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Hailey Rak on a block against Wheaton Nov. 13, 2025
ASHTIN ELDER PHOTO
0
Wheaton (IL) WHEIL 22-10,4-4 CCIW
3
Winner Ill. Wesleyan IWU 25-2,8-0 CCIW
Wheaton (IL) WHEIL
22-10,4-4 CCIW
0
Final
3
Ill. Wesleyan IWU
25-2,8-0 CCIW
Winner
Set Scores
Team 1 2 3 F
Wheaton (IL) WHEIL 22 21 14 (0)
Ill. Wesleyan IWU 25 25 25 (3)

Game Recap: Women's Volleyball |

Women’s Volleyball Tops Thunder to Advance to CCIW Title Match

Titans to host second-seeded Carthage Saturday, Nov. 15, at 7:30 p.m.

BLOOMINGTON, Ill. - The No. 3 Illinois Wesleyan University women's volleyball team dispatched of Wheaton College in the College Conference of Illinois Tournament Thursday night, Nov. 13, inside the Shirk Center. The Titans (25-2), the top seed in the conference tournament, took care of the fourth-ranked Thunder (22-10) in straight sets by scores of 25-22, 25-21, and 25-14 to advance to Saturday's CCIW Tournament Championship match and secure the most wins in a season since 2018.

Senior Taylor French (Romeoville, Ill.-Plainfield East) led IWU offensively with 17 kills on a .371 attack percentage. Sophomore Alex Bardouniotis (St. Charles, Ill.-St. Charles North) had nine kills, while freshman Carly Whitaker (Morton, Ill.-Morton) followed with six. Sophomore Hailey Rak (Lockport, Ill.-Lockport Township), stepping up to make her first start of the season, finished with five kills on a .500 showing. The setting duo of junior Sophia Feeney (Bloomington, Ill.-Normal Community) and freshman Lauren O'Brien (Bloomington, Ill.-Central Catholic) notched 19 and 15 assists, respectively.

Defensively, senior Kannyn Boyd (Mt. Pleasant, Mich.-Mt. Pleasant) led the team with 15 digs, as Bardouniotis followed with 11. At the net, Rak made a statement, as she finished with a career-high six rejections. Senior Hannah Tellor (Metamora, Ill.-Metamora Township) and Whitaker posted four blocks apiece, as the Green and White offense held WC to a .111 night. 

The Titans took the advantage in kills (44-33), blocks (10-2), assists (39-31), assists (39-31), and digs (45-38), putting together a .307 attack percentage as a squad, while each team recorded three aces.

Illinois Wesleyan and Wheaton back and forth in the opening set before a block by junior Cailin Shannon (Bloomingdale, Ill.-Lake Park) and Rak pushed IWU ahead, 8-7. The rejection sparked a three-point run by the Titans, as French slammed down back-to-back kills. 

Rak teamed up with Bardouniotis later in the set for a stuff at the net to maintain the three-point lead. A French kill cued a Wheaton timeout with the home team in front, 17-12. Illinois Wesleyan stretched the lead to seven on a Tellor kill off O'Brien's assist, and Whitaker gave the Green and White set point, 24-19. 

The Thunder held off the Titans three straight times before head coach Kim Nelson-Brown called a timeout. The pause worked to perfection, icing the Wheaton server and sealing a 25-22 set one win.

IWU carried its momentum into the second set as Rak tooled a block for an 8-3 lead. Tellor aced WC to extend the lead to six, but Wheaton put together a run to knot the match at 13.

The Titans and Thunder traded points to a 17-17 tie as Bardouniotis tipped one in to even the score. A kill by the sophomore, her third straight, propelled IWU ahead, 18-17, and brought about a Wheaton timeout.

French dialed up a kill to break a 20-20 tie and then ended a long rally with another to put IWU up, 23-21. Taking advantage of a Wheaton miscue, Whitaker hammered down an over ball before Illinois Wesleyan took the set, 25-21, courtesy of a Thunder error.

The Green and White ran away with the third set, starting with a Shannon and Rak block to give the Titans a 7-6 advantage. Back-to-back French kills pushed IWU's lead to 13-9, forcing the Thunder to talk it over.

Illinois Wesleyan went on a 7-2 run after that, that included a perfectly executed Tellor slide kill. Then, Tellor teamed up with Bardouniotis for a rejection as the Thunder called their final timeout. An ace from senior Raegan Watts (Forsyth, Ill.-Maroa Forsyth), followed by three points from Rak finished the match and gave the Green and White the semifinal victory. 

Illinois Wesleyan will host second-seeded Carthage College with the CCIW's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament on the line. The Titans and Firebirds will cap off a busy day inside the Shirk Center with a 7:30 p.m. first serve. The title match will follow four basketball games as the IWU women's basketball team kicks off the morning with a 10 a.m. bout against Trinity (Texas). A full schedule of Saturday's events inside the Shirk Center can be found here.
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