SPRINGFIELD – Missouri State took the opening set from visiting Illinois State Friday evening at Hammons Student Center before the Redbirds came charging back to win the next three for a 21-25, 25-17, 25-21, 25-21 victory.
 
Iva Halacheva hit .407 with 14 kills to lead the MSU offense, Rilynn Finley added 10 kills and Maddy Bushnell hit .300 with eight winners as the Bears fell to 6-10 overall and 0-4 in Missouri Valley Conference play.
 
MoState overcame an 8-1 ISU (7-9, 2-1) run in the opening set, tying six times before a Bushnell kill gave the Bears a 21-20 lead. The Redbirds evened the score at 21 and four different Bears recorded kills in a closing 4-0 run to gain the upper hand in the match.
 
The Redbirds hit .429 and evenly distributed 16 kills among four players in the second period, then closed the third set on a 4-0 run to take the lead. The teams each had 13 kills in the pivotal third period, but the Bears committed two more errors and ISU served four aces. Illinois State had nine aces on the night, while Missouri State had 11 errors at the service line.
 
Missouri State came out strong in the fourth set and led 11-7 on a Finley kill, but it was all ISU after that. The Redbirds embarked on a 12-2 run to lead 19-13 on the way to completing the match win.
 
ISU hit .250 compared to .208 for the Bears, while both teams had 52 kills and six blocks. The Redbirds owned a 58-44 lead in digs while netting a plus-10 margin at the service line.
 
Kate Owen had 10 digs, while Morgan Sprague and Rosanna Papa shared the assist lead with 21 each.
 
The Bears host Bradley at 5 p.m. Friday. The Braves (8-7, 3-0) won 3-0 at Southern Illinois on Friday.