Notes: Maryland, No. 7 Wisconsin

THIS WEEK
Iowa shifts its attention to Big Ten play, hosting Maryland on Thursday and No. 7 Wisconsin on Sunday at Xtream Arena. The match with the Terrapins will start at 6:00 p.m. (CT). Sunday's contest against Wisconsin is a Gold Out and will begin at 2:00 p.m.

HOW TO FOLLOW ALONG

• Both matches will be streamed on B1G+.
• All of Iowa's matches are broadcast on the Hawkeye Radio Network (YouTube) with John Evans on the call.
• 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 and the News section on hawkeyesports.com.

2025 NEWS

• The Hawkeyes beat East Texas A&M and Lindenwood to wrap up nonconference play. The nine out-of-conference wins are the program's most since 2014.
• Of Iowa's nine wins in 2025, seven have come via sweep.
• Libero Milana Moisio leads the Big Ten with 166 digs. Middle hitter Aleksandra Stojanovic has the second-highest hitting percentage at .472, while fellow middle Hannah Whittingstall is third in the league with 55 blocks. Claire Ammeraal has the third-most assists in the conference (392).
• Chard'e Vanzandt was the MVP of the Hawkeye Invitational, tallying 22 kills and a .500 hitting percentage. Heading into the weekend, she is 12 kills away from 1,000 in her career.
• Iowa was immaculate at the Kwik Star Klassic, sweeping matches against Butler, Illinois State and Loyola Chicago.
• The Hawkeyes' 6-0 start matched their best since 2009.
• Iowa won the Rebel Challenge in Las Vegas, picking up sweeps over UNLV and Cal State Bakersfield. Iowa won a five-set match, outlasting Utah Tech, on Aug. 30.

SCOUTING MARYLAND

• The Terrapins finished nonconference play 7-3. Maryland is 2-2 on the road.
• The last meeting between the two teams went five sets with Iowa securing the win in College Park last season.
• Duru Gökçen is ranked second in blocks in the Big Ten and leads Maryland with 57. After a dominant weekend at UMBC, Gökçen was named the Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week, totaling 21 blocks and 20 kills across three matches. 
• Complementing Gökçen in the middle, Eva Rohrbach is tied for third in blocks in the Big Ten with 55. 
• Ajack Malual leads the Terps offensive production with 143 kills, which ranks fifth in kills in the league. 
• Ally Williams holds down the defense with 145 digs to put her third in Big Ten rankings. 
• Adam Hughes enters his eighth season with Maryland with a 109-112 record while with the Terrapins. 

SCOUTING No. 7 WISCONSIN

• Wisconsin is 7-1 heading into Big Ten competition. The Badgers are battle-tested with out-of-conference wins over ranked teams No. 14 Kansas, No. 15 Florida and No. 21 Georgia Tech. 
• Mimi Colyer leads the Badgers with 139 kills, hitting 5.35 kills per set which ranks first in the Big Ten. She was last week’s Big Ten Player of the Week.
• Charlie Fuerbringer runs the offense for Wisconsin, dishing out 285 assists. She leads the Big Ten with 11.40 assists per set. Fuerbringer was most recently the Big Ten Setter of the Week.
• Carter Booth and Alicia Andrew team up to stop offenses with 35 and 30 blocks, respectively. 
• Booth was most recently named the Big Ten’s Defensive Player of the Week after totaling 12 blocks over seven sets, including a season-high nine blocks against No. 15 Florida. 
• Head coach Kelly Sheffield enters his 13th season with the Badgers, amassing a 318-68 record at Wisconsin. Under his tenure, Wisconsin is one of three teams to compete in the Sweet 16 the last 12 years in a row, including four Final Four appearances. 

BIG TEN LEADERS
Heading into league play, four Hawkeyes are within the top five of their respective statistical categories. Libero Milana Moisio paces the Big Ten with 166 digs. She is second in the conference with 3.69 digs per set. Middle hitter Aleksandra Stojanovic is second in the league in hitting percentage, converting at .472. Fellow middle hitter Hannah Whittingstall has shined of the defensive side with 55 blocks -- good for third in the Big Ten. Setter Claire Ammeraal is third in assists with 392, while also racking up the most kills of any setter in the conference with 71. 

INTERNATIONAL IMPACT
The Hawkeyes have seen strong production from their international student-athletes. Freshman Carmel Vares has 97 kills and a .280 hitting percentage. Sophomore Aleksandra Stojanovic is hitting .472 on the season with 68 kills and 36 blocks. Stojanovic hit .714 against Illinois State and moved into a tie for 12th all-time in program history. She followed it up with an efficient .875 day against Weber State. Freshman Marichka Hoshylyk posted three kills against Butler to help secure the Hawkeye win. Defensive specialist Greta Schlichter has 23 digs for the Hawkeyes. 

SENIOR SPOTLIGHT
Senior setter Claire Ammeraal has been a steady, multi-faceted threat though 12 matches for the Hawkeyes. She was the tournament MVP at the season-opening Rebel Challenge and Kwik Star Klassic. She wrapped up the Hawkeye Invitational with all-tournament honors. Through 42 sets, Ammeraal has totaled 392 assists, 91 digs, 71 kills and a .415 hitting percentage. She is ranked third among Big Ten setters in total assists and has the most kills among setters. Ammeraal recorded her second career triple-double against Utah Tech recording 41 assists, 18 digs, and 11 kills in a five-set victory.

BALANCED ATTACK
Iowa's offense is using a balanced attack in 2025. Pins Chard'e Vanzandt and Carmel Vares have taken turns leading the Hawkeyes early in the season. Vanzandt leads the team with 112 kills and Vares is close behind with 97. Both Hawkeyes set season highs at the SEMO Invite, as Vanzandt crushed 22 kills against SEMO. Vares drilled 19 kills against Weber State. Freshman Gia McGrew emerged last week and has 34 kills in 14 sets. The Hawkeyes turn to Hannah Whittingstall and Aleksandra Stojanovic and offensive setter Claire Ammeraal to strike from the middle.

B1G IN THE RANKINGS
Six Big Ten teams are ranked in the AVCA Top 25. Nebraska is No. 1 in the nation. Iowa's second opponent of the weekend, Wisconsin, is in the top 10 and ranked No. 7. Purdue rose to No. 10 in this week's poll.  A cluster of league foes take up spots in the middle of the top 25: Minnesota (No. 12), Penn State (No. 15) and USC (No. 17). UCLA, Oregon, Indiana and Michigan are receiving votes just outside of the top 25.

UP NEXT
The Hawkeyes hit the road for two matches in the Pacific Northwest. Iowa plays at Oregon at 8:00 p.m. (CT) on Friday and at Washington at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday. The match against the Huskies will be televised on Big Ten Network.