CHAMPAIGN — Pick a moment, any moment, from Illinois volleyball's Final Four season last fall, and Jordyn Poulter was at the center of it.
Like those key regular season wins against Wisconsin, Nebraska and Penn State that snapped losing streaks against the Big Ten's best and elevated the Illini back into that elite group. Or the NCAA tournament run that ended in the national semifinals. Poulter was the unquestioned leader — a role that grew and she grew into during her four-year career.
So a second straight Dike Eddelman Award for the senior setter announced Thursday wasn't exactly a surprise.