Northwestern Spooks Iowa in Straight Sets

Oct. 30, 2010

IOWA CITY, Iowa – The University of Iowa volleyball team fell in straight sets to No. 24 Northwestern tonight inside Carver-Hawkeye Arena. Iowa was led by junior Mallory Husz and senior Becky Walters who each posted eight kills in the match. Junior Megan Eskew recorded 11 digs while junior Tiffany Nilges and freshman Rachael Bedell each had eight. Additionally, freshman Nikki Dailey contributed 21 of Iowa’s 31 assists.

“Serving and passing are not that simple by any means, you learn them when you first start playing volleyball and we didn’t have it tonight,” said Head Coach Sharon Dingman. “But I have complete faith in Megan Eskew, Becky Walters and Mallory Husz to get this team going in the right direction. We just have to stop pressing so hard for everything.”

Northwestern jumped out to a quick start in the opening set and held off the Hawkeyes for a 25-16 win. The Wildcats picked up four kills and a pair of aces to make it 8-2 early in the set. Iowa found its rhythm midway through and used a pair of kills from Husz, along with an ace from Nilges, to make it 14-9 in favor of Northwestern. Despite three additional kills from Walters, Northwestern kept pressure and was able to close out the set.

Northwestern picked up the 25-23 win in the second frame despite a couple late runs from the Hawkeyes. Husz and Walters continued to set Iowa’s pace as the two combined for six kills. A pair of kills from Husz highlighted a three-point Iowa run which shortened Northwestern’s advantage to 16-10 midway through the set. The Hawkeyes took nine of ten points late in the set to tie the frame at 22 apiece. Iowa wasn’t able to answer a pair of forced errors and a Northwestern kill ended the set with Northwestern on top.

Northwestern won the match with a 25-19 win in the third set. The Hawkeyes jumped out to a 7-3 lead as Husz and Nilges each picked up a pair of kills. An additional kill from Nilges, one of her seven on the night, tied the set at 12-12. The set continued back-and-forth, but a five-point run from the Wildcats gave Northwestern a 22-15 edge. A kill from sophomore Lauren Friedman sparked a 4-1 run from the Hawkeyes late in the set, but Northwestern prevailed for the 3-0 victory.

The Hawkeyes return to action Nov. 5 when they travel to West Lafayette, IN, to take on Purdue. The first serve is scheduled for 6 p.m. (CT).