Iowa Downs Gardner-Webb in Straight Sets

Sept. 18, 2015

Box Score

Iowa City, Iowa — The University of Iowa volleyball team downed Gardner-Webb in straight sets on Friday morning in Carver-Hawkeye Arena. The Hawkeyes are now 7-3 on the season and are currently riding a five-match win streak.

“We have a doubleheader today and tomorrow so we knew we had to be clean, sharp, and efficient” said UI head coach Bond Shymansky. “We got a lot of good contribution from a lot of players on our team. That’s good in-game experience for everybody, especially our younger players.”

After a slow start in the first set, the Hawkeyes used a 7-0 run to establish a lead. Freshman Molly Kelly served up the rally and registered an ace, while senior Mikaela Gunderson and freshman Reagan Davey added kills. The Hawkeyes controlled the momentum from there, using a .478 attack percentage to coast to a 25-12 set win.

The Hawkeyes maintained their momentum in the second set. Sophomore Taylr McNeil started it off with a kill and Iowa never trailed from there, winning the set two, 25-13. Six different Hawkeyes registered kills with junior Ashley Mariani leading the way with three.

Gardner-Webb got out to an early 9-8 lead in the third set before the Hawkeyes came back firing. Iowa used an 11-1 run to gain the lead and ultimately take set three, 25-13. The Hawkeyes hit .276 in the third set and held the Runnin’ Bulldogs to .000 (9 kills, 9 errors, 33 attempts). Sophomore Jess Janota had the hot hand, recording four kills in six attempts.

The Hawkeyes hit .309 as a team, while holding the Runnin’ Bulldogs to -.011. Janota paced the Hawkeye offense with nine kills, while junior Loxley Keala dished out a team-high 28 assists. Sophomore Annika Olsen led the team with 12 digs, Gunderson recorded a team-leading four blocks, and Mariani, Kelly, and Olsen registered two service aces apiece.

The Hawkeyes return to action tonight, hosting Coastal Carolina. First serve is set for 7 p.m. (CT).