Iowa Sweeps St. Francis

Stats

Sept. 16, 2011

Box Score

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NEW YORK — The University of Iowa volleyball team swept St. Francis (N.Y.) in the opening match of the Columbia Invitational Friday morning. Seniors Megan Eskew and Tiffany Nilges recorded 15 and 12 kills, respectively, to lead the Hawkeyes to their fourth straight win.

The Hawkeyes cruised to a 25-19 win in the opening frame and used an 8-3 run to pull away with a 25-21 in set two.

“Our biggest challenge this morning was getting into the gym and being prepared after a short night,” said head coach Sharon Dingman. “I think we eventually settled down, woke up, and started playing volleyball.”

Freshman Alex Lovell recorded her 100th career kill in Iowa’s 25-16 win in set three. Lovell, Iowa’s season leader in kills, slammed her eighth kill of the match to tie the third frame, 10-10. After Columbia answered with a three-point run, the Hawkeyes put together a 15-3 run to finish the sweep.

“I don’t think we played particularly well,” said Dingman, “but we got the win and we were able to do it in three sets. I hope we’re able to move forward and play well because Columbia has a nice team. We’re going to have to be prepared.”

Sophomore Nikki Dailey led Iowa with a match-high 38 assists and freshman Kari Mueller added a career-best 13 digs. Eskew recorded her sixth double-double of the season with 15 kills and 12 digs.

The Hawkeyes return to the court tonight against tournament host Columbia. First serve from Levien Gym is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. CT. A live video stream of tonight’s contest can be found at gocolumbialions.com. Fans can also follow the action on hawkeyesports.com via The Official Iowa Volleyball Blog.