CHAMPAIGN, Ill. (WCIA) – Illinois volleyball plays seven matches before its home opener on the 2025 season.

The Illini are 1-1 after losing to South Dakota State and beating Vanderbilt to start the year. The team doesn’t play in Huff Hall until Sept. 20.

As many new faces get acquainted in Champaign, head coach Chris Tamas hopes to travel is a chance for his team to grow closer.

“Being on the road offers an opportunity for the team to unite and discover their identity,” Tamas commented. “Facing challenges in either neutral venues or at rivals’ arenas is crucial since we’ll need to do this in the Big Ten. Therefore, we seek major matches to test ourselves and evaluate our responses when circumstances are not in our favor.”

Players say they’re building relationships through trips to Iowa, Tennessee and soon Indiana and Kentucky.

“We share a lot of cohesion both on and off the court,” mentioned Illinois redshirt sophomore Taylor De Boer. “These bus trips have been a great way for the freshmen and even the transfers to have their first experience with the team. Regardless of enduring a long bus trip or facing a loss in South Dakota followed by a win at Vanderbilt, we remained the same team, happy to engage in conversations and cherish those moments. We do have our quiet naptime, but at some point, we’re always chatting away.”

Illinois visits Notre Dame on Friday then goes to No. 3 Louisville on Sunday.