Final Notes

2021 SEASON RECAP

• The University of Iowa volleyball team completed the 2021 season, going 6-24 overall and 4-16 in the Big Ten, with wins over Iowa State, Incarnate Word, Michigan State, Indiana, Maryland, and Rutgers.
• Iowa was 3-10 at home, including a 3-8 record at Xtream Arena in the first season that fans were allowed in the new venue. Iowa had two wins on the road and one at a neutral site.
• The Hawkeyes dropped all nine matches against ranked opponents.

LEADING THE WAY

• Senior Courtney Buzzerio led the squad with 436 kills, 4.07 kills per set, 1099 attacks, and 30 aces.
• Junior libero Mari Hinkle led the team with 336 digs.
• Sophomore Bailey Ortega amassed a team-best 838 assists and 7.83 assists per set.
• Senior Hannah Clayton recorded a team-best 89 blocks.

POSTSEASON HONORS

• Buzzerio was named to the All-North Region team by the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA).
• She is the first Hawkeye in program history to be a two-time selection. She was the fifth Hawkeye to earn All-Region accolades in school history as an honorable mention selection last season.
• Buzzerio was named a second-team All-Big Ten selection and is the 10th honoree in school history to earn Big Ten postseason accolades multiple times.
• Ortega was named a Big Ten Sportsmanship Award recipient.

RECORD BOOK UPDATE

• Senior Amiya Jones finished her Hawkeye career ranked first in program history in attacking percentage (.296). Clayton finished her career ranked third (.285).
• Ortega is ranked 10th in all-time assists with 1225.
• Buzzerio wrapped up her Hawkeye career 20th in all-time kills totaling 926.
• Buzzerio’s 28 kills against Duke is tied for 13th most in program history.
• Buzzerio’s 436 kills are the most of any Hawkeye in the 25-point scoring format and most since Catherine Smale had 441 in 2005.

ALL THE BUZZ

• Buzzerio ranked 53rd in the nation with 436 total kills.
• She ranked second in the Big Ten in kills per set (4.07) and sixth in total kills (436).
• Buzzerio ranked fourth in the Big Ten in points per set (4.55).

FRESHMEN FOCUS

• Freshman Addie VanderWeide made 27 consecutive starts to end the season and recorded 12 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.

ON THE COURT AND IN THE CLASSROOM

• The Hawkeyes set a new program record with 11 Academic All-Big Ten selections. The previous record was set last year.
• Audrey Black (Open Major), Hannah Clayton (Health & Human Physiology), Emma Grunkemeyer (Human Physiology), Kyndra Hansen (Speech and Hearing Science), Amiya Jones (Social Work), Leanne Lowry (Biomedical Sciences), Bailey Ortega (Sport and Recreation Management), Blythe Rients (Civil Engineering), Edina Schmidt (Health and Human Physiology), Maddie Slagle (Health and Human Physiology), and Grace Tubbs (Human Physiology)
• Six Hawkeyes were named to the Dean’s List for the Fall Semester: Sydney Dennis (Biology), Hansen, Ortega, Rients, Slagle, and Splitt.

BEST CONFERENCE IN THE NATION

• Six Big Ten teams finished the season ranked in the top 20 of the final AVCA Coaches Poll: No. 1 Wisconsin, No. 2 Nebraska, No. 6 Purdue, No. 7 Minnesota, No. 11 Ohio State, and No. 17 Penn State.
• The Big Ten Conference has crowned an NCAA Champion in 10 of the last 16 years and at least one Big Ten team has advanced to the Final Four in seven straight seasons.

EVERY SET, EVERY MATCH

• Buzzerio, Hinkle, Ortega, and Clayton appeared in every set for the Hawkeyes in 2021.
• Clayton started all 30 matches for the Hawkeyes.

CAREER DAY

• Multiple Hawkeyes set career highs against Duke to open the season.
• Buzzerio recorded a career-high 28 kills against the Blue Devils. The last Hawkeye to record at least 25 kills was her sister Meghan Buzzerio in 2019.
• Sophomore Ortega recorded a career-high 45 assists. She surpassed that against Ball State recording 49 assists, and again against Air Force with 57 assists.
• Three Hawkeyes recorded a career high in digs. Hinkle (11), Ortega (15), and Slagle (22).

20 KILLS

• Buzzerio recorded 20 kills in five matches this season. (Duke, Ball State, Air Force, Illinois and Maryland).
• She recorded double-digit kills in 23 of the 30 games in 2021.

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.
• The Hawkeyes ranked 30th in the nation in attendance this season.

JIM BARNES NAMED IOWA VOLLEYBALL HEAD COACH

• The University of Iowa Athletics Department announced on Dec. 28, the hiring of Jim Barnes as the new head coach of the Hawkeye volleyball program. Barnes is the 11th head coach of the program.
• In his 24 years as a head coach, Barnes has a career record of 455-345 (.569), and nine 20-plus win seasons. He has put together six top-20 recruiting classes and made four appearances in postseason tournaments, including a program first NCAA Sweet 16 run.
• Barnes arrives in Iowa City after spending six seasons (2016-21) as head coach of Tulane volleyball program. Before Tulane, Barnes spent 11 seasons as the head coach at Baylor (2004-15), and two seasons at Wyoming (2002-04). Barnes was the head coach at Lamar from 1996-200. Barnes got his coaching start at his alma mater of McNeese State, where he spent six years as an assistant coach.