NORMAL, Ill. – Illinois State handed the Drake Univeristy volleyball team its first conferece loss of the season with a 3-0 defeat at Redbird Arena Sunday afternoon.
 
Drake (6-2, 4-1 MVC) entered the match on top of the Missouri Valley Conference standings and was without the services of one of its top hitters in Haley Bush as Illinois State prevailed by set scores of 25-19, 25-22, 25-22.
 
The Bulldogs were held to .131 hitting, their second-lowest output of the season and lowest in league play. Lindsey Pliapol led the Bulldogs with 11 kills on 40 attempts while Emily Plock added 10 kills. Gillian Gergen continued her strong play in the middle with five kills on 11 attempts, two aces and two blocks. Plock also added a pair of blocks.
 
Caitlyn Smith had another double-double, her seventh of the season, with 26 assists and 11 digs. Kylee Macke paced the defensive effort with 19 digs. 
 
Illinois State was led by Kaylee Martin and Sarah Kushner who each had 11 kills while Stef Jankiewicz had 39 assists.
 
The two teams complete their MVC series Monday afternoon at 4 p.m. on ESPN+.