Oct. 8, 2005
BLOOMINGTON, IN – The University of Iowa volleyball team won a four-game match at Indiana Saturday night, 20-30, 30-20, 30-20 and 30-27. Iowa ups its record to 12-7 (2-4), while Indiana falls to 8-10 (1-5). Iowa’s second Big Ten Conference win already matches its total from last season.
“It was great to see our players come back after that disappointing first game,” Head Coach Cindy Fredrick said. “Not much went right for us there, but the team regrouped and jumped on them right away in game two. That’s the fight we are looking for in our team.”
The Hawkeyes were put on their heels early in game one when Indiana set blistering pace early, hitting well over .350 for the first half of the game to take a 15-5 lead. Iowa cooled the Hoosier hitters somewhat the rest of the way, but the hole was too deep to overcome. Sophomore middle blocker Megan Gatens had a pair of kills and a team-best .667 hitting percentage in game one.
With game one still fresh in their minds, the Hawkeyes came flying out of the gates in game two and raced to a 14-4 lead. Iowa stayed on top the rest of the way, hitting .476 en-route to a 30-20 win. Catherine Smale led the way with eight kills in the game, while Stacy Vitali added five.
The Hawkeyes carried the momentum from the second game into the third, methodically pulling away from the Hoosiers. Leading 26-20, junior Jaqueline Huguelet served out Iowa’s final four points to give the Hawkeyes it’s second-straight 30-20 win. For the game, the Hawkeyes led the entire way after breaking the game’s only tie at 6-6.
Game three was a back-and-forth affair with the two teams changing leads numerous times. With the score tied at 24-24, freshman Emily Hiza served Iowa to a 28-24 lead – using a pair of aces, a Vitali kill and an Indiana error. The Hoosiers attempted a comeback, cutting the lead to 29-27, but committed a net violation to end the game and give the match to the Hawkeyes.
Smale ended the match with a team-high 19 kills and 13 digs. Tiana Costanzo had a double-double with 11 kills and 15 digs, while Huguelet ended with a season-high 17 digs.
Iowa returns to action Friday at Illinois, with a 7 p.m. match.
GAME SUMMARYIOWA 20 30 30 30Indiana 30 20 20 27