THIS WEEK
The Hawkeyes travel to No. 4 Wisconsin to play the Badgers on Wednesday at 6 p.m. (CT). Iowa then takes on No. 6 Purdue at home on Saturday at 7 p.m. (CT).
HOW TO FOLLOW ALONG
- Wednesday’s match will be televised live on the Big Ten Network. Connor Onion and Emily Ehman will have the broadcast. Saturday’s match will be streamed live on B1G+ (subscription required).
- Live stats for each contest can be found on the team’s schedule page at hawkeyesports.com.
- John Evans will have the radio call, which can be found on the Hawkeye Radio Network YouTube page.
SCOUTING WISCONSIN
- Head coach Kelly Sheffield is in his eighth year at Wisconsin.
- The Badgers are 11-1 overall, and 3-1 in conference play. Their only loss comes from being edged by Maryland.
- Wisconsin’s totaled 614 kills this season, with a hitting percentage of .330.
- Graduate student setter Sydney Hilley is their assist leader with 505.
- Graduate student DS/L Lauren Barnes has a team-best 159 digs.
- Graduate student MB Dana Rettke has completed 143 kills and 52 solo blocks.
SCOUTING PURDUE
- The Boilermakers are currently 11-2, overall, and 3-1 in Big Ten play. Their only non conference loss came to No. 3 Louisville. Purdue’s only conference loss was to Illinois. The Boilermakers will play at Illinois on Wednesday before traveling to Iowa City.
- Head coach Dave Shondell is in his 18th season.
- Jenna Otec leads the squad with 183 digs. Taylor Tramell has the team lead in solo blocks with 51.
- Grace Cleveland and Caitlyn Newton compete for the lead in kills, Cleveland has 151 and Newton has 149.
- Purdue has a hitting percentage of .289 and averages 13.3 kills per set.
LEADING THE WAY
- Senior Courtney Buzzerio leads the squad with 234 kills, 4.42 kills per set, and 596 attacks.
- Senior Maddie Slagle leads the team with 176 digs.
- Sophomore Bailey Ortega has amassed a team-best 463 assists and 8.736 assists per set.
- Senior Hannah Clayton leads the team in blocks with 41.
ALL THE BUZZ
- Buzzerio ranks 18th in the nation, averaging 4.42 kills per set.
- She ranks second in the Big Ten in kills per set.
- Buzzerio ranks second in the Big Ten in points per set (4.80).
- Buzzerio ranks first in the Big Ten and 31st in the nation with 234 kills.
- Buzzerio’s outstanding play last season earned her an AVCA All-North Region Honorable Mention selection and first-team All-Big Ten honors, becoming the first Hawkeye to earn those postseason honors since Sara Meyermann in 2001. She is only the fifth All-Region selection in program history and eighth first-team all-conference honoree.
- She claimed her third career triple-double (13 kills, 21 assists, 11 digs) in Iowa’s five-set match against Indiana on Feb. 6, becoming the only individual in the Big Ten and one of 23 nationally to record a triple-double last season. She is the only Hawkeye in program history to register multiple triple-doubles in a career.
- Buzzerio’s first career triple-double was against Nebraska (Nov. 16, 2019), with her second coming two weeks later against Ohio State (Nov. 29, 2019). There have only been five triple-doubles in the last 20 years at Iowa. Kiley Fister (2005) and Fabiana De Abreu (2000) are the other two Hawkeyes to complete the feat.
CY-HAWK VICTORY
- The Hawkeyes put together an impressive three sets to defeat in-state rival Iowa State in straight sets.
- Iowa recorded a then-season high attacking percentage of .286.
- The Hawkeyes held Iowa State to 36 kills and 33 digs.
FRESHMAN FOCUS
- Freshman Addie VanderWeide has made 11 consecutive starts and recorded six double-digit kill matches.
- VanderWeide recorded a career-high .471 hitting percentage against No. 11 Washington and career high and team-leading 23 digs against Ball State.
- Freshman Toyosi Onabanjo made her first two starts in the Cy-Hawk Series Tournament.
- Onabanjo recorded five kills and four blocks in both matches.
- Freshman Jenna Splitt made her first two appearances against Illinois and Nebraska. She had 36 assists across both matches.
- Splitt made her first career start against Michigan.
CAREER DAY
- Multiple Hawkeyes set career highs against Duke to open the season.
- Buzzerio recorded a career-high 28 kills against the Blue Devils, tied for 13th most in a single game in school history. The last Hawkeye to record at least 25 kills was her sister Meghan Buzzerio in 2019.
- Sophomore Bailey Ortega recorded a career-high 45 assists. She surpassed that against Ball State recording 49 assists.
- Three Hawkeyes recorded a career high in digs. Mari Hinkle (11), Bailey Ortega (15), and Maddie Slagle (22).
RECORD BOOK UPDATE
- Clayton is tied for first with Mikaela Gunderson for all-time hitting percentage in school history (.294). Amiya Jones ranks third with a .283 hitting percentage.
- Clayton currently ranks 12th all-time in program history with 285 career blocks. She is 10 blocks away from tying Lisa Dockray for 11th.
BEST CONFERENCE IN THE NATION
- Six Big Ten teams are ranked in the top 15 of the AVCA Coaches Poll: No. 4 Wisconsin, No. 6 Purdue, No. 7 Ohio State, No. 8 Minnesota, No. 10 Nebraska, No. 13 Penn State.
- The Big Ten Conference has crowned an NCAA Champion in nine of the last 15 years and at least one Big Ten team has advanced to the Final Four in six straight seasons.
PLAYING THE BEST
- The Hawkeyes are tied for the ninth toughest schedule, according to past opposition win percentage.
- Iowa’s opponents have combined for a 99-43 record and a 0.697 win percentage.
20 KILLS
- Buzzerio has recorded 20 kills in four matches this season. (Duke, Ball State, Air Force, and Illinois).
- She has recorded double digit kills in 12 of the 14 games this season.
XTREAM DIGS
- The Hawkeyes finally welcomed fans to Xtream Arena for the first time as they faced Syracuse in the Cy-Hawk Series Tournament on Sept. 9, 2021.