Oct. 1, 2013
- Read the October issue of Hawk Talk Monthly
- Download your Iowa Hawkeye iPad/iPhone app!
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- 24 Hawkeyes to Watch
MATCH DETAILS
The Hawkeye volleyball team will take on No. 23 Wisconsin in its annual Attacking Breast Cancer match on Mediacom Court in Carver-Hawkeye Arena on Wednesday, Oct. 2. All fans are encouraged to wear pink to support the cause and the first 250 fans in the door will receive a complimentary pink tumbler. It is also faculty and staff night. Those that show their Iowa staff ID, will be admitted free of charge. First serve is set for 6:36 p.m. CT and the match will be shown live on the Big Ten Network.
FOLLOW ALONG
Hawkeye volleyball fans that can’t make it to Carver-Hawkeye Arena on Wednesday can view the match on the Big Ten Network, with coverage beginning at 6:30 p.m. CT. Live video with audio play-by-play with announcer Jeremy Meyer is available through All Access on hawkeyesports.com. Gametracker is also available for the match on hawkeyesports.com.
ALL-TIME
Iowa trails Wisconsin in all-time meetings 20-46-1. The Hawkeyes last defeated the Badgers in five sets (19-25, 25-17, 25-16, 20-25, 15-8) at home on Nov. 11, 2009.
A LOOK AT THE BADGERS
No. 23 Wisconsin brings a 13-1 overall record and a 2-0 start in Big Ten action into the Wednesday, Oct. 2 meeting with Iowa. The Badgers are led by first-year head coach Kelly Sheffield and he is assisted by Brittany Dildine and Gary White. The roster consists of four freshmen, three sophomores, seven juniors, and two seniors. Ellen Chapman leads the team in kills with 190 (3.58 per set), Lauren Carlini has a team-most 414 assists (10.62 per set), and Taylor Morely has a team-high 215 digs (4.06 per set). Dominique Thompson and Haleigh Nelson pace the Badgers in blocks with 53 (1.00 per set) and 52 (1.00 per set), respectively. As a team, Wisconsin owns a .238 hitting percentage and averages 13.4 kills per set.
DIGGING IT
UI volleyball is 26th in the nation in digs per set (16.57) and paces the Big Ten in digs with a total of 928. The Hawkeyes have 126 more digs on the season than Northwestern, who has the second highest dig total in the conference with 802 thus far. A large contributor to Iowa’s success in the category, is libero Bethany Yeager. The senior leads the Big Ten with 250 digs (4.46 per set) and currently ranks third in career digs with a total of 1,772.
RECORD WATCH
Senior setter Nikki Dailey remains sixth all-time in assists with 2,932 in her career thus far and has moved up to 16th all-time with 84 career service aces. Senior libero Bethany Yeager continues to rank third all-time in digs with 1,772 in her career behind Janet Moylan with 1,931 and Emily Hiza with 1,929. Junior outside hitter moved up to 18th all-time in kills with 908 after posting 25 kills last weekend at Illinois and Northwestern.
NOTHING BUT THE BEST
Iowa became the sixth college team in the country to receive a Taraflex Sport M Plus floor on Sept. 19. The portable playing surface, that lays on top of the basketball court in Carver-Hawkeye Arena, has been the Olympic volleyball surface of choice since 1976. The Hawkeyes played on their new floor for the first time against Iowa State on Sept. 21.
ALIVE IN FIVE
Hawkeye volleyball owns a perfect 3-0 record in five set matches this season. The team’s five set wins occurred against Wofford on Aug. 30, Youngstown State on Aug. 31 and Milwaukee on Sept. 17.
NATIONALLY SPEAKING
As of Sept. 30, the Hawkeyes rank 26th nationally in digs per set (16.57), 46th in aces per set (1.54), and tied for 95th in match win-loss percentage (.643). Outside hitter Alex Lovell is 59th in kills per set (3.82) and 84th in points per set (4.13), while libero Bethany Yeager is 80th in digs per set (4.46).
CONFERENCE ONLY
Iowa volleyball leads the Big Ten in service aces with 11 total in two matches for a 1.83 ace per set average. Setter Nikki Dailey tallied seven of the 11 service aces, tying her for the top spot in service aces per set with 1.17. The Hawkeyes are also tied for fifth in total blocks with 15 (2.50 per set), led by middle Alessandra Dietz who is tied for fifth with 10 blocks (1.67 per set) in conference action. Also ranking in the top 10 statistically after week one of Big Ten play are outside hitter Alex Lovell, who is sixth in kills with 25 (4.17 per set), and libero Bethany Yeager, who is tied for seventh in digs with 22 (3.67 per set).
BIG TEN POWER
A total of eight teams were ranked in the AVCA Division I Coaches Top 25 Poll’s most recent release on Sept. 30. No. 5 Penn State, No. 8 Minnesota, and No. 9 Michigan State, and No. 10 Nebraska made top ten cut. No. 12 Ohio State, No. 14 Michigan, No. 23 Wisconsin, and No. 24 Purdue were also present in the top 25. Illinois fell out of the rankings, but still received votes.
TARGETING THE TOP
The Hawkeyes have defeated a ranked team in four of Dingman’s five seasons. Iowa will have plenty of opportunities to continue that trend, as nine of its 2013 opponents appear in the AVCA Top 25 poll. Iowa’s top 25 victories since 2008 include: vs. No. 18 Wisconsin (3-0, 2008); vs. No. 18 Michigan State (3-0, 2009); vs. No. 16 Michigan (3-1, 2010); at No. 12 Purdue (3-0, 2012).
ALL-TOURNAMENT
Rachael Bedell and Alyssa Klostermann were named to the Hawkeye Challenge All-Tournament team for their efforts on the court in Iowa’s four home matches on Sept. 13-14. Others earning all-tournament recognition this season include: Alessandra Dietz (Chanticleer Invitational and Valpo Popcorn Classic) and Alex Lovell (Valpo Popcorn Classic). Dietz was also named most valuable player of the Chanticleer Invitational.
YEAGER’S HARDWARE
Senior libero Bethany Yeager earned the first Big Ten weekly honor of her career when she was named Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week on Monday, Sept. 2. She helped the Hawkeyes accomplish a 3-0 mark and Chanticleer Invitational championship opening weekend. Yeager paced the team in digs in each match tallying 26 against Wofford, 30 against Youngstown State and 23 against Coastal Carolina. Yeager’s award marks Iowa’s first Defensive Player of the Week honor since Christina Meister received the nod in 2009.
LINK UP WITH THE HAWKEYES
To keep up with everything Iowa volleyball, like University of Iowa Volleyball on Facebook and follow @IowaVolleyball on Twitter. Be sure to also follow the team’s new live Twitter feed, @IowaVB_Live, for more frequent in-match tweets, play-by-play, statistics and more. Don’t forget to use #IowaVB.