UNI Travels to Illinois State, Bradley

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This Week's Action

Fri., Oct. 27 -- Normal, Illinois
UNI at Illinois State, 7 p.m. | ESPN3 | AUDIO | STATS

Sun., Oct. 29 -- Peoria, Illinois
UNI at Bradley, 12 p.m. | ESPN3 | AUDIO | STATS

• The No. 25-ranked University of Northern Iowa volleyball team (20-5 overall, 10-1 MVC) will hit the road after a five-match homestand.

• The Panthers will take on Illinois State (14-10, 7-4 MVC) on Friday at 7 p.m. in Normal, Illinois. UNI will finish the weekend with a Sunday match at Bradley (9-16, 2-9 MVC) beginning at 12 p.m.

• UNI recorded the program's 35th 20-win season. UNI has won 20 or more matches in 19 of the last 20 seasons.

• UNI is one of 16 teams to have recorded at least three wins against the NCAA RPI top 25 teams.

• UNI is ranked No. 1 in the nation in team kills with 1,427.

• The Panthers rank No. 2 in the nation in team digs (1,777) and in team assists (1,324).

• Senior setter Heather Hook ranks No. 2 in the nation in total assists (1,090).

• Freshman Jaydlin Seehase earned MVC Freshman of the Week honors for her play in wins over Drake, Loyola and Valpo.

• Junior Piper Thomas leads the MVC in hitting percentage (.410) in league matches only. Thomas has 163 kills (30 errors) in 324 attack attempts.

UNI TRAVELS TO ILLINOIS STATE, BRADLEY FOR MVC ACTION
The No. 25-ranked University of Northern Iowa volleyball team (20-5, 10-1 MVC) will hit the road after a five-match homestand.
   The Panthers will take on Illinois State (14-10, 7-4 MVC) on Friday at 7 p.m. in Normal, Illinois. UNI will finish the weekend with a Sunday match at Bradley (9-16, 2-9 MVC) beginning at 12 p.m.

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.
   Chris Kleinhans-Schulz is in his sixth season as the play-by-play voice of Panther volleyball. Chris Mahi will serve as the analyst for home matches.

Live Audio Coverage Schedule
Fri., at Illinois St. - KXEL (1540-AM)
Sun., at Bradley - KXEL (1540-AM)

THE VALLEY ON ESPN3
Both matches will be streamed live on The Valley on ESPN3.

SERIES NOTES
The Panthers hold a 51-24 lead in the all-time series vs. Illinois State. UNI scored a 3-1 win over Illinois State on Sept. 30 in the McLeod Center.
   UNI has defeated Bradley in 24 consecutive matchups. UNI holds a 63-9 lead in the all-time series. The Panthers posted a 3-0 win vs. Bradley on Sept. 29 in the McLeod Center.
   UNI head coach Bobbi Petersen is 29-11 vs. Illinois State and 31-5 vs. Bradley.

HEAD COACH BOBBI PETERSEN
Head coach Bobbi Petersen is in her 18th year as the Panthers head coach.
   Petersen has posted an impressive 454-137 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. UNI has taken part in 12 NCAA Tournaments under Petersen's direction. She ranks No. 10 of active Division I coaches in winning percentage (.768).
   Petersen is one of four MVC coaches to have eclipsed the 400-win mark joining Linda Dollar (758 - Missouri State), Iradge Ahrabi-Fard (503 - UNI) and Melissa Stokes (482 - Missouri State) in that elite class.

SEEHASE NAMED MVC FRESHMAN OF THE WEEK
UNI freshman Jaydlin Seehase earned MVC Freshman of the Week honors for her play in three league victories this past week.
   Seehase averaged 2.55 kills per set with a .323 hitting percentage in three Panther victories.
   Seehase hit .381 with 10 kills, two digs and two blocks assists in a 3-0 win vs. Drake.
   Seehase hit .308 with six kills and a block assist in a 3-0 triumph over Loyola.
   She hit .290 with 12 kills, three block assists and two digs in a five-set win over Valpo.

AMONG THE NATION'S BEST
UNI is ranked No. 1 in the nation in team kills with 1,427.
   The Panthers rank No. 2 in the nation in team digs (1,777) and in team assists (1,324).
   Senior setter Heather Hook ranks No. 2 in the nation in total assists (1,090).

YET ANOTHER 20-WIN SEASON
UNI has recorded the program's 35th 20-win season. UNI has won 20 or more matches in 19 of the last 20 seasons.
   It is the 16th 20-win season for Panther head coach Bobbi Petersen.

TRIPLE-DIGIT DIGS
UNI surpassed the 100-dig mark for the third time this season with 105 digs in a 3-2 win over Valparaiso on Saturday.
   It is the second time the Panthers tallied triple digits in digs vs. Valpo as UNI totaled 104 digs against the Crusaders on Sept. 22.
   UNI recorded a season-high 107 digs vs. South Dakota on Sept. 8.

WELCOME TO THE BLOCK PARTY
The Panthers posted a season-high 13 blocks vs. Valparaiso. It is the most blocks for the Panthers since they notched 17 blocks vs. Creighton (Dec. 1, 2016) in the first round of the 2016 NCAA Tournament.
   Sophomore Karlie Taylor set a career-high with five solo blocks against the Crusaders on Saturday. Taylor doubled her previous best of three blocks, which she had accomplished four times this season.
   Junior Moriah Johnson also set a career-best with six blocks against Valpo. Johnson had posted five blocks on two previous occasions this year.

TOP HITTER IN THE VALLEY
Junior Piper Thomas leads the Missouri Valley Conference in hitting percentage (.410) in league matches only. Thomas has 163 kills (30 errors) in 324 attack attempts.
   Illinois State's Jaelyn Keene ranks second in the league with a .349 hitting percentage (195-43-435).

SET SCORING IN MVC MATCHES
Through 11 league matches, UNI has posted a mark of 10-1. In those 11 matches, UNI has won 31 sets and lost seven.

UNI Scoring by Sets (MVC Matches Only)
1st Set - 9-2
2nd Set - 8-3
3rd Set - 10-1
4th Set - 3-1
5th Set - 1-0

WEBER SETS THE STANDARD
UNI junior Bri Weber set the school record for kills in a three-set match with 25-point rally scoring with 21 kills vs. Drake. The 25-point set rally scoring began in 2008.
   Earlier this year, Weber set the standard with 20 kills in a three-set win at Indiana State (Oct. 6).
   Overall in the UNI record book, it is tied for the fifth-most kills in a three-set match (all scoring formats).

Kills in 3-Set Matches (All Scoring Formats)
1. 25 - Rachael Tink vs. Western Ill. (11/9/04)
2. 24 - Kate Galer at Indiana State (11/2/96)
3. 23 - Chris Less at Southern Ill. (11/9/90)
4. 22 - Molly O'Brien at Creighton (11/13/01)
5. 21 - Kim Kester vs. Rice (8/31/02)
21 - Molly O'Brien vs. Rice (8/31/02)
21 - Molly O'Brien vs. Indiana St. (9/19/03)
21 - Bri Weber vs. Drake (10/17/17)

UNI AGAINST RPI TOP 25
UNI is one of 16 teams to have recorded at least three wins against the NCAA RPI top 25 teams.
   Among those 16 teams, only 10 have a winning record against the NCAA RPI top 25 - including UNI with a 3-2 mark.
   UNI's RPI top 25 wins have come against No. 5 Nebraska (3-1), No. 14 USC (3-1) and No. 19 Iowa State (3-2).

3 or More Wins vs NCAA RPI Top 25
1.   Penn State   6-1
2.    Minnesota   5-2
4.   Kentucky   4-2
5.   Nebraska   8-3
6.   Texas   5-2
7.   Stanford   6-2
9. Utah   4-4
10. Oregon   3-5
11. Kansas   4-2
12. Washington   3-4
13. Michigan State   3-2
14. USC   4-3
15. Creighton   3-4
16. UCLA   3-6
21. Colorado   3-5
46. UNI    3-2

TWO MVC TEAMS IN TOP 50
No. 46 UNI and No. 48 Missouri State represent the MVC in the NCAA's RPI top 50.

POLLING NUMBERS
UNI dropped five slots this week in the AVCA Top 25 poll to No. 25.
   UNI has been ranked in the AVCA Top 25 116 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 17 times (Illinois State - 14; Missouri State - 3).
   In the state of Iowa, UNI's 115 poll rankings puts it on top. Iowa State has been ranked in 86 polls, while Iowa has been ranked in one.
   UNI has been ranked in the top 10 in the AVCA poll on 25 occasions - the best mark in the MVC. Illinois State is second with one top-10 appearance.
   UNI's highest ranking in the AVCA Top 25 is No. 6 (Sept. 15, 2003).

STREAKS OF NOTE
The Panthers have guaranteed the program will have a .500 or better record for the 37th consecutive season.
   UNI, Hawaii, Nebraska, Stanford, Penn State and UCLA lead the nation with 37 consecutive non-losing seasons in NCAA Division I volleyball.
   UNI has also posted 33 straight NCAA Division I winning seasons – the sixth-longest active streak in the nation behind Hawaii (37), Nebraska (37), Penn State (37), Stanford (37) and UCLA (35).

HOOK HEADS THE LIST
Senior setter Heather Hook leads the MVC in assists/set by a wide margin - 1.01 assists/set.
   Hook has an even wider lead when considering only Missouri Valley Conference matches - 1.42 assists/set.
   Hook is averaging 11.60 assists/set (12.42 in MVC play), while Illinois State's Stef Jankiewicz ranks second in the league at 10.59 assists/set (11.00 in MVC play).

WHO DO YOU STOP?
UNI's offense features three of the top-10 kill leaders in the Missouri Valley Conference.
   Sophomore Karlie Taylor ranks No. 4 in the MVC in kills per set (3.86). Junior Piper Thomas ranks No. 5 in the league in kills per set (3.84). Junior Bri Weber ranks No. 6 in the conference in kills per set (3.43).
   The trio also ranks in the top-10 in points per set. Thomas is No. 4 (4.47), Taylor is No. 5 (4.31) and Bri Weber is No. 6 (3.93) in points per set.

WEBER FINDS A SPOT IN UNI'S DOUBLE-GRAND CLUB
Junior Bri Weber became the 11th UNI Panther to post a pair of 1,000 career totals (digs, kills or assists).
   Weber is one of eight Panthers to post 1,000 kills and 1,000 digs in their careers.
   Weber became the 26th Panther to tally at least 1,000 career kills.
   She is one of 17 Panthers to record at least 1,000 career digs.
   Weber has totaled 1,215 digs and 1,061 kills.

UNI's 1,000/1,000 Club
Jill Arganbright   1,025 digs/6,064 assists
Alexandra Auker   1,303 digs/1,360 kills
Bobbi Becker   1,457 digs/1,611 kills
Mary Bernhardt   1,202 digs/3,977 assists
Amy Braun   1,672 digs/1,202 kills
Kate Galer   1,368 digs/1,720 kills
Kim Kester   1,013 digs/1,439 kills
Kim McCaffrey   1,015 digs/1,272 kills
Bre Payton   1,222 digs/4,752 assists
Laura Rowen   1,145 digs/1,386 kills
Bri Weber   1,215 digs/1,061 kills

PANTHERS NEARLY AUTOMATIC WHEN UP 2-0
UNI jumped out to a 2-0 lead vs. Loyola on Friday and finished off the advantage with a 3-0 sweep.
   UNI improved to 681-9 all-time when winning the first two sets of a match.

EARLY ADVANTAGE
UNI has won the opening set in 20 of its 25 matches this season. The Panthers are 19-1 when winning the first set.
   UNI's only loss this season when winning the Panthers won the first set vs. No. 13 Kentucky and the Wildcats scored a five-set win on Sept. 2 in Omaha, Nebraska.

SORGE MOVES TO NO. 6 ON UNI'S TOP-10 ALL-TIME DIGS LIST
Junior libero Kendyl Sorge has moved into the No. 6 slot on UNI's all-time digs list with 1,532 digs.
   Sorge needs 38 digs to move into No. 5 on UNI's all-time digs list. Stephanie May totaled 1,570 digs from 2003-2006.

UNI's All-Time Digs Chart
1.   Ellie Blankenship (2007-2010)   2,656
2.   Amie Held (2013-2016)   2,002
3.   Candice Burke (2008-2012)   1,737
4.   Amy Braun (2009-2012)   1,672
5.   Stephanie May (2003-2006)   1,570
6.   Kendyl Sorge (2015-pres.)   1,532
7.   Bobbi Becker (1986-1989)   1,457
8.   Kate Galer (1993-1996)   1,368
9.   Alexandra Auker (1997-2000)   1,303
10.   Bre Payton (2007-2011)   1,222
11.   Bri Weber (2015-pres.)   1,215
12.   Mary Bernhardt (1984-1987)   1,202
13.   Miranda Weber (1999-2002)   1,148
14.   Laura Rowen (2004-2007)   1,145
15.   Jill Arganbright (2000-2003)   1,025

HOOK CLIMBS ASSIST LADDER
UNI senior setter Heather Hook ranks No. 7 on the school's all-time assist chart.
   Hook is the seventh UNI Panther to accumulate at least 3,000 assists in her career. Hook has posted 3,848 career assists.

UNI's All-Time Assist Chart
1.   Jill Arganbright (2000-2003)   6,064
2.   Shannon Perry (1996-1999)   4,881
3.   Bre Payton (2008-2011)   4,752
4.   Kara Galer (1992-1995)   4,265
5.   Kristin Belzung (2003-2007)   4,256
6.   Mary Bernhardt (1984-1987)   3,977
7.   Heather Hook (2014-pres.)   3,848
8.   Bobbie Kreple (1987-1990)   2,780
9.   Kinsey Caldwell (2013-2014)   2,549
10.   Katie Crowley (1988-1991)   1,895

THOMAS JOINS UNI'S TOP-10 SOLO BLOCKS LIST
Junior middle hitter Piper Thomas has joined the top-10 list of solo blockers in UNI volleyball history.
   Thomas ranks No. 8 on UNI's solo block list with 66 career solos.

UNI's All-Time Solo Blocks Chart
1.   Denis Cuttell (1987-1990)   90
2.   Holly VanHofwegen (1996-1999)   86
3.   Kari Warren (1983-1986)   83
4.   Lisa Meeker (1986-1986)   74
5.   Carrie Shurr (1991-1994)   73
6.   Jill Sprague (1985-1988)   71
   Danielle Brazda (2003-20070   71
8.   Piper Thomas (2015-pres.)   66
9.   Tricia Mills (1990-1993)   65
10.   Krista DeGeest (2008-2012)   64

DOUBLE-DOUBLE TALK
Karlie Taylor leads the Panthers in double-doubles this season with 17. Taylor has registered a double-double in seven consecutive matches.
   Bri Weber ranks second on the team in double-doubles with 13, while Heather Hook has posted nine double-doubles this year.
   Weber has recorded 47 career double-doubles. Hook has tallied 33 career double doubles.

Career Double-Doubles
Bri Weber - 47
Heather Hook - 33
Karlie Taylor - 17

UNI KNOCKED OFF FIVE RANKED TEAMS IN 2002
UNI is 4-2 against ranked foes in 2017 with wins over No. 10 Nebraska, No. 18 USC, No. 19 Iowa State and No. 19 Missouri.
   With its next win against a ranked opponent, it would equal the school record for victories over ranked teams in a single season.
   UNI defeated five ranked opponents in 2002 (No. 8 Pepperdine, No. 7 UCLA, No. 20 Minnesota, No. 3 Florida, No. 20 Missouri) and three ranked teams in 2003 (No. 11 Notre Dame, No. 23 Missouri State, No. 20 UC Santa Barbara).

FAN FAVORITES
The Panthers consistently have ranked among the national leaders in attendance, and this season is no different with UNI ranked No. 14 in average home attendance at 2,417 per match.
   UNI has ranked in the top 20 in home attandance in 16 of the last 18 seasons, including a stretch of eight straight seasons in the top 20.

12 CONSECUTIVE YEARS OF APR RECOGNITION, PERFECTION
For the past 12 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 12 years.
   UNI volleyball is one of 93 programs in the nation to have earned the recognition in each of the 12 years teams have been honored.

AVCA TEAM ACADEMIC AWARD
The UNI volleyball team compiled a 3.42 cumulative GPA during the 2016-17 season.
   It marks the sixth consecutive season that the Panthers have earned the AVCA Team Academic Award.

AMONG ELITE COMPANY
The Panthers rank No. 8 all-time in NCAA Division I winning percentage (.774). UNI trails only Penn State (.861), Hawaii (.855), Nebraska (.842), Florida (.830), Stanford (.811), UCLA (.776) and BYU (.775) in NCAA Division I winning percentage totals.

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.

20 NCAA APPEARANCES
In its 20 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.

PANTHERS PICKED SECOND IN MVC PRESEASON POLL
The Panthers earned one first-place vote in the preseason Missouri Valley Conference coaches poll.
   UNI is projected to finish second behind preseason favorite Missouri State.

2017 PRESEASON POLL
1.   Missouri State (9)   99 pts.
2.    UNI (1)    89 pts.
3.    Illinois State    76 pts.
4.    Loyola    67 pts.
5.    Southern Illinois    64 pts.
6.    Drake    48 pts.
7.    Valparaiso    33 pts.
8.    Bradley    32 pts.
9.    Indiana State    26 pts.
10. Evansville    16 pts.

WEBER EARNS PRESEASON ALL-MVC STATUS
Junior Bri Weber (Dike, Iowa) has been named to the preseason all-Missouri Valley Conference squad.

NICARAGUA TRIP
UNI spent 10 days in Nicaragua this past spring as the Panthers were able to make an trip outside the United States.
   UNI was in Nicaragua from May 9-17. The days consisted of playing volleyball, experiencing Nicaragua and doing mission work.
   An extra component of this trip that was different than in the past was the opportunity to give back. The team volunteered at Manos Unidas (cooperative for people with disabilities), Escuela Adelante (preschool) and local schools. The Panthers also hosted a youth volleyball clinic.

WEEKLY PRESS CONFERENCE
UNI head coach Bobbi Petersen will be available at the weekly press conference held each Monday beginning at noon in the McLeod Center's Alumni Suite. The press conference will be streamed live for the general public and media to view.

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Players Mentioned

Amie Held

Heather Hook

Moriah Johnson

Jaydlin Seehase

Kendyl Sorge

Karlie Taylor

Piper Thomas

Bri Weber

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