MINNEAPOLIS – In the University of Iowa volleyball’s season finale, Iowa fell in three sets to third-ranked Minnesota on Saturday afternoon at Maturi Pavilion.
Four Hawkeyes – sophomore Edina Schmidt (6), junior Courtney Buzzerio (5), freshman Adurey Black (5), and Blythe Rients (5) – recorded at least five kills. Buzzerio and freshman setter Bailey Ortega each added 12 assists.
Freshman libero Joslyn Boyer recorded a match-high 14 digs for her team-best 15th match with at least 10 digs. Junior defensive specialist Maddie Slagle added eight digs for her fourth straight match with at least seven digs.
HOW IT HAPPENED
SET 1 (Minnesota, 25-18): Down 3-0 to start the set, Iowa turned it around to take an 8-6 lead. The Gophers used a 3-0 run to retake the lead as Minnesota never trailed the rest of the set. Another Minnesota 3-0 run gave the Gophers a 19-13 advantage. Like Friday’s opening match, Iowa fought back, but could never get within five points. Facing set point (24-16), Iowa rallied off two late points, before Minnesota won the opening set.
SET 2 (Minnesota, 25-14): Tied at eight, Minnesota went on a 12-1 run to take a 20-9 lead, forcing Iowa to use its second timeout. The Hawkeyes showed life out of the timeout with a Clayton kill and an ace by Slagle. Iowa scored back-to-back points again on a kill by Schmidt and an ace by Buzzerio to trail 23-14, but it was too little too late for the Hawkeyes. The Gophers finished off the second set with an ace.
SET 3 (Minnesota, 25-16): Iowa led 5-4, but a Minnesota 5-0 run gave the Gophers a 9-5 lead. Black stopped the run with a cross-court kill and Iowa trailed 15-8 at the first media timeout. Buzzerio added her fourth kill of the match out of the timeout and the Hawkeyes traded points with the Gophers during the middle of the set, not allowing Iowa to get within five points of Minnesota.
HEAR FROM HEAD COACH VICKI BROWN
“With us closing out the season this evening, one thing that stands out to me was the adjustments we had to make. We had some new voices that were given an opportunity to be louder. I’m really proud of our junior class — Amiya Jones, Hannah Clayton, Maddie Slagle, and Courtney Buzzerio — of taking on a bigger load. I’ve been with them since the beginning and am really proud of what they did with their contribution to the team.”
“I’m looking forward to the next season. We will have a majority of student-athletes that will have two or more years of experience of competing in this conference. With that experience comes a different way of training. It’s not necessarily understanding how to do it. It’s about executing that and giving that last effort now.”
“I’m also looking forward to having fans to in Xtream Arena and being back to normal with a veteran team.”
NOTABLES
- Iowa finished the spring 2021 season with a 4-16 record and missed two matches due to COVID-19 protocols.
- Minnesota recorded eight service aces to Iowa’s four.
