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SERVE IT UP
The Hawkeyes are set to conclude the regular season with a road match at No. 3 Wisconsin on Wednesday and a Senior Day contest at home against No. 14 Michigan State on Saturday. Both matches are slated for 7 p.m. (CT).
SENIOR DAY
The Hawkeyes will celebrate four seniors on Saturday against No. 14 Michigan State. Ashley Mariani, Alyssa Klostermann, Loxley Keala and Lauren Brobst will be honored prior to the match. Fans are then invited to join the student-athletes and coaches for an ice cream social in the Feller Club Room following the contest.
WATCH/LISTEN/FOLLOW ALONG
- Both matches will be streamed live on BTN Plus. To see if your cable package gives you access to BTN Plus content, sign up for BTN Plus, or learn more about it, visit btn2go.com.
- Live audio is available for both matches on Hawkeye All-Access at hawkeyesports.com.
- Live stats for each contest can be found on the volleyball schedule page on hawkeyesports.com.
FOLLOW THE HAWKEYES
For an inside look at the Iowa Volleyball program and access to exclusive coverage, “like” University of Iowa Volleyball on Facebook and follow @IowaVolleyball on Twitter and Instagram. Be sure to follow the team’s live Twitter feed, @IowaVB_Live, for more frequent in-match tweets, statistics and more.
BROKEN RECORDS
- The Hawkeyes crushed the single-match attendance record as 4,131 fans watched the Hawkeyes take on No. 1 Nebraska on Saturday night. Iowa’s previous single-match attendance record was 3,102 (Nov. 7, 2009 against Penn State).
- Saturday’s crowd highlights a record-setting year that has seen 28,648 fans watch the Hawkeyes thus far, a mark which ranks in the top 15 in the nation. This has helped the Hawkeyes amass an 11-4 record in Carver-Hawkeye Arena.
- In addition, Iowa now holds an average attendance of 1,910, which is in the top 20 nationally.
- This is the second top 10 attendance mark the Hawkeyes have set this season. Iowa went five sets with then-No. 4 Wisconsin in front of 2,327 fans, the ninth-largest crowd in program history.
SETTING RECORDS AND TAKING NAMES
After a win over Rutgers (3-1) and a loss to No. 1 Nebraska (3-0) last week, Iowa holds a 19-11 overall record and a 9-9 mark in Big Ten play. 19 wins is the most for the program since 1994 when Iowa concluded the season with a 24-9 overall record and a 14-6 league mark. The nine league wins is the most for the program since 2000 when Iowa went 11-9 in league play.
COYLE IN BEAST MODE
After dominating performances against Northwestern on Oct. 28 (14 kills) and No. 24 Illinois on Oct. 29 (18 kills), sophomore Reghan Coyle was named Big Ten Player of the Week; she is the first Hawkeye to earn this honor since 2012.
SCOUTING WISCONSIN
- Wisconsin holds a 24-3 overall record and a 16-2 record in Big Ten play. The Badgers swept last weekend with wins over Michigan (3-1) and Michigan State (3-0). They are currently ranked third in the nation.
- The Badgers lead the conference in assists per set (13.40), digs per set (15.48) and team attacks per set (35.13). Nationally, they land at No. 20, No. 115 and No. 155, respectively, in these categories.
- Lauren Carlini is first in the conference and fifth in the nation in assists per set with 11.66.
- Wisconsin is 51-20-1 overall against Iowa. The Hawkeyes last defeated the Badgers on Nov. 11, 2009 in a five-set thriller.
SCOUTING MICHIGAN STATE
- The Spartans are 23-7 overall and 12-6 in league action after they dropped a pair of decisions at Minnesota (3-2) and at Wisconsin (3-0) last week. MSU is currently No. 14 in the nation.
- Michigan State leads the league and ranks No. 2 nationally in aces per set (2.02). They also lead the conference and land at No. 5 nationally in team service aces with 206.
- Brook Kranda (0.59), Holly Toliver (0.39) and Rachel Minarick (0.35) rank No. 1, 2 and 3, respectively, in the Big Ten in aces per set.
- The Spartans lead the all-time series 47-24. Iowa last topped MSU (3-0) on Oct. 10, 2009.
AND THEN THERE WERE EIGHT
During set two against Minnesota on Oct. 21, Loxley Keala collected the 2,000th assist of her career. She is one of only eight Hawkeyes in program history to have amassed 2,000 or more assists. Keala tied her career-high with 64 assists that night, but topped that with a new personal-best 65 assists against No. 24 Illinois on Oct. 28. The senior ranks No. 7 all-time in the Hawkeye record books with 2,384 career assists.
A DEFENSIVE STANCE
The Hawkeye defense shut down No. 1 Nebraska’s Brianna Holman and Amber Rolfzen. Holman, who ranks 53rd in the nation with a .358 hitting percentage, was limited to just six kills and three errors for a .188 clip. A. Rolfzen, who averages a .356 attacking percentage, was held to just four kills and a .100 clip.
DOUBLE DOUBLES
Senior Loxley Keala and redshirt freshman Meghan Buzzerio have combined for seven double-doubles this season. Keala achieved this feat against Maryland at home (32 assists, 10 digs), Maryland on the road (37 assists, 18 digs), Ohio State on the road (20 assists, 14 digs), Minnesota at home (64 assists, 10 digs) and Nebraska at home (23 assists, 10 digs). Buzzerio had a double-double against Western Illinois (10 kills, 11 digs) and then added one against No. 24 Illinois with 11 kills and 10 digs.
CLUB 1,000
Lauren Brobst, who leads the team in kills for the third season in a row, garnered her 1,000th kill against No. 4 Wisconsin on Oct. 22. The Souix City, Iowa, native has 13 double-digit kill matches this season.
BUZZ-ZINGA!
- Redshirt freshman Meghan Buzzerio led the team with 10 kills at No. 1 Nebraska, tallied 11 kills at Purdue and had 10 kills at home against Rutgers.
- The sophomore has 13 double-digit kill matches this season.
- She currently ranks No. 3 on the team with 239 kills this season.
NATIONALLY SPEAKING
Nine Big Ten teams appeared in the season’s first AVCA Division I Coaches Top 25 Poll, released prior to the season on Aug. 10. Currently, Nebraska lands at No. 1, followed by No. 2 Minnesota, No. 3 Wisconsin, No. 14 Michigan State, No. 15 Penn State and No. 18 Michigan.
ON THE BLOCK
- Junior Jess Janota and sophomore Reghan Coyle have been a force on the block for the Hawkeyes this season. The duo accounted for 11 of the team’s 16 total block assists against Michigan on Sept. 24.
- Coyle set a career-high with five blocks against the Wolverines.
- Janota registered seven blocks in Iowa’s upset win over Purdue on Oct. 7 and topped that with a career-high eight at Maryland on Oct. 14.
KEALA THE QUARTERBACK
- Senior setter Loxley Keala averages 11.15 assists per set — a mark that ranks fourth in the Big Ten and 21st nationally.
- After she amassed 72 assists last week, Keala ranks fourth in the Big Ten Conference and 58th in the nation in total assists (1,137).
CAN YOU DIG IT?
- Annika Olsen has reached double digits in digs in 24-of-30 matches this year. This includes a season-high 25 digs against No. 3 Minnesota (Oct. 21) and another 22 against No. 4 Wisconsin (Oct. 22).
- Olsen recently had a four-match streak of 20 or more digs.
- Olsen has amassed 961 digs in 63 career matches as a Hawkeye.
COYLE MAKES AN IMPACT
- After a career-high 14 kills against Northwestern on Oct. 28, Reghan Coyle amassed a new personal-best the next night as she went off for 18 kills against No. 24 Illinois. These kills helped the Hawkeyes defeat Illinois for the first time since 2005.
- In 30 contests this season, Coyle has more than doubled her kills total from last season. The Council Bluffs, Iowa, native has registered 226 kills this season. Last season, she recorded 68 kills in 23 matches.
- Coyle became the first Hawkeye since 2012 to earn Big Ten Player of the Week honors for performances against Northwestern and No. 24 Illinois.
AROUND THE LEAGUE
- The Hawkeyes are ranked fifth in the league in hitting percentage (.262).
- Iowa is also sixth in both assists per set (12.70) and team assists (1,295).
AROUND THE NATION
- Iowa’s .262 hitting percentage ranks 30th nationally.
- The Hawkeyes are also ranked 67th in assists per set (12.70) and 78th in kills per set (13.43).
KLOSTERMANN SURPASSES 1,000
Alyssa Klostermann surpassed 1,000 career assists on Aug. 27 against DePaul. The senior’s 1,006 career assists ranks 11th on Iowa’s all-time list. Janet Moylan (1987-90) holds the school record with 5,471 career assists.
ALL-TOURNAMENT HONORS
- The Hawkeyes finished the non-conference season with 10 all-tournament selections, including three tournament MVP honors.
- Senior Lauren Brobst was named the NIU Invitational’s most valuable player, and redshirt freshman Meghan Buzzerio and junior Annika Olsen were both named to the all-tournament team.
- Brobst earned her second MVP honor in as many weeks at the Hawkeye Classic.
- Junior Jess Janota and sophomore Reghan Coyle were named to both the Hawkeye Classic and Cyclone Invitational all-tournament teams.
- Senior Setter Loxley Keala was named the Iowa Invitational’s MVP last weekend, and Buzzerio earned her second all-tournament honor of the season.
TRUE MENTAL TOUGHNESS
The Hawkeyes have been focused on one mantra since the beginning of the season: True Mental Toughness. Bond Shymansky’s squad defines true mental toughness as having a great attitude, treating others really, really well, being unconditionally grateful regardless of your circumstances, and giving your very, very best.
THE PREMIER CONFERENCE
The Big Ten Conference has had an NCAA Champion in eight of the last 12 years. Nine teams — Michigan State, Ohio State, Nebraska, Minnesota, Illinois, Penn State, Wisconsin, Michigan and Purdue — appeared in the 2015 NCAA Tournament with Nebraska winning their fourth national title. The title marked the third straight for the Big Ten Conference.
EUROPEAN TOUR
From May 24-June 6 the Hawkeyes traveled to four different countries as part of the program’s first European Tour. With stops in Germany, the Netherlands, Poland, and Ireland, the Hawkeyes squared off with professional and junior national teams to improve their game and bond as a unit.
NEW FACES
- The 2016 roster features five newcomers, including two with collegiate experience.
- Redshirt sophomore Kasey Reuter (OH) transferred from Missouri and joined the Hawkeyes last spring. The Sioux City, Iowa, native appeared in 31 matches with 12 starts as an outside hitter for the Tigers in 2014 before redshirting in 2015.
- Redshirt freshman Meghan Buzzerio (OH/RS) transferred from Arizona to join the Hawkeyes this fall. The Chino Hills, California, native went to Arizona ranked 96th nationally on PrepVolleyball.com’s Senior Aces list.
- The Hawkeyes also welcome three incoming freshmen, including defensive specialists Alexa Ito and Emily Bushman and outside hitter Cali Hoye.
ON DECK
The NCAA Division I Women’s Volleyball Championship bracket will be announced on Sunday at 8 p.m. (CT) on ESPNU.