Volleyball Squad Begins Play at Michigan Tourney

UNI Volleyball Notes - Michigan Tournament (PDF)

This Week's Action
Fri., Aug. 26 -- Michigan Invitational (Ann Arbor, Mich.)
UNI vs. Miami (Ohio), 3:30 pm -- LIVE STATS

Sat., Aug. 27 -- Michigan Invitational (Ann Arbor, Mich.)
UNI vs. Saint Louis, 12 pm -- LIVE AUDIO | LIVE STATS
UNI at Michigan, 6:30 pm -- LIVE AUDIO | LIVE STATS

• The University of Northern Iowa women's volleyball team will open its 2016 season on the road in Ann Arbor, Mich., at the Michigan Invitational.

• UNI will take on the Miami (Ohio) Redhawks in the opener on Fri., Aug. 26, at 3:30 p.m. (CT). The Panthers will match up against the Saint Louis Billikens on Sat., Aug. 27, at noon, before wrapping up play against the tournament host Michigan Wolverines on Saturday at 6:30 p.m.

• The Panthers rank No. 6 all-time in NCAA Division I winning percentage (.776). UNI trails only Penn State (.865), Hawaii (.856), Nebraska (.841), Florida (.829) and Stanford (.812).

• UNI, Hawaii, Nebraska, Stanford, Penn State and UCLA lead the nation with 35 consecutive non-losing seasons in NCAA Division I volleyball.

• UNI has posted 31 straight NCAA Division I winning seasons – the sixth-longest active streak in the nation behind Hawaii (35), Nebraska (35), Penn State (35), Stanford (35) and UCLA (33).

• The Panthers consistently have ranked among the national leaders in attendance, including ranking No. 13 in the nation in 2015 with an average of 2,277 fans per home match.

• Senior Kayla Haneline is a preseason all-MVC selection.

• Head coach Bobbi Petersen is entering her 17th year at the helm of the Panther program with a record of 410-122.

OPENING WEEKEND
UNI will initiate the 2016 season in Ann Arbor, Mich., at the Michigan Invitational.
   UNI will take on the Miami (Ohio) Redhawks in the opener on Fri., Aug. 26, at 3:30 p.m. (CT).
   The Panthers will match up against the Saint Louis Billikens on Sat., Aug. 27, at noon, before wrapping up play against the tournament host Michigan Wolverines on Saturday at 6:30 p.m.
   Michigan is receiving votes in the preseason AVCA Top 25.

RADIO COVERAGE
Live radio coverage of the UNI Panther volleyball team can be found on www.UNIPanthers.com and KXEL (1540-AM). All audio this year will be free of charge (no subscription service).
   Brent Balbinot will fill in this weekend as play-by-play voice for the Panther volleyball squad.

Live Audio Coverage Schedule
Fri., vs. Miami - Not Available
Sat., vs. Saint Louis - KXEL (1540-AM)
Sat., vs. Michigan - KXEL (1540-AM)

ALL-TIME SERIES
Friday's match vs. Miami (Ohio) will mark only the second time the schools have met in volleyball. The Redhawks scored a 2-0 win over UNI on Oct. 24, 1981, in DeKalb, Ill.
   UNI holds a 6-2 all-time mark vs. Saint Louis. UNI has won three straight in the series by picking up victories in 2011, 2013 and 2014. The last two matchups have gone to five sets.
   Michigan holds a 2-0 advantage over UNI with victories in 1992 and 2012. The last meeting occurred Sept. 8, 2012, in Milwaukee, Wis., as the Wolverines pulled out a 3-1 win.

BACK IN MICHIGAN
UNI will be playing matches in the state of Michigan for the first time since the 2003 season when the Panthers won the Radisson Invitational.
   UNI recorded victories over Niagara, Loyola (Chicago) and Western Michigan in Kalamazoo, Mich., on Sept. 12-13, 2003.

HEAD COACH BOBBI PETERSEN
Head coach Bobbi Petersen is beginning her 17th year as the Panthers head coach.
   Petersen has posted an impressive 410-122 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 (.771).
   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.

STIFF NON-CONFERENCE SETUP
Head coach Bobbi Petersen has lined up a loaded non-conference schedule that will feature six matches against teams either ranked or receiving votes in the AVCA Top 25.

Ranked or Receiving Votes
#5   Kansas
#7   Southern California
#18   Creighton
#24   Kentucky
RV   Iowa State
RV   Michigan

11 CONSECUTIVE YEARS OF APR RECOGNITION, PERFECTION
For the past 11 years the NCAA has recognized teams in the top-10 percent of the Academic Progress Report and the UNI volleyball team has been on the list all 11 years.
   In fact, the UNI volleyball team has had a perfect score of 1,000 in each of the 11 years.
   UNI volleyball is one of 110 programs in the nation to have earned the recognition in each of the 11 years teams have been honored.

AVCA TEAM ACADEMIC AWARD
The UNI volleyball team compiled a 3.40 cumulative GPA during the 2015-16 season.
   It marks the fifth consecutive season that the Panthers have earned the AVCA Team Academic Award.

POLLING NUMBERS
UNI has been ranked in the AVCA Top 25 110 times in program history - the most in the Missouri Valley Conference.
   By comparison, the rest of the current teams in the MVC have been ranked 52 times (Wichita State - 35; Illinois State - 14; Missouri State - 3).
   In the state of Iowa, UNI's 110 poll rankings puts it on top. Iowa State has been ranked in 77 polls, while Iowa has been ranked in one.
   UNI has been ranked in the top 10 in the AVCA poll on 25 occasions. Wichita State has twice been ranked in the top 10 for the second-best number in the MVC.
   UNI's highest ranking in the AVCA Top 25 is No. 6 (Sept. 15, 2003).

AMONG ELITE COMPANY
The Panthers rank No. 6 all-time in NCAA Division I winning percentage (.776). UNI trails only Penn State (.865), Hawaii (.856), Nebraska (.841), Florida (.829) and Stanford (.812) in NCAA Division I winning percentage totals.

MORE STREAKS OF NOTE
UNI, Hawaii, Nebraska, Stanford, Penn State and UCLA lead the nation with 35 consecutive non-losing seasons in NCAA Division I volleyball.
   UNI has posted 31 straight NCAA Division I winning seasons – the sixth-longest active streak in the nation behind Hawaii (35), Nebraska (35), Penn State (35), Stanford (35) and UCLA (33).

17 MVC REGULAR SEASON TITLES
The Panthers have tallied 17 MVC regular season titles through the years.
   UNI won the regular season title in 1986, 1987, 1988, 1990, 1991, 1994, 1995, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2006, 2009, 2010, 2011 and 2013.

19 NCAA APPEARANCES
In its 19 trips to the NCAA tournament, UNI has posted 14 wins, advancing to at least the second round 11 times.
   UNI has advanced as far as the NCAA's Sweet 16 three times since 1999. In 2002, the Panthers went into the NCAA tournament as the No. 1 seed in the East Region.

HANELINE, HELD COMPETED FOR USA VOLLEYBALL OVER SUMMER
USA Volleyball selected 36 athletes, including UNI's Kayla Haneline and Amie Held, to participate in the U.S. Collegiate National Team-Indianapolis.
   The squad, which is part of USA Volleyball's High Performance pipeline and is considered a second tryout for the U.S. Women's National Team, trained and competed from June 21-30 in Indianapolis.

VOLLEYBALL GOLF OUTING
The 2016 UNI volleyball golf outing is set for Sun., Oct. 9, at Fox Ridge Golf Course in Dike.
   The four-person best shot will get underway at 12:30 p.m. with the shotgun start. The $45 entry per golfer includes green fees, flight prizes and flag events. For an additional $12 golfers can use a golf cart for the event. Entrants can also add in $8 per golfer for a meal following the golf.
   Send golfer names, addresses, phone numbers along with $45 entry fee per golfer along with cart fee and meal fee (if applicable) to:

UNI Volleyball Golf Outing
P.O. Box 257
Dike, Iowa 50624

   For questions call Joe Becker at 319-989-2405.

PANTHERS TABBED FOURTH IN MVC PRESEASON POLL
The Panthers earned one first-place vote in the preseason Missouri Valley Conference coaches poll.
   UNI is projected to finish fourth behind Wichita State, Missouri State and Southern Illinois.

2016 PRESEASON POLL
1.   Wichita State (7)   97
2.    Missouri State (1)   85
3.   Southern Illinois (1)   82
4.   UNI (1)   72
5.   Illinois State   57
6.   Loyola     50
7.   Indiana State    41
8.    Drake    33
9.   Bradley     18
10.     Evansville     15

HANELINE EARNS PRESEASON ALL-MVC STATUS
Senior Kayla Haneline (Plattsmouth, Neb.) has been named to the preseason all-Missouri Valley Conference squad for the second straight year.
   Haneline led the Panthers in kills (3.16/set) and blocks (1.02/set) last season.

FAN FAVORITES
The Panthers consistently have ranked among the national leaders in attendance, including ranking No. 13 in the nation in 2015 with an average of 2,277 fans per home 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.

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