IOWA CITY, Iowa – The University of Iowa volleyball team defeated Michigan State, 3-0, in its first sweep of the season on Saturday night inside Carver-Hawkeye Arena.
Iowa’s back-court defense kept the momentum rolling throughout all three sets as the Hawkeyes beat the Spartans 25-22, 25-22, and 25-19.
Sophomore Joslyn Boyer led Iowa with a career-high 25 digs to record her third match with 20+ digs this season.
Sophomore Edina Schmidt led the Hawkeyes offensively for the second straight match. Schmidt recorded a game-high 12 kills and was one of four Hawkeyes with seven kills.
Middle blockers Hannah Clayton and Blythe Rients each recorded eight kills and junior outside hitter Courtney Buzzerio recorded seven with team-best .300 hitting percentage.
“When everyone feels a part of the play and feels depended on is when we play our best,” Buzzerio said. “That definitely showed with the production tonight and kept their defense off.”
HOW IT HAPPENED
SET 1 (Iowa, 25-22): Junior Amiya Jones brought Iowa within one (11-0) with a kill and an ace. Michigan State, however, went on a 4-1 run, forcing Iowa to use a timeout. Iowa began to comeback with a 5-1 run courtesy of kills by Jones and Buzzerio to tie it at 16. Iowa took the lead with a 3-0 run to make it 19-16, forcing Michigan State to burn its second timeout. Another 3-1 run boosted Iowa to a 22-17 advantage. The Spartans tied the set at 22 with a 5-0, but Iowa held off the comeback with three straight kills to win the opening set.
SET 2 (Iowa, 25-22): Jumping out to a 5-1 lead highlighted by kills from Schmidt and Clayton, Iowa held the lead from start to finish. Michigan State tied the set at 12, but Iowa held a two-point advantage or better the rest of the way. Iowa’s rattled off four straight point to earn set point, 24-18. Michigan State didn’t go down quietly, and responded with a 4-0 run of its own to force Iowa to call timeout. Out of the timeout, Iowa won the second set on a Michigan State attacking error.
SET 3 (Iowa, 25-19): Both teams went back and forth in the first 22 points with 11 ties and six lead changes in the set. Iowa began to pull away taking a three-point lead (14-11), courtesy of kills by Schmidt and Buzzerio, forcing a Spartan timeout. The Hawkeyes extended their lead to 20-14. Michigan State showed late life with a 3-0 run, before Iowa won five of the final seven points to win the match.
HEAR FROM HEAD COACH VICKI BROWN
“We’re a determined team and always want to show signs of progress. We approached the game completely different today. Instead of being antsy, we were steady and making good first steps on the ball.”
“We talk a lot about slowing down the opposing team and maintaining our offensive rhythm. Our stat line showed that. Each set we held them to a lower hitting efficiency than the previous set. Our defense is coming around and our offensive is finding a way to be in a rally better.”
NOTABLES
- Iowa moves to 4-14 and Michigan State drops to 3-10 this season
- Three of Iowa’s four wins this season came at home. Iowa was 2-3 at Xtream Arena and 1-3 at Carver-Hawkeye Arena this season.
- The Hawkeyes hit .256 in set one and .202 for the match, both besting yesterday’s numbers.
UP NEXT
Iowa will travel to Minnesota to face the fourth-ranked Gophers next weekend in its last regular-season matches of the year. The first match is set for 5 p.m. (CT) on Friday and Saturday’s match will begin at 3 p.m. (CT)
