Iowa Slips in Eugene

EUGENE, Ore. – University of Iowa volleyball was swept by No. 12 Oregon at Matthew Knight Arena on Sunday afternoon. The Hawkeyes lost 25-23, 25-22, 25-15.

Iowa moved to 13-13 overall and 2-10 in the Big Ten.

The offense ran through the middle and was paced by Hannah Whittingstall’s eight kills. Liv Mogridge and Ksenija Tomic finished with six each. Jenna Meitzler and Rosa Vesty each had four kills. Meitzler finished with 25 assists, two aces and one dig to round out her stat line.

Defensive specialist Allison Berent set a season high with 12 digs to lead the Hawkeyes’ effort in the back row. Libero Henlee Moszkowicz finished with 11.

Iowa and Oregon tied with nine blocks each. Mogridge led the charge at the net with seven total blocks, including two solo. 

MATCH SUMMARY
SET ONE (OREGON 25-23)
Oregon opened with a sideout and surged to an early 3-0 lead before Iowa got on the board with a block by Hallie Steponaitis and Hannah Whittingstall. Liv Mogridge notched her first kill to bring the Hawkeyes within two at 7-5. After Oregon pushed further ahead with a 3-0 run, Whittingstall halted the momentum with a kill. She followed up with a quick sequence featuring a kill and an ace to narrow the deficit to 12-9. Iowa continued to chip away as a Steponaitis kill, an ace from Jenna Meitzler, and a block and kill from Mogridge highlighted a 4-0 spurt. Despite the rally, the Hawkeyes trailed 15-13 at the technical break. Mogridge put down another kill from the middle, but Oregon expanded its cushion with a kill and an Iowa error, taking a 19-15 lead into an Iowa timeout. Ksenija Tomic responded out of the break with back-to-back kills, though Oregon became the first to reach 20 points while holding a three-point advantage. A block from Mogridge and Meitzler pulled Iowa within 21-20, but Oregon answered with two quick kills to force the Hawkeyes' final timeout trailing 23-20. Facing set points at 24-20, Mogridge delivered a solo block, Meitzler served an ace and Steponaitis crushed a kill to stave off a third straight set point. However, Iowa's comeback effort ended on a service error, giving Oregon the set. Iowa served four aces in the opening frame, and was led by Whittingstall's team-high four kills and two aces. The Hawkeyes hit .320 in the set, while Oregon hit .353.

SET TWO (OREGON 25-22)
Meitzler opened the second set with a dunk. A Mogridge kill quickly built an early 5-1 Hawkeye lead. After Oregon began to push back, Meitzler halted the run with her second dunk kill of the set to keep Iowa ahead 6-4. Oregon overtook Iowa at 9-8 in what would be a back-and-forth set. An Oregon ace prompted an Iowa timeout, but the Ducks kept pressing, stretching their run to 6-0 and extending the cushion to 13-8. Iowa quickly answered with a 3-0 run of its own, fueled by kills from Tomic and Whittingstall to pull within 13-11. Capitalizing on consecutive Oregon errors, the Hawkeyes reclaimed a 15-14 lead heading into the media break. An Iowa error coupled with an Oregon ace put the Ducks ahead 18-16, but Iowa responded with a 4-0 spurt to take a 20-18 lead and force an Oregon timeout. The Ducks came out of the huddle with back-to-back points to tie the set at 20-20. Oregon edged ahead briefly before Rosa Vesty answered to pull Iowa level again at 21-21. However, Oregon closed out the set on a decisive 3-0 run to secure the victory in a frame defined by runs, featuring nine tie scores and five lead changes.

SET THREE (OREGON 25-15)
Carmel Vares got Iowa on the board with a roll shot kill, but Oregon claimed an early 2-1 advantage. Iowa fell behind 11-6 after an Oregon run. Whittingstall put down a kill to narrow the gap to 12-8, but Oregon responded with a 3-0 sprint to stretch its advantage to 15-8 heading into the media break. Vesty sparked a Hawkeye comeback attempt out of the timeout with a pair of kills to bring Iowa within five at 17-12. However, the bid stalled as Oregon capitalized on two consecutive Iowa errors to push its lead to 20-12, prompting the Hawkeyes' final timeout. Tomic notched a kill to trim the deficit to 20-14, but Iowa could get no closer as Oregon closed out the set and match.

Up Next: Iowa (13-13 , 2-10 B1G) travels to nationally-ranked Indiana on Friday night. First serve is scheduled for 6 p.m. (CT) inside Wilkinson Hall.