VB Notebook: at Ohio State, No. 3 Penn State

THIS WEEK
Iowa hits the road for a Halloween matchup at Ohio State before a trip to Penn State. The Hawkeyes take on the Buckeyes at the Covelli Center on Thursday night at 6:30 p.m. (CT). The match will be televised on the Big Ten Network. Iowa has a quick turnaround, traveling to University Park to battle the Nittany Lions on Friday night at Rec Hall. First serve is scheduled for 5:30 p.m. (CT) and will be streamed live on B1G+. Both matches will be broadcast live on the Hawkeye Radio Network.

HOW TO FOLLOW ALONG

• Iowa’s match with Ohio State will air live on the Big Ten Network. The matchup with Penn State will be streamed live on B1G+ (subscription required).
• All of Iowa’s matches are available on the Hawkeye Radio Network (YouTube) with John Evans on the call. Broadcasts are complete with a pre-match show and post-match coverage.
• Live stats for each contest can be found on the volleyball schedule page at hawkeyesports.com.
• Updates and recaps can be found on Iowa Volleyball’s social media platforms.

2024 NEWS

• Senior Michelle Urquhart posted a pair of career highs in October. Urquhart recorded a .471 hitting percentage against Washington on Oct. 4 and tallied 20 kills against Illinois on Oct. 27.
• The Hawkeyes completed the season sweep of Rutgers, defeating the Scarlet Knights, 3-0, on Oct. 11. It was Iowa’s first sweep of a conference opponent since 2022 (Rutgers).
• Freshman Malu Garcia set a career high with 20 kills in Iowa’s match against No. 10 Purdue.
• Garcia was named B1G Freshman of the Week on Sept. 30 after her performances at Rutgers and Maryland.
• Iowa’s 2-0 start in the Big Ten was its best since 2008.
• Senior libero Joy Galles leads the Big Ten in digs (331) and is fifth in the league in digs per set (3.85).
• The Hawkeyes are 4-0 in five-set matches, including wins over Maryland and Rutgers.
• Iowa is 7-1 when winning the opening set. The Hawkeyes are 8-2 when winning the second.
• Senior Gracie Gibson earned all-tournament status at the Kwik Star Klassic, posting 29 kills, nine blocks and a .509 hitting percentage.
• Junior setter Claire Ammeraal eclipsed 2,000 career assists in the opening weekend, recording a double-double against Liberty and a triple-double against Providence.
• Ammeraal posted Iowa’s first triple-double (34 assists, 17 digs, 11 kills) since Courtney Buzzerio in 2021. It is the third time a Hawkeye has achieved a triple-double since 2005.

SCOUTING OHIO STATE

• The Buckeyes are 8-12 overall and 1-9 in conference. Their lone Big Ten win is over Northwestern.
• Graduate student Emily Londot leads the Buckeyes and the Big Ten in kills and kills per set with 358 and 4.59, respectively.
• Sophomore Mia Tuman facilitates Ohio State’s offense with 652 assists this season, putting her at tenth-most in the league.
• Sophomore Eloise Brandewie and graduate student Rylee Rader are tough to hit around at the net with 88.0 and 81.0 blocks, respectively, this season. Both are ranked in the top 15 for blocks in the Big Ten.
• Freshman Olivia Hasbrook leads the defense with 300 digs — good for fifth in the conference.
• Head coach Jen Flynn Oldenburg returns to her alma mater for her fifth season. She led the Buckeyes to the NCAA Elite Eight in 2022.

SCOUTING No. 3 PENN STATE

• The Nittany Lions boast a 20-1 overall record and are 10-0 in Big Ten play. Penn State has ranked wins over No. 4 Louisville, No. 9 Kentucky, No. 10 Purdue, No. 11 Oregon, No. 14 Minnesota, No. 14 Tennessee and No. 16 USC.
• Penn State received one first-place vote in this week’s AVCA Coaches Poll.
• As a team, the Nittany Lions lead the Big Ten in kills (1,100), kills per set (14.67), assists (1,019), assists per set (13.59) and solo blocks (42).
• Graduate student Jess Mruzik leads the offensive production for the Nittany Lions with 320 kills, fifth most in the Big Ten.
• Freshman Izzy Starck is the main facilitator with 823 assists, which leads both the conference and her team.
• Junior Maggie Mendelson commands the net with 91.0 blocks so far this season, putting her at fifth in conference rankings.
• Junior Gillian Grimes holds down the defense for the Nittany Lions with 287 digs.
• Katie Schumacher-Cawley, a two-time All-American and member of Penn State’s 1999 National Championship team, is in her third season as Penn State’s head coach after serving as an assistant for four years under former head coach Russ Rose.

MICKEY’S CAREER CAMPAIGN
Senior Michelle Urquhart has set career highs in recent matchups against Washington and Illinois. The Virginia Beach, Virginia, native shattered her previous best with a .471 hitting percentage against the Huskies on Oct. 4. Last weekend, Urquhart drilled 20 kills against Illinois to update her career best. Her previous best was 17, which she accomplished three times while at Tulane. She also matched her high for total attacks (52). Earlier this season, Urquhart tallied double-digit kills in six consecutive matches, helping Iowa win three Big Ten contests.

THE FRESHMAN PHENOM
Outside hitter Malu Garcia kicked off league play with impressive performances at Rutgers and Maryland and was named the Big Ten’s Freshman of the Week on Sept. 30. The freshman from Hilo, Hawaii, tallied 28 kills and 14 blocks in Iowa’s east coast sweep. Garcia matched a career high with 17 kills in the conference opener at Rutgers, while filling the stat sheet with nine blocks and eight digs. She finished the weekend with 11 kills and five blocks in Iowa’s five-set win at Maryland. Garcia is Iowa’s first Big Ten Freshman of the Week since Brie Orr earned the honor in September of 2017. It was Iowa’s first weekly conference recognition since Courtney Buzzerio was the Big Ten Player of the Week in the spring of 2021. Since then, Garcia has updated her career high, notching 20 kills in Iowa’s match against No. 10 Purdue.

HAWKEYE TRANSFERS

• Joy Galles comes to Iowa as a graduate transfer from the University of Arizona. Galles appeared in 52 matches as a Wildcat, tallying 180 digs and 57 assists in 2023.
• Kenya Prescott joins the Hawkeyes as a transfer from DMACC. She holds the career school records for digs (1,561) and digs per set (5.80) at DMACC. In two seasons, Prescott played in 76 matches and averaged 5.80 digs per set.
• Claire Ammeraal transfers in from Central Michigan, where she played in 63 matches. The junior setter had over 1,000 assists as a sophomore and registered 168 kills in 2023. She has surpassed 2,000 career assists since joining the Hawkeyes.
• Hannah Whittingstall arrives in Iowa City after spending her freshman year at SMU. Whittingstall put on a show against Houston in 2023, setting career highs in kills (9) and total attacks (22). The sophomore hit .583% against Baylor a season ago.
• Gracie Gibson is a graduate transfer from Lafayette College, appearing in matches in all four seasons as a Leopard. Entering the season, the veteran had played in 79 matches and averaged 1.71 kills per set in her career.

UP NEXT
The Hawkeyes return to the Midwest, heading to Madison to take on Wisconsin on Nov. 8. Iowa wraps up the weekend at Xtream Arena on Nov. 10, hosting Northwestern for Military Appreciation Day.