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University of Northern Iowa
Georgia Tech
Georgia Tech Edges Panthers
9/2/2006 8:00:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
Sept. 2, 2006
Atlanta, Ga. - UNI hit a season-best .314 as a team, but it was not enough as Georgia Tech nipped the Panthers, 3-2, in the final match of the Regency Suites Midtown Invitational. Game scores in favor of the Yellowjackets were 24-30, 30-27, 30-22, 17-30 and 15-8.
Laura Rowen (Hansell, Iowa) led all players with 17 kills, and added 11 digs. Amy Sampson (Brooklyn Park, Minn.) and Danielle Brazda (Omaha, Neb.) each added 15 kills, while setter Kristin Belzung (Ankeny, Iowa) had 52 assists and 14 digs. Belzung and Brazda were each named to the all-tournament team.
After the teams split the first four games, it came down to rally scoring to 15 in game five. Georgia Tech was able to get the early advantage on UNI, jumping to a 6-3 lead. After a Panther timeout, Rowen had a kill to pull the Panthers within 6-4, but the Yellowjackets scored the next three points to open a 9-4 edge. UNI could not closer than five after that, as Georgia Tech claimed a 15-8 win and the match. The Yellowjackets hit .333 (7-1-18) in the fifth game to just .053 (6-5-19) for the Panthers.
The game was as statistically even as the match would indicate. UNI had a slight edge in kills (72-68), but the teams were even in digs (51 each) and total team blocks (10.0 each).
The Panthers fell to 5-3 on the season, while the Yellowjackets improved to 3-1. Both UNI and Georgia Tech finished the tournament with identical 3-1 records, but the Yellowjackets claimed the tournament championship as a result of the head-to-head win over the Panthers.
UNI's next action is next weekend (Sept. 8-9), when it opens the home season with the UNI Invitational at the West Gym. A top-notch field of Alabama, Kansas State and Notre Dame will be in town.
