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Women's Volleyball post-match huddle Nov. 22, 2025
Sam Okewole
3
Winner Calvin Calvin 28-3,8-1 Michigan Intercol. Ath. Assn.
2
Ill. Wesleyan IWU 28-3,8-0 CCIW
Winner
Calvin Calvin
28-3,8-1 Michigan Intercol. Ath. Assn.
3
Final
2
Ill. Wesleyan IWU
28-3,8-0 CCIW
Set Scores
Team 1 2 3 4 5 F
Calvin Calvin 25 15 22 25 15 (3)
Ill. Wesleyan IWU 22 25 25 20 13 (2)

Game Recap: Women's Volleyball |

Women’s Volleyball Falls in Five in Regional Championship

French & Bardouniotis named to all-tournament team

BLOOMINGTON, Ill. - The No. 2 Illinois Wesleyan University women's volleyball team saw its historic seasons come to an end in the regional championship match inside the Shirk Center Saturday night, Nov. 22. The Titans were edged by No. 19 Calvin University by set scores of 25-25, 15-25, 22-25, 25-20, and 15-13 and end the season with a 28-3 record.

The 2025 season was one of the best in program history for the Titans, who reached their second straight Sweet Sixteen and just the third all-time in program history. Illinois Wesleyan finished the year with its most wins in the Kim Nelson-Brown era, and the most for the program since 1989, while winning the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin regular season and tournament titles. 

After three impressive matches in the regional, senior Taylor French (Romeoville, Ill.-Plainfield East) and sophomore Alex Bardouniotis (St. Charles, Ill.-St. Charles North) were named to the NCAA Bloomington Regional all-tournament team.

Four Titans posted double-doubles in the five-set match, with senior Taylor French (Romeoville, Ill.-Plainfield East) leading the way with 26 kills and 16 digs. She also sprinkled in three aces, a pair of blocks, and an assist. Sophomore Alex Bardouniotis (St. Charles, Ill.-St. Charles North) tallied 19 kills alongside three assists and a stuff. Freshman Carly Whitaker (Morton, Ill.-Morton) tallied 10 kills on a .296 clip with six digs. 

Junior Sophia Feeney (Bloomington, Ill.-Normal Community) and freshman Lauren O'Brien (Bloomington, Ill.-Central Catholic) also notched double-doubles in the setback as the orchestrators of a dominant attack. Feeney led the team with 28 assists and four aces, while chipping in 13 digs. O'Brien added 22 helpers and 13 digs. 

Overall, the Green and White cranked out 72 kills on a .200 clip. Calvin tallied 47 kills and hit .178 for the match. The Knights used a 16-6 lead in blocks to overcome IWU's heavy attack, as the Titans finished with leads in nearly every other statistical category. Illinois Wesleyan was credited with 95 digs to Calvin's 86 and also led in aces (9-8) and assists (64-41).

The Knights jumped in front early, keeping a packed Shirk Center quiet in the early goings as the visitors drove ahead, 16-10. Out of an IWU timeout, Whitaker downed one for a kill. Bardouniotis followed with a shot of her own and then Palmer and Shannon teamed up for a block to pull the Titans within four, 18-14. 

Calvin broke the momentum, but only temporarily as Shannon, Bardouniotis, Palmer, and French came up with timely plays to level the set at 19. Illinois Wesleyan took its first lead of the set with a French kill after Bardouniotis' serve got the Knights off balance for a 20-19 IWU advantage. 

The reset proved timely as Calvin went on to take the set, 25-22.

The Green and White tied the match up at one set apiece with a stunning second-set performance. Feeney aced the Knights off the start before Bardouniotis punched one off the block as IWU doubled up CU, 8-4. 

French served up an ace to force Calvin to burn its second timeout with the home team leading, 15-9, but the Titans did not waver. Whitaker capitalized on an incredible save by Bardouniotis. The sophomore outside then buried a great dig from Feeney for a 17-9 lead.

Illinois Wesleyan used an ace from Boyd and a kill from Shannon to close out the set, 25-15, and even the match up, 1-1. 

The Green and White's momentum carried into the third set. Whitaker opened with a kill through a block and the Titans went point-for-point with the Knights to a 5-5 tie. After Boyd swiped a ball out of the net, French slammed down a kill for a 6-5 edge. 

The Titans stretched the lead to three on a back row kill from French before big hits from Whitaker stretched the lead to five, 22-17. The Knights rattled off four of the next five points though, to trim the lead to two, 23-21, and force an IWU timeout.

Kim Nelson-Brown's reset iced the Knights as a service error cued set point and the Titans polished off the set with a kill from French, 25-22.

In a close fourth set, the Green and White jumped out to a 5-1 advantage. The run featured kills from Whitaker and Bardouniotis along with a French ace and a Tellor-Whitaker block. Calvin did not give up though, notching six straight points to claim an 8-6 lead. After IWU rallied back to tie it up, CU scored four straight to charge ahead, 15-11.

French put the Titans back on track with a kill and Whitaker followed suit with one of her own. A Calvin miscue made it a one-point margin, 16-15, but the Knights got a kill and key block to inch ahead, 18-15. 

Illinois Wesleyan put together one last push, as Bardouniotis downed a ball from French. After an attack error by Calvin, Palmer put a ball away to end a lengthy rally and knot the score at 18. The big play sent Tellor back to the service line, where the senior delivered an ace for a 19-18 lead, but IWU's run ran out of steam as CU scored five straight to take control, 23-19, before taking the set, 25-20.

The decisive fifth set was exactly what you would expect between two top-tier programs. Between six ties and two lead changes, the set saw the Titans and Knights go punch-for-punch. Illinois Wesleyan claimed a slim advantage on a handful of kills from French and Bardouniotis, eventually winning the race to eight as French pushed one to the back corner for an 8-6 lead.

After switching sides, French stretched the edge to three, 9-6, with a kill to prompt a Calvin timeout. Shannon smashed a kill to maintain a two-point cushion, 10-8, but the Knights scored three of the next four points to tie it up at 11.

Retaking the floor out of an IWU timeout, French scored her 26th kill of the night for a 12-11 Illinois Wesleyan advantage. Calvin held off the Titans from there, limiting IWU to a kill from Tellor before using back-to-back kills of its own to drop the Green and White, 15-13.

Illinois Wesleyan concludes the historic careers of seniors Taylor French, Hannah Tellor, Kannyn Boyd, and Raegan Watts. Together, the group brought the Titans to unprecedented heights, as they led the Green and White to two straight regional championships for the first time in program history, along with the best ranking in program history. 
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