University of Northern Iowa Athletics
University of Northern Iowa
*Evansville (Trading Cards)
Panthers Sweep Evansville
9/24/2005 8:00:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
Sept. 24, 2005
Cedar Falls, Iowa - The University of Northern Iowa volleyball team posted a season-high hitting percentage as the Panthers swept Evansville, 3-0, Saturday night at the West Gym. Game scores were 30-24, 30-22 and 30-18.
UNI hit .462 (58-9-106) on the evening to just .186 (43-22-113) for Evansville. The Panthers' previous season-best hitting percentage was .326 against Illinois-Chicago in its season opener Aug. 27. The Purple Aces became the fourth straight UNI opponent to hit .200 or less as a team, and the 10th team overall this season.
Sophomore outside hitter Laura Rowen (Hansell, Iowa) led the way for UNI with 13 kills and nine digs, while junior outside hitter Stephanie May (Dubuque, Iowa) had 10 kills and nine digs. Sophomore middle blocker Danielle Brazda (Omaha, Neb.) posted 11 kills and a match-high seven blocks.
Kills from Rowen and Trista Humpal (New Hampton, Iowa), along with two UNI blocks, helped the Panthers turn a 15-14 lead in game one into a 19-14 advantage. After the Purple Aces scored consecutive points to pull within 19-16, UNI rattled of four straight points to take control of the game, 23-16, and eventually post a 30-24 win.
UNI hit an impressive .545 (19-1-33) in the second game, jumping on Evansville early. The Panthers held leads of 4-1, 8-3 and 16-5, and had a double-digit advantage much of the way, before finally winning 30-22. Rowen had six kills in eight attempts in game two, while Humpal had kills in all four of her swings.
Evansville scored the first two points of game three, but that was immediately followed by a Panthers 6-0 run, including consecutive kills by May, Brazda and Ashten Stelken (Manchester, Iowa). Once again, UNI had more than a 10-point lead for much of the game, winning 30-18.
With its fourth straight victory, UNI improves to 10-4 overall, 4-0 in the Missouri Valley Conference, while Evansville falls to 5-11, 0-3 in MVC play. UNI's next match is Tuesday (Sept. 27) when it travels to Iowa City to face the Iowa Hawkeyes. First serve is set for 7:00 p.m.
