Sept. 5, 2009
Video interview with S. Dingman Box Score
- 24 Hawkeyes to Watch (2009-10 season)
- Iowa and the Big Ten Network
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- 24 Hawkeyes to Watch
GREEN BAY, WI – The University of Iowa volleyball team improved to 5-0 for the first time since 1988 with a 3-1 victory over Central Michigan this afternoon. The Hawkeyes rallied from a one-set deficit to improve to 2-0 at this weekend’s Country Inn and Suites Classic.
“This was one of those collective efforts,” said Head Coach Sharon Dingman. “We had to get through that match plugging some holes, but we were able to do it and it feels good to get the win.”
Iowa dropped the first set, 25-22. Freshman Emma Krieger Kittle led Iowa with three kills and senior Christina Meister contributed with 16 digs.
The opening set featured 14 ties and nine lead changes. Trailing 7-8, senior Megan Schipper and sophomore Mallory Husz recorded back-to-back kills to give the Hawkeyes a one-point advantage. CMU then rallied off seven of the next 10 points to take a 15-12 edge. Iowa rallied behind kills from Krieger Kittle, Schipper and junior Katie Kennedy to retake the lead 16-15, but the Chippewas came back and finished the set on a 5-1 run to hold on for the win.
The Hawkeyes evened things up with a 25-18 win in the second set. Schipper led Iowa with five kills and sophomore Mara Hilgenberg contributed with 11 assists.
After falling behind 2-0, Iowa used five straight points to take the lead for good with the help of CMU errors and a kill and block assist from junior Aimee Huffman. A kill from Husz and two kills from Schipper gave Iowa its largest lead, 24-16, and a final kill from Huffman gave Iowa the win to even the match, 1-1.
Iowa won the highly contested third set, 25-22. The Hawkeyes’ offense attacked at a .324 clip, led by four kills from Husz. Meister added a service ace and a set-high seven digs in the winning effort.
The teams traded points until the 11-11 mark. At that point Iowa used a Chippewa error, a Schipper kill and a Kennedy block to take a three-point edge and never looked back. Husz score consecutive Iowa points with a pair of kills, extending the lead to 19-14, and after a CMU rally, Huffman tallied back-to-back kills to give Iowa the 2-1 set advantage.
The Hawkeyes closed the match with a 25-21 fourth set victory. Schipper totaled six kills in the decisive set and Hilgenberg dished 11 assists for the third consecutive match.
Iowa trailed early, 5-7, but used three of Schipper’s kills, an ace from Meister and a kill from Kennedy to take a 10-7 advantage. Two Chippewa errors and a Huffman kill stretched Iowa’s lead to 16-11, but CMU rallied with four straight points to pull within one, 16-15. After an Iowa timeout, the Hawkeyes pulled together three straight points to stretch the lead back to four. CMU hung around and threatened to tie the match before Schipper added another kill to give Iowa a 23-21 lead. A Chippewa error and another set-winning kill from Huffman gave Iowa the set and the match.
The Hawkeyes return to action tonight at the Green Bay Country Inn and Suites Classic when they face host UW-Green Bay at 7 p.m.