Iowa Suffers Home Defeat to No. 13 Purdue

CORALVILLE, Iowa – University of Iowa volleyball lost in straight sets to No. 13 Purdue on Thursday night at Xtream Arena. The Hawkeyes fell to 12-9 and 1-6 in the Big Ten. 

Iowa was swept for the first time this season, 25-19, 25-18, 25-15.

Outside hitter Carmel Vares led the Hawkeye offensive attack for the third time in the last four matches. She notched 11 kills on 21 swings, along with five digs. Joining her in double digits with 10 kills was middle hitter Liv Mogridge. Ksenija Tomic and Hannah Whittingstall tallied seven and six kills, respectively. Jenna Meitzler had 34 assists and added four digs and one kill.

Defensively, libero Henlee Moszkowicz anchored the back row with 11 digs, while Mogridge and Whittingstall worked at the net to pick up two blocks a piece. 

Hallie Steponaitis and Marichka Hoshylyk served up the Hawkeyes’ two aces of the match.

HEAR FROM COACH BARNES
“We came out in the first set and executed what we had been working on. We were up for a good bit of it before it started turning in their direction. At the end of the day, we are only as strong as each individual. We had too many breakdowns against a team that doesn’t give you any room for error.”

MATCH SUMMARY
SET ONE (PURDUE 25-19)
Purdue struck first to open the set, but Iowa quickly responded. A pair of kills from Liv Mogridge put Iowa ahead 5-4. Early back-and-forth action continued to begin the match. Carmel Vares delivered back-to-back kills to keep the Hawkeyes up 12-10. There were nine ties at the onset of the match. The Boilermakers then used a 9-1 run that ultimately proved to be the difference in the set, taking a 19-13 lead. Iowa ignited a 3-0 run off a Boilermaker error to draw within three and force a timeout at 20-17. The Boilermakers would respond, however, closing out the first set, 25-19.

SET TWO (PURDUE 25-18)
Purdue grabbed control early with a 6-1 run to force an Iowa timeout. Vares responded out of the break with a kill, and Mogridge later slammed down an over pass before teaming up with Vares for a block to cut the Purdue lead to 8-4. The Boilermakers once again used a strong surge to regain the momentum, pulling ahead 17-7. Iowa turned to Mogridge and Vares again to spark a spirited 10-3 run late in the set to bring the deficit down to six at 23-17. The early Boilermaker cushion proved too large to overcome, with Purdue taking the second set 25-18.

SET THREE (PURDUE 25-15)
The Hawkeyes traded blows early with the Boilermakers, ultimately tying the set 10 times. Whittingstall slammed down a kill before pairing up with Meitzler for a block to level the set at 12-12. Purdue pulled away once more heading into the media break, launching a 14-3 run. Marichka Hoshylyk served up an ace late to bring the Hawkeyes within 21-15, but it proved not enough down the stretch. Purdue closed out the set and match to claim a 25-15 victory. 

Up Next: The Hawkeyes host sixth-ranked Wisconsin in their Black Out match on Sunday at 1 p.m. inside Xtream Arena.