| OPPONENT | Iowa (6-8, 0-3) vs. Minnesota (6-5, 1-2) |
| LOCATION | Minneapolis, Minn. (Maturi Pavilion) |
| DATE | Sunday, Oct. 2 |
| FIRST SERVE | 1 p.m. (CT) |
The Setting
University of Iowa volleyball travels to Minneapolis, Minnesota, on Sunday to take on the University of Minnesota Gophers at 1 p.m. (CT) inside Maturi Pavilion.
Live stats for each contest can be found on the team’s schedule page at hawkeyesports.com.
TV: The match will be available to stream on B1G+ (subscription required).
SCOUTING MINNESOTA
- Hugh McCutcheon enters his 11th season at the helm of the Gophers.
- Minnesota is currently ranked No. 7 in the AVCA Coaches Poll.
- Minnesota has had three games of conference play. The first against No. 11 Purdue, losing 0-3. Their second game was against #6 Wisconsin, winning 3-0. Their third was against unranked Northwestern, losing 3-2.
- The Gophers rank sixth in the Big Ten in blocks per set (2.65) and team total blocks (111.5).
- Redshirt Sophomore outside hitter Taylore Landfair ranks second in the Big Ten in attacks per set (11.33), kills per set (4.40), and points per set (4.40). She ranks fourth in total kills (185) and points (205). She ranks fifth in total attacks (476). She leads the team in kills (185).
- Graduate student libero CC McGraw leads the Gophers in digs with 129.
- Junior setter Melani Shaffmaster leads the team in assists with 421. She ranks fourth in the Big Ten in assists per set (10.02), and sixth in total assists (421). She leads the team in service aces with 15.
THE SERIES
- The first meeting between the teams was in 1977, with Minnesota winning both sets.
- The teams last meeting was at Xtream Arena last fall, with #8 Minnesota taking all three sets; 25-22, 25-14, 25-17.
- Minnesota leads the all time record, 73-12.
B1G LEADER
- Senior libero Mari Hinkle averages 4.57 digs per set which leads the conference. She is first in the conference in total digs registering 215 thus far.
- Against Drake, Hinkle recorded a career-high 34 digs.
- Senior middle hitter Amiya Jones is ranked fifth in the conference for total aces (20) and sixth for aces per set (.42).
- Redshirt Senior setter Lily Tessier is ranked eighth in the Big Ten in total assists (400) and 10th in assists per set (8.51).
BEST CONFERENCE IN THE NATION
- Six Big Ten teams finished the season ranked in the final top 20 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.
- This season six teams are ranked within the top 15 — No. 3 Nebraska, No. 5 Purdue, No. 6 Ohio State, No. 7 Minnesota, No. 8 Wisconsin and No. 12 Penn State.
ALL-TOURNAMENT, ALL HAWKEYES
- After winning the Hawkeye Invitational (Sept. 17), senior middle hitter Amiya Jones was named tournament MVP and sophomore outside hitters Toyosi Onabanjo and Addie VanderWeide were also named to the all-tournament team.
- Sophomore outside hitter Michelle Urquhart was named to the Cardinal and Black All-Tournament team on Sept. 10
- Senior Libero Mari Hinkle was named to the PAC-12/Big Ten Challenge team on Sept. 4.
- Onabanjo and junior middle hitter Delaney McSweeney were named to the Oklahoma Invitational on Aug. 27.
MICKEY’S BREAKOUT OPENER
- Sophomore Michelle Urquhart, an outside hitter transferring in from Tulane, recorded back-to-back double-doubles against Gonzaga and Florida International on Friday at the Oklahoma Invitational.
- Urquhart tallied 17 kills (.424) and 10 digs against Gonzaga before notching 10 kills and 12 digs against Florida International.
- In her freshman season at Tulane, Urquhart recorded 341 kills, placing her with the second most kills on the roster and the 12th most in the AAC.
- Urquhart finished her freshman season with 235 digs and six double-doubles.
TRANSFERS
- The Hawkeyes added nine student-athletes to the team this season, including seven transfers and two freshmen.
- Delaney McSweeney comes home to Iowa from Wake Forest. The 6-7 middle hitter is a junior from Center Point, Iowa.
- Jacqlyn Caspers is also coming home to Iowa from Kent State. The redshirt senior stands at 6-5 as a middle hitter and is originally from Swaledale, Iowa.
- Lily Tessier joins the squad from Florida State. Tessier stands at 6-3 as a setter, classifying as a redshirt senior. Tessier calls Fort Meyers, Florida, home.
- Anna Davis comes to the Hawkeyes with Coach Barnes from Tulane. Davis, a 6-1 middle hitter is entering her junior year. Davis hails from Castle Rock, Colorado.
- Michelle Urquhart joins Iowa alongside Davis and Coach Barnes from Tulane. The 6 foot outside hitter is a sophomore, hailing from Virginia Beach, Virginia.
- Amanda Darling transferred into Iowa from Niagara. The junior is a 5-3 libero from Oswego, Illinois.
- Madi Wahrmund steps into Iowa from Lafayette. The middle hitter stands at 6-1 and is a graduate student. Wahrmund calls Fredericksburg, Texas, home.
SET FOR SUCCESS
- Redshirt senior Lily Tessier, a 6-3 setter, spent four seasons with the Florida State Seminoles before entering the transfer portal.
- “Lily is an elite level, experienced setter,” said Coach Barnes. “She is a great communicator, teammate, and leader as well. Here ability to run the offense from well above the net will make her one of the most feared setters in the Big Ten.”
- A Fort Myers, Florida, native, Tessier appeared in 73 matches for Florida State totaling 1,765 assists (7.29 per set). She has 36 career aces and 464 digs.
- Tessier ranks 11th all-time at FSU in assists per set and 14th in career assists. She is a three-time ACC Academic Honor Roll selection.
- Tessier was a four-year starter at Evangelical Christian High School. In 336 career sets, she recorded 185 aces, 600 digs, 376 kills, and 2,282 assists (6.8 per set).
- She was named to the 2014 AAU All-American Team and the 2015 News-Press All-Area second team.
- Tessier was named a finalist for the 2016 New-Press All-Area Volleyball Player of the Year award.
SOPHOMORE SPOTLIGHT
- Sophomore Addie VanderWeide made 27 consecutive starts to end her freshman 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.
- Sophomore Toyosi Onabanjo made her first two starts in the Cy-Hawk Series Tournament.
- Onabanjo recorded five kills and four blocks in both matches.
- Onabanjo opened the 2022 season at the Oklahoma Invitational with 26 kills with a hitting percentage of .308, notching 10 blocking assists and five solo blocks.
- VanderWeide started out the 2022 season at the Oklahoma Invitational with 13 kills and 22 digs.