Illinois volleyball looking to break rough patch with win at Huff Hall

The women's Illinois volleyball team ended their two-game road trip against a pair of top-25 opponents with two losses.

Although the women fought hard, the Illini were swept in both matches. However, there were some promising signs.

Against the Nittany Lions, Illinois racked up 38 kills to Penn State's 40 with powerhouse striker, Raini Terry, accounting for 19 kills. On Sunday at Purdue, the Illini collected more attempts than the Boilermakers and, once again, Terry led the Illinois offense with 18 kills.

However, in the match against Penn State and Purdue, Illinois struggled to limit unforced errors which led to long stretches of points for the opposition. Against Penn State, the Nittany Lions recorded nine aces. These are areas Illinois will need to clean up as they close out the season.

The march toward the NCAA tournament continues on Friday night for the women's Illinois volleyball team

On Friday, the Illini will be back on the Huff Hall hardwood to take on a Rutgers team that seems to be stuck at the bottom of the Big Ten standings. This is an opportunity to pick up a much-needed win.

Rutgers is near the bottom of the Big Ten on offense and averages about 22 blocks less than Illinois. I look for Terry to have another monster offensive performance and for Laynie Smith to dominate on defense with her impressive blocking ability.

Closing the season strong will be key to a possible NCAA tournament berth. According to the current NCAA Division 1 standings, the Illini sit just inside the top 30 in the nation at No. 29. At the moment, they seem to be locked in as one of the 64 NCAA tournament teams. However, there is still work to do. The pieces are all there. The journey continues Friday at 4 p.m. CT.