Illinois Advances to NCAA Women’s Volleyball Final Four

Illinois is headed to Thursday's Final Four round of the NCAA Women's Volleyball Tournament for the first time since 1988, after beating Florida in three out of four sets Saturday, to win the regional in Gainesville.

Illinois posted a 25-22, 23-25, 25-14, 25-20 victory over the Gators. After a .068 performance in an opening set that saw weak performances from both sides, the Illini players hit .455, .394 and .514 in the final three sets, respectively, and .338 for the night. Former Gator Colleen Ward led the way for Illinois with a .500 performance, with 23 kills in 42 swings ---- including nine out of nine in the final set. Ward was named Regional Tournament MVP, and named to the All-Regional Tournament Team, along with Illinois' Michelle Bartsch and Jennifer Beltran.

Illinois is headed to the Final Four round in San Antonio with a season record of 31-4 and a seven-match winning streak. The Illini will face No. 7 USC,which defeated No. 15 Pepperdine 3-2 to win the NCAA Honolulu Regional.