Oct. 29, 2007
This Week ?The University of Iowa volleyball team opens a four-match road trip Wednesday night at Minnesota. Match time is scheduled for 6 p.m.
Hawkeyes on the Air ?Wednesday’s match at Minnesota will be broadcast live on the Big Ten Network. Nara Weng and Danielle Pflaum will be the commentators.
Hawkeyes on the Web ?Fans can follow the action on hawkeyesports.com, where live audio and Gametracker will be available.
Live audio with play-by-play from the voice of Iowa volleyball, Brian Wilson, can be found on the volleyball schedule page of hawkeyesports.com. Gametracker can also be found on the schedule page of hawkeyesports.com.
Live audio will be available for all 31 matches this fall while live video will be available for all of Iowa’s home matches. All Big Ten matches require fans to pay a $9.95 per month subscription fee.
Scouting Minnesota ?The Minnesota Golden Gophers are 12-10 overall and one of six teams tied for fifth in the Big Ten with a 5-7 record.
Jessy Jones ranks fourth in the Big Ten in blocks with 1.57 per game (107 total). Christine Tan is averaging 4.62 digs per game, which ranks fifth in the conference. Rachel Hartmann’s 11.9 blocks per game (928 total) is seventh-best in the conference.
The Golden Gophers are coached by Mike Hebert. Iowa trails in the all-time series, 50-12.
Last Meeting ?Sophomore Megan Schipper’s return from an injury wasn’t enough as Minnesota defeated Iowa, 3-0 September 26.
Schipper led the team with 11 kills while junior Laura Kremer had 10 kills along with three total blocks. Freshman Katie Kennedy also had three total blocks while junior Kiley Fister added a team-high 32 assists.
Kremer Impressive Against Penn State ?Junior Laura Kremer had a team-high seven kills along with a solid .400 hitting percentage against then-ranked No. 2 Penn State Saturday night.
The match marked the third time this season Kremer has hit .400 or better (.722 vs. Saint Francis, .417 vs. Northern Colorado).
Schipper on the Road ?Sophomore Megan Schipper doesn’t mind being away from Carver-Hawkeye Arena. In 21 road matches, Schipper leads the team with 73 kills (3.48 kills per game) along with a .305 hitting percentage.
The Aplington, IA, native also has recorded 19 of her 52 blocks on the road.
Attacking Story ?The Hawkeyes are 4-0 this season when they record more kills than their opponent. In contrast, Iowa is 0-13 when their opponents tally a higher hitting percentage and 5-14 if the opposition has more kills.
Iron Women ?Juniors Laura Kremer and Emily Hiza have each started and played in all 23 matches and 84 games this season.
Freshman Aimee Huffman has started all 23 matches while playing in 82 of the 84 games. Freshman Megan Eskew has also played in all 23 matches and 83 of the 84 games this season. Junior Kiley Fister and sophomore Christina Meister have also played in all 23 matches.
Hawkeyes on the Block ?Iowa has out-blocked 14 of its 23 opponents this season, including five of the last nine teams. Five of the 14 opponents were also ranked (BYU, LSU, Michigan, Penn State and Wisconsin).
Junior Laura Kremer leads the blocking attack with 113 total blocks (22 solo, 91 assists, 1.35 blocks per game). Freshman Aimee Huffman has 77 total blocks while sophomore Megan Schipper has 52.
Hawkeyes In Big Ten Stats ?Juniors Laura Kremer, Emily Hiza and Kiley Fister each rank in the top 10 of different Big Ten statistical categories.
Kremer is averaging 1.35 blocks per game (113 total), which is sixth-best in the conference. Hiza is seventh in the Big Ten in digs with 4.54 per game (381 total).
In Big Ten games only, Hiza ranks fifth in digs with 4.86 per game (204 total). Kremer is eighth in blocks with 1.33 per game (56 total), while Fister is ninth in assists with 9.57 per game (402 total).
Climbing the Records Ladder ? Juniors Emily Hiza and Kiley Fister are making their mark on the Iowa volleyball records books.
Fister ranks fifth in career assists (3,145). She needs only eight more assists to move past Barb Zvonek, who is currently fourth (3,153).
Hiza started the season ranked 12th in career digs, but has tallied 381 so far in 2007 to move her into fourth place (1,398). She needs 138 more digs to pass Pam Kavadas, who is in third place (1,536).
Reunion in Minneapolis ?Iowa junior Catherine Smale and Minnesota junior Rachel Hartmann are both from St. Charles, IL and attended Rosary High School. They helped Rosary win its first ever conference championship as seniors en route to a No. 42 national ranking. Smale holds three school records while Hartmann holds one.
It’s Been a While ?Iowa’s win over No. 11 Michigan was the program’s first win over a ranked opponent since 2000. The Hawkeyes defeated No. 20 Michigan State, 3-2 on October 21, 2000. Iowa came back from a two-game deficit to defeat Michigan State, 3-2 as well.
Record Setting Night ?Iowa shattered the single-game attendance record with 2,191 fans against Wisconsin October 13. The previous record of 1,690 fans was set last season against Iowa State.
Filling the Seats at North-Carver ?The Hawkeyes have had three record crowds this season at Carver-Hawkeye Arena. Below is the list of the top 10 crowds in Iowa volleyball history.
1. 2,191 vs. BYU (Oct. 13, 2007)
2. 1,690 vs. Iowa State (Aug. 26, 2006)
3. 1,584 vs. BYU (Aug. 25, 2007)
4. 1.432 vs. Illinois (Nov. 3, 2006)
5. 1,424 vs. Ohio State (Sept. 23, 2006)
6. 1,389 vs. Penn State (Oct. 27, 2007)
7. 1,339 vs. Penn State (Sept. 22, 2006)
8. 1,312 vs. Northwestern (Nov. 4, 2006)
9. 1,251 vs. Minnesota (Oct. 20, 2006)
10. 1,196 vs. Wisconsin (Oct. 21, 2006)
Iowa Ranks High in Attendance ?Iowa’s average home attendance of 1,099 fans is the 34th-highest average attendance in the nation. In addition, Iowa’s record crowd of 2,191 fans against Wisconsin is the 105th-largest crowd in the country so far in 2007.
Walters Undergoes Surgery ?Redshirt freshman Becky Walters underwent successful surgery to repair her injured knee, October 4.
Walters will miss the rest of the 2007 season after suffering a serious knee injury in Iowa’s match against Indiana, September 21.
Walters was leading the team with a .265 hitting percentage and also had 113 kills along with 52 total blocks (10 solo, 42 assists).
Prep All-Americans ?Two of Iowa’s freshmen were named PrepVolleyball.com high school all-Americans. Katie Kennedy and Aimee Huffman both were named all-Americans before coming to Iowa.
VolleyBlog ?Hawkeye juniors Catherine Smale and Emily Hiza will be blogging throughout the season for hawkeyesports.com. Both student-athletes will be discussing everything from road trips to what it’s like being an athlete at the University of Iowa.
Ohio State Tops Iowa ?The Buckeyes defeated Iowa, 3-0 (15-30, 28-30, 29-31) Friday night in Iowa City.
Sophomore Megan Schipper finished with 13 kills to lead the Hawkeye attack. Junior Laura Kremer added 10 kills while both players tallied three total blocks.
Ohio State out-blocked the Hawkeyes, 7.5-1 in game one to gain an early advantage. The Buckeyes never trailed in the first game, jumping out to a 10-3 lead. Ohio State stretched its lead to 19-10 and finished the game on an 11-5 run for the win.
The Hawkeyes recorded 16 kills to Ohio State’s 15 in game two, but couldn’t push ahead for the win. Schipper recorded six kills while Kremer added five in game two.
The Buckeyes led for the majority of game three, but Iowa fought to make things interesting. Freshman Megan Eskew recorded one of her two kills to even the game at nine, but Ohio State answered with a 7-0 run for a 16-9 advantage. Iowa chipped away at the Buckeye lead, using another Fister ace for a 27-26 score. The Buckeyes then took a two-point lead before a Stacy Vitali kill made the count 28-27. A Buckeye kill brought up match point at 29-27, but two Ohio State hitting errors tied the game again, this time at 29. Ohio State replied with two-straight kills to end the match.
Penn State Downs Hawkeyes ?Then No. 2 Penn State handed Iowa a 3-0 loss (15-30, 28-30, 29-31) Saturday night in Carver-Hawkeye Arena.
Junior Catherine Smale led Iowa with nine kills. Junior Laura Kremer added seven kills with an impressive .400 hitting percentage. Junior Kiley Fister chipped in 23 assists and three block assists while freshman Aimee Huffman had seven kills and three block assists.
Penn State set the tone in game one, hitting at a .500 clip en route to a 30-15 win. Iowa took its only lead of the game off a Penn State service error at 3-2, but the Nittany Lions forced ties at four, five and six before taking the lead for good at 8-7. Penn State followed with a 13-4 run to put the game out of reach.
The Nittany Lions followed with a 30-23 win in game two. The Hawkeyes forced a tie at one point each, but couldn’t get any closer. Penn State stretched its lead to 17-10 later, but a 10-6 Hawkeye run brought the Iowa within three at 23-20. Penn State responded with 7-3 surge to close out the game.
Iowa fought back from an early 3-1 deficit in the third game to force a tie at five off a Penn State error. A Kremer kill knotted the score at six, and two-straight Nittany Lion errors gave the Hawkeyes an 8-6 lead. Another Kremer kill later in the game gave Iowa a 10-8 advantage, but Penn State forced ties at 10, 12, 15 and 18 before taking a 19-18 lead they never relinquished. Penn State held on for a 30-25 win to seal the match.
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