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University of Northern Iowa
Creighton
Panther Volleyball Tops Creighton, 3-1
11/20/2009 7:00:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
Nov. 20, 2009
CEDAR FALLS, Iowa – The University of Northern Iowa volleyball team topped Creighton 3-1 to win its 25th straight match Friday night in the McLeod Center. UNI won by scores of 25-19, 21-25, 25-17 and 25-21 to improve to 27-2 overall and 17-0 in league play.
Michelle Burow and Shannon Burow each tallied 20 kills, marking career highs for both. Bre Payton finished with 47assists, and Ellie Blankenship notched 31 digs.
The Panthers hit .395 in the first set, which included 11 ties and two lead changes. UNI broke a 14-14 tie with six straight points to take a 20-14 lead. The Panthers held at least a five-point lead the rest of the way to the 25-19 set win.
Creighton rebounded in the second set, building an early 5-1 lead. The Panthers pulled within one, 6-5, but the Jays scored five straight to take an 11-5 lead. UNI chipped away, and tied the set, 18-18. The Panthers took their first lead, 20-19, but CU scored the next two points to take a 21-20 edge. UNI tied the set at 21, but the Jays scored the final four points of the set to win 25-21 and tie the match, 1-1.
UNI scored first in the third set, but the Bluejays scored five straight to take a 5-1 lead. UNI rallied to tie the set, 10-10, and the Panthers took their first lead at 13-12. With the set tied 14-14, UNI scored six straight to build a 20-14 lead. CU stopped the bleeding with a pair of points that cut the UNI advantage to 20-16, but UNI scoured five of the set's final six points to win 25-17.
Trailing 15-13 in the fourth set, UNI scored five straight to take an 18-15 lead. UNI was able to extend its advantage to 21-17, but the Jays scored three consecutive points to pull within one, 21-20. The teams traded points to bring the score to 22-21 in favor of UNI, but the Panthers finished with three straight points to claim the 25-21 win.
UNI outhit Creighton, .254 to .174. The Panthers collected 100 digs to Creighton's 86. UNI finished with just 3.0 team blocks while the Jays notched 12.5.
The Panthers will wrap up their regular season schedule on Saturday when they host Drake at 7:05 p.m. in the McLeod Center.
