No. 21 Indiana volleyball picked up its fifth win of the season Monday afternoon with a 3-1 (25-15, 22-25, 25-15, 25-14) victory over the University of Southern Indiana at Liberty Arena in Evansville, Indiana.
Junior middle blocker Ella Boersema led the Hoosiers with 16 kills on a .583 hitting percentage and five block assists. Sophomore outside hitter Jaidyn Jager picked up 12 kills, while sophomore middle blocker Victoria Gray had 11.
Indiana made a few changes to its starting lineup against Southern Indiana.
Fifth-year middle blocker Kiki Granberry, who started in all four of Indiana’s previous contests, was on the sideline in uniform Monday afternoon but did not enter the contest.
In her absence, Boersema moved to middle blocker, the position she played through her first two collegiate seasons. Boersema has played the first four matches this season at opposite hitter.
The gap at opposite hitter was filled by junior Avery Daum, who made her first career start. Daum recorded seven kills on a .263 hitting rate.
Southern Indiana was the first team on the board Monday after back-to-back attack errors from Indiana’s Jager and Boersema in the first set.
Indiana responded with two points of its own before building an 11-6 advantage. However, the Screaming Eagles went on a 5-0 run, a sequence reminiscent of the Hoosiers’ Sunday loss to then-No. 22 University of Tennessee, which knotted the contest at 11.
Gray recorded a kill to stop Southern Indiana’s hot stretch and spark a 7-1 scoring run, granting the Hoosiers a six-point lead at 18-12.
The Screaming Eagles continued to struggle throughout the rest of the first set, as Indiana cruised to a 25-15 victory in the first set.
The two squads went back and forth in the second set until a 6-2 run allowed the Screaming Eagles to grab a two-point lead, forcing the Hoosiers to take a timeout.
Out of the break, Southern Indiana was again the first to attack with two consecutive points to snag a 20-16 advantage, once again forcing Indiana head coach Steve Aird and the Hoosiers to take another timeout.
But even with another break, the Screaming Eagles remained relentless in the final moments of the second set, which they won 25-22.
The beginning of the third set was once again close, as the two teams were tied at four points each before the Hoosiers began to pull away with a 4-0 run.
Indiana continued to attack the Screaming Eagles, going on multiple two-to-three point runs to grab an easy 25-15 set victory.
Southern Indiana took a 5-3 advantage in the fourth set after consecutive errors from Indiana. The Hoosiers responded with a 7-2 run to take the lead back and force the Screaming Eagles to take a timeout.
Indiana continued its dominance after the break with a 4-1 run to extend its advantage to six points. While Southern Indiana attempted to cut the deficit, it was never enough to slow down the Hoosiers, who won the fourth set 25-14.
While Indiana mostly breezed past Southern Indiana, the Hoosiers still struggled at the service line, an area that has plagued the Cream and Crimson this season.
Prior to Monday, Indiana had racked up 34 service errors compared to just 15 service aces across four matches. Against the Screaming Eagles, the Hoosiers had 15 service errors and nine service aces.
After five consecutive road matches, Indiana will return to Bloomington for its first home match of the season. The Hoosiers will take on California Polytechnic State University at 7 p.m. Thursday at Wilkinson Hall in their first match of the Indiana Invitational. The contest will stream on Big Ten+.
Follow reporters Savannah Slone (@savrivers06 and srslone@iu.edu) and Kasey Watkins (@KaseyWatki87731 and kaslwatk@iu.edu) for updates throughout the Indiana volleyball season.
