Oct. 23, 2004
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The Iowa volleyball team fell for the eighth straight tonight in action against Purdue. The Hawkeyes (9-12, 1-8), playing without two starters, were swept by the Boilermakers (11-8, 4-5) in three games. The scores were 30-16, 30-19, and 30-20.
“Without Laura [Simpson] and Stacy [Vitali] we are really hurting,” said Iowa Coach Cindy Fredrick. “Without those two on the court, we struggle in a lot of ways because our team doesn’t have a lot of depth.”
In the first game, the Hawks hit at a .093 clip, in the second they had a .150 hitting percentage, and in the final game hit .000 as a team. Iowa had just 32 kills during the night compared to 58 by Purdue. The Hawkeyes were also outdone at the net with only 3.5 blocks to seven by the Boilermakers.
“We just don’t have a balanced offense without Laura and Stacy; right now Carolyn [Giese] is the only one putting the ball away,” said Fredrick.
Giese, a senior middle blocker, led the Iowa attack with 11 kills. Tiana Costanzo added seven kills. Justeen Patton and Chelsey Garrett had 16 and 13 assists, respectively. Pam Kavadas had 18 digs to lead the Hawks. Jacqueline Huguelet served two aces in the match.
“The only thing that was kind of fun was putting Lauren Bruckner in the front row. She played with no fear and she got a block. We’re just trying to stay positive right now – we’re not quite half-way through the Big Ten season and we will eventually get Laura and Stacy back,” said Fredrick. “When a sickness like mono goes through your team it’s brutal, and we’re just hoping that no one else comes down with it.”
Iowa plays at Indiana tomorrow night. The match against the Hoosiers is scheduled to begin at 7 p.m.