Notes: at Maryland/No. 16 Penn State

THIS WEEK
Iowa hits the road for the first time in nearly one month and travels to Maryland and No. 16 Penn State. The Hawkeyes and Terps meet on Thursday evening at 6 p.m. in College Park. Iowa takes on Penn State on Saturday at 6 p.m. in University Park.

HOW TO FOLLOW

• The matches will be streamed on B1G+.
• John Evans will provide the live play-by-play of the matches on the Hawkeye Radio Network.
• Live stats and recaps can be found on the volleyball schedule page on hawkeyesports.com.
• In-game coverage will be shared on Iowa volleyball's social media platforms.

2026 HIGHLIGHTS

• Iowa's 12-4 start matches the program's best since 2016.
• The Hawkeyes recorded 18.5 blocks against Milwaukee. That is the second-most blocks by a Big Ten team this season.
• Setter Jenna Meitzler leads the nation in assists (662) and is second in the Big Ten in assists/set (11.22).
• Iowa is one of two Big Ten programs to be led in kills by both of its middle hitters. Liv Mogridge ranks first in the Big Ten among middles in total kills.
• Iowa is second in the league with 14.27 kills/set and fifth with a .279 hitting percentage.
• Jenna Meitzler was the Kwik Star Klassic tournament MVP and Hannah Whittingstall was the Most Outstanding Defensive Player. Hallie Steponaitis and Ksenija Tomic were all-tourney picks.
• Iowa completed the season sweep of in-state rivals, taking care of Drake in straight sets on Sept. 16. The Hawkeyes hit a season-high .367 against the Bulldogs.
• Iowa swept Iowa State on Sept. 8 and won in Ames for the first time since 1997.
• Head Coach Jim Barnes won the 500th match of his coaching career in Iowa's victory over UAlbany.

SCOUTING MARYLAND

• The Terrapins are 10-3 and 0-2 in conference play after dropping their first two Big Ten matchups at Purdue and Indiana. Maryland is 5-0 at home.
• The Terps entered league play with momentum after sweeping the ECU Tournament against Campbell, East Carolina and Old Dominion.
• Maryland set a new program record earlier this season, recording eight straight sweeps and winning 27 consecutive sets.
• Leading the offensive attack is freshman outside hitter Ava Brown, who has 107 kills. She hits .311. Brown notched nine kills in the loss to Indiana.
• Sara Toth averages 11.15 assists per set.
• Sophomore defensive specialist Raina Chwialkowski leads the team with 140 digs. She also leads the Terps in service aces with 14.
• On the defensive side, Brown and junior middle blocker Duru Gökçen take charge, recording 49 and 47 blocks, respectively.
• Maryland hits .305 and holds opponents to .172. 

SCOUTING #16 PENN STATE

• Heading into the weekend, Penn State is 9-3 and 1-1 in the Big Ten. It opened league play with a win at Michigan, followed by a four-set loss at Michigan State. The Nittany Lions take on No. 1 Nebraska on Oct. 1.
• Penn State is currently ranked #16 in the AVCA poll. It was ranked #10 in the 2026 AVCA preseason top 25.
• Three-time All-American Kennedy Martin drives the offense with 160 kills while hitting at a .298 clip. She recorded 19 kills in the loss to Michigan State.
• Named the Big Ten Women’s Volleyball Freshman of the Week on Sept. 14, outside hitter Haley Burgdorf hit .463 with 2.67 kills and 1.67 digs per set in wins over DePaul, Stanford and Ohio.
• Middle blockers Gabrielle Nichols and Ryla Jones lead the Nittany Lions on defense with 49 and 45 blocks, respectively.
• Libero Ava Faldulo secures the back row with 160 digs, averaging 3.72 per set.
• As a team, Penn State hits .246 and limits opponents to .173. 

MIDDLE U
Iowa boasts one of the most explosive middle-hitter attacks in the country with Liv Mogridge and Hannah Whittingstall. The Hawkeyes are one of two Big Ten programs to have their middles lead the team in kills. Mogridge has 161 kills in 15 matches and leads the Big Ten among middles. She averages a team-leading 2.93 kills per set. Mogridge is hitting an efficient .353 on a team-high 360 swings. Whittingstall, known for her effectiveness on the slide, is second on the team with 150 kills. She is hitting a scorching .408 on 314 attempts and averages 2.59 kills per set. The duo also leads the way in blocking. Whittingstall has 64 blocks and gets 1.10 per set on average. Mogridge has 57 blocks, including six solo.

SET THE TONE
Jenna Meitzler is the nation's leader in assists (662) through 16 matches. She averages 11.22 assists per set, which is second in the league. Iowa is hitting .279 and averaging 14.27 kills per set – good for second in the league – with Meitzler orchestrating the offense. She was named the Kwik Star Klassic tournament MVP after dishing out 120 assists and helping Iowa hit .269 in its 3-0 weekend. The setter also found her offense and added 11 kills. Defensively, she had 21 digs and 15 blocks. Meitzler helped Iowa hit at its highest percentage all season (.367) and her attackers were terminal on 53% of her attempts against Drake. She also had 50 assists against Milwaukee and picked up her fifth double-double of the season against Ohio State.

B1G TESTS AWAIT
After Maryland, Iowa pays a visit to No. 16 Penn State on Oct. 3 for its first ranked matchup of the season. The Hawkeyes will have three more ranked matchups in October, beginning with a battle against No. 10 Purdue on Oct. 15. Wisconsin is ranked No. 6 and will be coming to Coralville on Oct. 18. The month wraps up with a trip to currently undefeated and No. 22 Washington.

IN-STATE SWEEPS
Iowa won its in-state matches over Drake and Iowa State without dropping a set. The Hawkeyes handled Drake with a 25-21, 25-21, 25-17 victory on Wednesday, just over a week after sweeping Iowa State in Ames. Iowa out-hit Drake .367-.229 and commanded the net with nine blocks to Drake’s three. Hallie Steponaitis led Iowa's offense with 11 kills. The Hawkeyes' win over rival Iowa State on Sept. 8 was Iowa’s first win over the Cyclones since 2021. It was also the first over Iowa State in Ames since 1997. The Hawkeyes won the first two sets decisively 25-20 and 25-21 before holding off Iowa State’s charge in the third, 25-23. Ksenija Tomic led the attack with 10 kills and a .409 hitting percentage. Jenna Meitzler had 35 assists, five digs and three kills. Iowa hit .287 to Iowa State’s .230. The Hawkeyes silenced a crowd of 4,665 fans and picked up their second true road victory of the season.

UP NEXT
Iowa continues its road swing with matches at Michigan (Oct. 9) and Michigan State (Oct. 11).