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IOWA CITY, Iowa — The University of Iowa volleyball team used a .358 attack percentage en route to a 3-0 victory over Arizona State (3-2) on Friday evening inside Carver-Hawkeye Arena. The Hawkeyes improved to 5-0 on the season and 2-0 in the Hawkeye Classic with the win.
“What a fantastic team effort,” said UI head coach Bond Shymansky. “What a great job to come out and get a sweep over a Pac-12 team like Arizona State on our home court. It is really a great sign. It’s symbolic of the progress we keep making as a group.”
Arizona State got out to an early 13-7 lead in set one to force an Iowa timeout. The Hawkeyes responded; however, going on a 6-1 run to pull within one, 14-13. Redshirt freshman Meghan Buzzerio served the rally and added an ace, while seniors Lauren Brobst (2) and Ashley Mariani (1) and junior Jess Janota (1) added kills. The Sun Devils fought back, utilizing a late 3-0 run to get out to a 20-16 advantage. Following a Shymansky timeout, the Hawkeyes went on a 6-1 run with the help of three kills from Mariani to take a 23-22 lead. Iowa maintained the momentum from there, going on to win the set, 27-25.
Brobst led the Hawkeyes in set one, registering seven kills in 16 attempts with just two errors (.312). Senior setter Loxley Keala dished out 19 assists in the set, while Buzzerio added nine digs.
Set two was a back-and-forth battle from the beginning. With the score knotted at 20, Iowa used a five-point run to close the set and take a 2-0 lead in the match. Senior Alyssa Klostermann served the run and forced the Sun Devils out of system. Janota registered a solo block, and Brobst (1), Buzzerio (1) and Coyle (2) each added kills to give the Hawkeyes a 25-20 set-two victory.
The Hawkeyes never trailed in set three. Iowa used three straight kills from Brobst (2) and Keala (1) to establish an early 3-0 lead. Arizona State came within two points twice but could not keep up with the Iowa attack. Iowa hit .536 in the set. Janota and Brobst recorded four kills apiece, and Keala dished out 14 assists to lead the Hawkeyes to a 25-18 set-three victory.
Brobst (15) and Mariani (10) both reached double digits in kills, and Keala recorded 47 of Iowa’s 51 assists. Three Hawkeyes — Koukol (13), Buzzerio (11), and Olsen (11) — reached double digits in digs.
“What a fantastic crowd,” said Shymansky. “You can tell everyone is enjoying the new video board, and it’s adding a lot to our environment. I like what we are doing at home. I think our team’s really got something special.”
Iowa resumes Hawkeye Classic action tomorrow with a 10 a.m. (CT) match against Butler and a 7 p.m. contest verses Oakland.