans have started their Big Ten schedule with wins over Michigan and Northwestern but lost to Minnesota. Redshirt freshman setter Malayah Long has made an impact since transferring from Marquette, tallying 495 assists and 112 digs through 13 matches.

Kristen Kelsay leads Michigan State as head coach in her first year after serving nine years as an assistant in the Big Ten and previously playing for MSU.

Illinois holds a historical advantage over Michigan State in volleyball, leading the series 57-28 since it began in 1975. The Illini have won the last eight meetings between the teams; Michigan State's last win against Illinois was on December 8, 2017.

Earlier this season, Illinois achieved its first ranked victory by defeating #10 Purdue on September 28 during its first conference road match of the year. Ashlyn Philpot secured the final point for Illinois in that four-set win and finished with twelve kills.

Kenna Phelan was named Big Ten Setter of the Week on September 29 after helping lead Illinois to victories over Oregon and Purdue. She averaged more than nine assists per set across those matches.

Freshman Alyssa Aguayo has started all twelve matches so far this season for Illinois and is averaging nearly three kills per set along with multiple double-doubles. Another freshman starter is libero Taryn Kirsch, who leads the team in digs.

Auburn Tomkinson joined Illinois after transferring from Texas; she has recorded double-digit kills five times this year. Kenna Phelan also transferred into the program from Florida State and has become the starting setter.

The Illini added nine newcomers ahead of this season including Tomkinson, Kirsch, Devin Dzienny (who enrolled early at Florida before transferring), Gabriella Pitcel, Sophi Randall, Aguayo herself, Ava Wysocki, Lara Žigic and Phelan.

Kayla Burbage announced her return for another season after missing last year due to injury; she previously played two seasons with Illinois following a transfer from Missouri.

Taylor de Boer represented Canada internationally over the summer at both U23 NORCECA Pan American Cup—where Canada earned silver—and Senior Pan American Cup events held in Mexico.

Four current players hail from within Illinois: Bianca May (Orland Park), Averie Hernandez (Bloomington), Vivian Campbell (Oswego), and Ava Wysocki (Kildeer).

This year saw changes among coaching staff under head coach Chris Tamas: Meredith Schamun joined as associate head coach following four years leading Penn’s program while Hannah Hashbarger became director of operations after working at Regis University.

Last season concluded with an overall record of 18-13 for Illinois volleyball—including ten conference wins—and a return to NCAA Tournament play where they were eliminated by Northern Iowa in round one. Raina Terry departed after earning AVCA All-American honors; she left as program leader in several statistical categories before being drafted by Columbus Fury into professional volleyball.

Ashlyn Philpot returns following recognition as part of last year's Big Ten All-Freshman Team; she had notable performances against top opponents such as USC and Ohio State during her debut campaign.

Illinois will appear on national television nine times throughout this volleyball season across networks including BTN, FS1, SEC Network and ESPN.

Head coach Chris Tamas continues his tenure at Illinois having amassed more than one hundred fifty career wins—all with the Illini—and guiding them through five NCAA Tournament appearances since taking charge.