Oct. 15, 2008
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- Iowa `Volleyblog’
MINNEAPOLIS, MN – The University of Iowa volleyball team was swept at No. 12 Minnesota Wednesday, 25-11, 25-17, 25-23. The Hawkeyes fall to 11-8 overall and 3-4 in Big Ten play. The 12th-ranked Golden Gophers improve to 16-3 overall and 6-1 in Big Ten action.
“We just didn’t play that well tonight,” Head Coach Sharon Dingman said. “We couldn’t get anything going and it was tough to stop Minnesota. Give them a lot of credit; they are a very talented team. We need to have a good rest of the week in terms of practice and prepare for Michigan State Saturday.”
Junior Megan Schipper had 10 kills and senior Catherine Smale had nine. Senior Kiley Fister led the team with 16 assists, with sophomore Mara Hilgenberg adding 13. Senior Emily Hiza led the squad with 16 digs.
Iowa dropped the first set by a 25-11 score. Smale had three kills, while senior Laura Kremer added two.
Minnesota opened the set with a 4-0 run and later used a 6-0 surge to take an 11-3 lead. The Golden Gophers held the advantage throughout the frame, using an 8-3 run to close the set.
Iowa battled in the second set, but couldn’t tie the match, as Minnesota won the set by a 25-17 margin. Schipper had five kills to lead the Hawkeyes in the frame.
The teams traded points to start before Minnesota took a 3-2 lead. The Golden Gophers then used a 3-0 run to take a 6-2 lead, forcing a Hawkeye timeout. Iowa then went on its own 3-0 run to come within one point at 6-5, but Minnesota responded with a 7-2 run for a 13-6 advantage. The Hawkeyes later used two Minnesota errors along with kills from Fister and Schipper to make the score 13-10, but that would be as close as Iowa would get. The Golden Gophers railed off an 8-3 run for a 21-13 lead and held on for the win.
The Hawkeyes came close to forcing a fourth set, but Minnesota gained the sweep with a 25-23 win. Schipper had five kills and Smale had four.
Minnesota opened the third set with an early 4-0 lead, and later increased its lead to 11-5. Iowa scored two-straight points for an 11-7 count, and then tallied three points in the next four rallies to cut the deficit to 13-10. The Golden Gophers called a timeout and netted two-straight points for a 15-10 lead. Minnesota would maintain its advantage through the later portions of the set and held a 21-13 lead before two Iowa points made the score 21-15. After a Golden Gopher point brought the count to 22-15, the Hawkeyes put together a 5-0 run, highlighted by three kills and a block by Schipper, for a 22-20 count. The teams traded points for a 23-21 score, but Minnesota brought up its first match point at 24-21. Iowa refused to go away, recording two-straight points to come within one at 24-23, but a Minnesota kill ended the match.
Iowa will host Michigan State Saturday at 7 p.m. inside Carver-Hawkeye Arena.