Volleyball Preps to Honor Seniors This Weekend

Friday, November 11

Cedar Falls, Iowa

7 p.m.

University of Northern Iowa

Loyola (faculty/staff FREE with UNI ID)

Volleyball Preps to Honor Seniors This Weekend

11/8/2016 8:53:00 AM | Women's Volleyball

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This Week's Action
Fri., Nov. 11 -- Cedar Falls, Iowa (McLeod Center)
Loyola at UNI, 7 p.m. | ESPN3 | AUDIO | STATS
• Faculty/Staff Free Admission w/I.D./Social Media Night

Sat., Nov. 12 -- Cedar Falls, Iowa (McLeod Center)
Bradley at UNI, 7 p.m. | ESPN3 | AUDIO | STATS
• Senior Night

• The University of Northern Iowa women's volleyball team (19-8 overall, 10-4 MVC) will take on a pair of Missouri Valley Conference foes at home in the McLeod Center this Friday and Saturday.

• Both matches can be viewed live on ESPN3.

• UNI will match up against the Loyola Ramblers (12-16 overall, 7-8 MVC) Friday at 7 p.m. UNI faculty and staff that provide a university I.D. will earn free admission to the match.

• The Panthers will take on the Bradley Braves (7-19 overall, 2-13 MVC) Saturday at 7 p.m. UNI will honor its five-member senior class prior to the match.

• UNI, Missouri State, Wichita State and Southern Illinois have clinched four of the six berths available for the 2016 Missouri Valley Conference Tournament set for Nov. 24-26 in the McLeod Center.

• UNI secured its 19th win of the season with a 3-0 win over Drake. It marks the 19th straight season that UNI has won 19 or more matches.

• UNI has won 10 or more MVC matches for the 25th consecutive season.

• With one more league victory this season, UNI will have won 11 or more MVC matches in every season since the league went to a home-and-home regular season schedule in 1992.

PANTHERS PLAY HOST TO LOYOLA, BRADLEY IN MCLEOD
The University of Northern Iowa women's volleyball team (19-8 overall, 10-4 MVC) will take on a pair of Missouri Valley Conference foes at home in the McLeod Center this Friday and Saturday.
   UNI will match up against the Loyola Ramblers (12-16 overall, 7-8 MVC) Friday at 7 p.m. UNI faculty and staff that provide a university I.D. will earn free admission to the match.
   The Panthers will take on the Bradley Braves (7-19 overall, 2-13 MVC) Saturday at 7 p.m. UNI will honors its senior class on Saturday prior to the match.

2016 SENIOR CLASS
UNI will honor its five seniors prior to Saturday night's final regular season home match in the McLeod Center.
   UNI's senior class includes Jaidyn Blanchfield (Boise, Idaho), Amie Held (Festus, Mo.), Ashlee Sinnott (Waterloo, Iowa), Kayla Haneline (Plattsmouth, Neb.) and Lindsey Schulz (Carroll, Iowa).
   Blanchfield, a movement and exercise science major, has seen action in 63 matches and 142 career sets for the Panthers. Blanchfield set her career-high with 11 kills vs. Baylor in the 2015 season. She is the daughter of Jennifer and Jason Blanchfield.
   Held, a sports psychology major, ranks No. 2 all-time at UNI in career digs. She also ranks in the top-10 in the nation among active career digs leaders. She is a five-time MVC Defensive Player of the Week honoree. She was named to the MVC All-Freshman team in 2013 and earned first-team all-MVC honors in 2015. She is the daughter of Scott and Paula Held.
   Sinnott is a marketing major with an emphasis in management. She has competed in 95 matches and 342 career sets. She posted a career-high 21 digs in this season's 3-1 win over Wichita State on Oct. 1. She has been credited with 837 career digs. She is the daughter of Dan Sinnott and Sandee Brandt.
   Haneline, a double-major in biology and management, is one of 25 Panthers to have posted 1,000 career kills. She ranks No. 13 on UNI's all-time kills per set list. She is a two-time first-team all-MVC honoree and has twice been honored as an AVCA all-district selection. She is the daughter of Kennon and Cheryl Haneline.
   Schulz, a double major in psychology and movement and exercise science, has seen action in 103 matches and 356 career sets. She posted a career-high 14 kills in a 3-1 win over Notre Dame in the 2014 season. She has collected 591 kills and 221 blocks in her Panther career. She is the daughter of Steve and Cathie Schulz.

ESPN3 FOR THIS WEEK
Both of this week's UNI volleyball matches will be available for viewing on ESPN3.
   Brad Wells (play-by-play) and Molly Turk (analyst) will call the action in the McLeod Center.

RADIO COVERAGE
Live radio coverage of the UNI Panther volleyball team can be found on www.UNIPanthers.com and KXEL (1540-AM). All audio will be free of charge (no subscription service).
   Chris Kleinhans-Schulz is in his fifth season as the play-by-play voice of Panther volleyball.

Live Audio Coverage Schedule
Fri., Loyola - News/Talk 1540 KXEL
Sat., Bradley - News/Talk 1540 KXEL

ALL-TIME SERIES
UNI holds a 13-0 record all-time against the Loyola Ramblers. The Panthers are 5-0 vs. the Ramblers in matches played in Cedar Falls.
   UNI has a 61-9 lead in the all-time series vs. the Bradley Braves. UNI has won 22 consecutive matches overall against Bradley. UNI has defeated Bradley 26 straight times in matches played in Cedar Falls.
   Head coach Bobbi Petersen is 9-0 vs. the Ramblers and 29-5 vs. the Braves.

HEAD COACH BOBBI PETERSEN
Head coach Bobbi Petersen is in her 17th year as the UNI head coach.
   Petersen has posted an impressive 429-130 record at the helm of UNI's program, with seven Missouri Valley Conference regular season titles, eight MVC tournament crowns and two NCAA Sweet 16 appearances to her credit. She ranks in the top 10 of active Division I coaches in winning percentage (.767).
   In 2015, Petersen joined the 400-win club allowing her to become only the fourth MVC coach to earn 400 victories. Petersen joined Linda Dollar (758 - Missouri State), Iradge Ahrabi-Fard (503 - UNI) and Melissa Stokes (438 - Missouri State) in that elite class.

FOUR SQUADS CLINCH MVC TOURNAMENT BERTHS
UNI is one of four teams who have clinched berths to compete in the 2016 Missouri Valley Conference volleyball tournament slated for Nov. 24-26 in the McLeod Center.
   Missouri State, Wichita State, Southern Illinois and UNI have clinched four of the six available slots in the tournament.
   UNI has qualified for the MVC Tournament in 32 consecutive season - the longest active streak in the league.

COMING UP ACES
UNI served up a season-best 10 service aces in its 3-0 win over Drake (Nov. 5). The 10 service aces is the most for the Panthers since Oct. 15, 2010, when UNI also posted 10 aces against Indiana State.

HELD IN HIGH REGARD
Senior Amie Held garnered her 15th double-double on the season and registered a .500 hitting percentage in leading UNI to a 3-0 win over Drake. Held had 10 kills, 10 digs and tied a career-high with four service aces vs. the Bulldogs. Held added an assist and a block assist as UNI defeated Drake for the 40th consecutive time.

SORGE LEADS THE DEFENSIVE EFFORT
Sophomore libero Kendyl Sorge tallied 17 digs (5.67 digs/set) in helping the Panthers to a 3-0 win over the Drake Bulldogs on Saturday in the McLeod Center. Sorge tossed in four assists and her second kill of the season against the Bulldogs.

SORGE NEARS 1,000 DIGS
Kendyl Sorge is 29 digs away from becoming only the 16th Panther to post 1,000 career digs. Sorge has 971 digs heading into this weekend's matches vs. Loyola and Bradley.
   Sorge ranks No. 3 on UNI's all-time digs per set list (4.22). Ellie Blankenship (2007-2010) holds down the top spot with a 5.59 digs/set average and Amie Held ranks No. 2 with a 4.32 digs/set average.

19 STRAIGHT YEARS OF 19 WINS OR MORE
UNI secured its 19th win of the season with a 3-0 win over Drake. It marks the 19th straight season that UNI has won 19 or more matches.

DOUBLE-DIGIT VALLEY WINS
UNI has won 10 or more MVC matches for the 25th consecutive season. UNI sits at 10-4 in MVC action this season. UNI has won 11 or more MVC matches in every season since the league went to a home-and-home regular season schedule in 1992.

POWER CONFERENCE
UNI is among four MVC schools ranked in the top 60 of the RPI released by the NCAA on Monday.
   Wichita State (No. 36), UNI (No. 46), Missouri State (No. 49) and Southern Illinois (No. 58) are all ranked in the top 60 of the latest NCAA RPI.

5 WINS VS RPI TOP 50
UNI has won an MVC-best five matches against top-50 RPI opponents this season.
   The Panthers are one of 25 teams in the nation with five or more wins against the RPI Top 50.

Five or more wins vs. top-50 RPI
Rk.   Team (Top 50 Wins)
1.   Wisconson (13)
2.   Texas (10)
3.   Nebraska (12)
4.   Minnesota (10)
7.   BYU (5)
8.    Stanford (7)
9.   North Carolina (8)
10.   Kansas (8)
11.   Michigan (7)
13.    Washington (5)
14.   UCLA (7)
15.   Michigan State (7)
16.   Creighton (5)
19.   Purdue (7)
20.    Oregon (5)
21.   Kansas State (7)
22.   Penn State (6)
24.   Arizona (7)
25.   Utah (5)
27.   Pittsburgh (5)
31.   Marquette (5)
34.   USC (6)
44.    Washington State (5)
46.    UNI (5)
54.   Colorado (5)

NINE OUTTA TEN'S NOT BAD
UNI has won nine of its last 10 matches heading into this week's action vs. Loyola and Bradley.
   UNI posted a season-high eight-match win streak in October. It is UNI's longest win streak since a 24-match streak in 2011.

MORE STREAKS OF NOTE
UNI, Hawaii, Nebraska, Stanford, Penn State and UCLA lead the nation with 36 consecutive non-losing seasons in NCAA Div. I volleyball.
   UNI has also posted 32 straight NCAA Division I winning seasons – the sixth-longest active streak in the nation behind Hawaii (36), Nebraska (36), Penn State (36), Stanford (36) and UCLA (34).

AMONG THE NATION'S BEST
UNI ranks No. 3 in the nation in total team attacks per set (39.12).
   UNI ranks No. 5 in the nation in digs per set (18.29).
   The Panthers also rank No. 10 in the nation in kills per set (14.38).
   UNI's 248 total team attacks is the second-highest single-match total in the nation this season.

HANELINE ECLIPSES 1,000 KILLS
Senior Kayla Haneline ranks No. 20 on UNI's all-time kills list with 1,097.
   Lisa Meeker ranks No. 19 with 1,111 kills from 1983-1986.
   Danielle Brazda ranks No. 18 with 1,124 kills from 2003-2007.
   Shelby Kintzel ranks No. 17 with 1,128 kills from 2009-2013.
   Shari Vermeer ranks. No. 16 with 1,133 kills from 2000-2004.
   Haneline is one of 25 Panthers to have reached 1,000 career kills.

WEBER, HANELINE AMONG BEST ON UNI KILLS/SET ALL-TIME LISTS
Bri Weber ranks No. 11 on UNI's career kills/set list with a 2.99 average in 222 sets.
   Teammate Kayla Haneline ranks No. 13 on UNI's career kills/set list with a 2.90 average in 378 career sets.

DOUBLE-DOUBLE CLUB
Senior Amie Held holds the team lead in double-doubles with 15 this season.
   Junior setter Heather Hook added her 10th double-double and 21st of her career with 28 assists and 13 digs in a 3-0 win over Drake (Nov. 5).
   Sophomore Bri Weber is UNI's active career leader in double-doubles with 31.

UNI Double-Doubles
15, Amie Held (29 career)
13, Bri Weber (31 career)
10, Heather Hook (21 career)

HOOK IS TOPS IN THE VALLEY
Junior setter Heather Hook leads the MVC and ranks No. 22 in the nation in assists/set (11.09).
   Hook also ranks No. 16 in the nation in total assists (1,076).

HELD UP TO NO. 2 ON DIGS CHART
Senior Amie Held ranks second on UNI's all-time digs chart with 1,904.
   Ellie Blankenship holds the all-time digs mark at UNI with 2,656 from 2007-2010.

UNI's All-Time Digs List
1.   Ellie Blankenship (2007-10)   2,656
2.   Amie Held (2013-pres.)    1,904
3.   Candice Burke (2008-12)    1,737
4.    Amy Braun (2009-12)    1,672
5.    Stephanie May (2003-06)    1,570
6.    Bobbi Becker (1986-89)    1,457
7.    Kate Galer (1993-96)    1,368
8.    Alexandra Auker (1997-00)   1,303
9.    Mary Bernhardt (1984-87)    1,202
10.   Miranda Weber (1999-02)    1,148

HOOK RANKS 9TH ON ASSIST LIST
Junior Heather Hook ranks No. 9 on UNI's all-time assist list with 2,493.
   Hook needs 56 assists to move into a tie for No. 8 with Kinsey Caldwall (2013-2014), who tallied 2,549 assists.
   Jill Arganbright holds the all-time digs mark at UNI with 6,064 from 2000-2003.

UNI's All-Time Assists List
1.   Jill Arganbright (2000-03)   6,064
2.   Shannon Perry (1996-99)   4,881
3.   Bre Payton (2008-11)   4,752
4.   Kara Galer (1992-95)   4,265
5.   Kristin Belzung (2003-07)   4,256
6.   Mary Bernhardt (1984-87)   3,977
7.   Bobbie Kreple (1987-90)   2,780
8.   Kinsey Caldwell (2013-14)   2,549
9.   Heather Hook (2014-pres.)   2,493
10.   Katie Crowley (1988-91)   1,895

FAN FAVORITES
The Panthers consistently have ranked among the national leaders in attendance, including ranking No. 17 with 2,055 fans per home match.
   Last season, UNI ranked No. 13 in the nation in average home attendance at 2,277 per match.

WEEKLY PRESS LUNCHEONS
UNI head coach Bobbi Petersen will be available at the weekly Press Luncheons held each Monday beginning at noon in the back room of Pepper's Grill and Sports Pub located on 18th Street in Cedar Falls.