MADISON, Wis. — University of Iowa volleyball fell to Wisconsin, 3-0, Saturday night inside Wisconsin Field House.
Fifth year Caitlan Buettner led the way for the Hawkeyes with nine kills and 10 digs. Redshirt senior Delaney McSweeney followed closely behind, registering eight kills and hitting at .300. Setters Bailey Ortega and Kaia Mateo recorded 10 assists apiece on the night.
Set 1 (Wisconsin, 25-21): Wisconsin got on the board first, but McSweeney came through swinging to put down the first kill for the Hawkeyes. The teams exchanged offensive runs, meeting at four. the Hawkeyes capitalized off Badger errors. Mateo set one up for Buettner to put down, and then Buettner stayed strong at the net to post a block in the next possession. She then recorded back-to-back kills to bring the set to a tie at 11. Freshman Gabby Deery also registered a kill for the Hawkeyes, thanks to an Ortega assist. Iowa and Wisconsin tied again at 15 after redshirt freshman Nataly Moravec put down a kill, assisted by freshman Rosa Vesty. The set stayed close, tying again consecutively at points 17-21, but Wisconsin closed the set.
Set 2 (Wisconsin, 25-10): The set opened evenly as the teams exchanged the first four points. Vesty and Moravec shut down a Badger attack attempt early in the set. A successful Moravec attack put the ball back into the Hawkeyes’ hands as Wisconsin led, 5-3. Buettner recorded a kill in attempt to close the gap. McSweeney also found an open spot on the court to give Iowa possession. The Hawkeyes battled to shorten the spread, but the Badgers pushed ahead. Towards the end of the set, redshirt junior Amanda Darling assisted McSweeney, but Iowa wasn’t able to catch Wisconsin as it claimed the set.
Set 3 (Wisconsin, 25-16): Once again, the teams went back-and-forth to begin the set. Wisconsin won the first point, but Iowa took advantage of an error and got possession back. Buettner and redshirt junior Anna Davis put down early kills for the Hawkeyes to a tie the Badgers at three. McSweeney broke up a Wisconsin run with a kill assisted by Ortega and came through again, posting a kill out of an Iowa timeout. Moravec added two kills of her own, and Buettner put a couple on the board to lessen the spread for the Hawkeyes. Iowa capitalized on a couple more Badger errors. Towards the end of the set, McSweeney registered back-to-back kills. Iowa continued to fight, but the Badgers captured the set and match.
