Sept. 14, 2007
IOWA CITY – The University of Iowa volleyball team opened the Hawkeye-Holiday Inn Challenge with a 3-1 win over Texas Arlington Friday night. Redshirt freshman Becky Walters recorded a career-high 19 kills with a .571 attack percentage to help Iowa improve its record to 6-3 overall.
Walters tallied 18 of her 19 kills in the final three games, including five in game two (.571 attack percentage), seven in game three (.600 attack percentage) and six in game four (.625 attack percentage).
Three other Hawkeyes broke double-digits in kills, including sophomore Megan Schipper with 12, junior Laura Kremer with 11 and freshman Megan Eskew with 10. Sophomore Aimee Huffman and junior Kiley Fister each had 26 assists while Emily Hiza led the team with 21 digs. Freshman Katie Kennedy had six block assists and Walters added five.
“This was a great way to start the tournament,” Head Coach Cindy Fredrick said. “Texas Arlington is a good team with solid hitters and I thought we did a good job of shutting them down. Our middle hitters responded to the strenuous week of practice we had. It was great to see their smiles after the match. I also thought Hiza did a great job defensively. She was right where she needed to be all game.”
The Mavericks took an early 1-0 lead in the match after winning game one, 30-21. The Hawkeyes responded with a narrow 30-28 win in game two to knot the score at one game a piece as the teams headed to the locker rooms.
The Hawkeyes used a 10-4 run to take a 13-7 lead early in game two, but the Mavericks kept it close and used a 6-1 run to make the score 24-22 in favor of Iowa. The Hawkeyes kept Texas Arlington at bay, using two kills from both Kennedy and Schipper to earn the win.
Iowa shot out of the gates in game three, opening the game with a 17-9 run and never trailed. The Hawkeyes stretched their lead to 24-13 and coasted to take a 2-1 lead in the match.
The Hawkeyes recorded three of their 9.5 blocks in game four to help seal the match. Both teams traded points until the match was tied at 12-12. Iowa used a 10-3 run to gain a 22-15 lead and never looked back, as Fister served the final six points and Schipper killed three attacks in the final six rallies.
Iowa continues play at the Hawkeye-Holiday Inn Challenge Saturday at 10 a.m. against Ball State.
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