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University of Northern Iowa
16-6,10-0MVC
Belmont
11-13,5-5MVC
UNI volleyball rallies in third set to sweep Belmont
10/20/2023 8:13:00 PM | Women's Volleyball
Panthers extend win streak to 11 matches and move to 10-0 in league play. UNI visits Murray State late Saturday afternoon.
NASHVILLE, Tenn. --- UNI volleyball overcame a late six-point deficit in the third set to spoil Belmont's attempt at extending the match as the Panthers took down the Bruins in straight sets on Friday night at the Curb Event Center.
Extending its winning streak to 11 matches, UNI remains undefeated in Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) play at 10-0. The Panthers have won 27 of their last 28 league matches, including 14 of their last 15 MVC road contests.
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HOW IT HAPPENED
UNI bounced back after giving up the first two points of the match with a 5-0 run and never looked back in the opening set, taking advantage of nine Bruin attack errors. Operating with a balanced offensive attack, the Panthers notched 11 team kills on a .226 hitting percentage and a 78.6% sideout mark in the first frame, fueled by a pair of 4-0 runs later in the set and a pair of service aces from Tayler Alden. Emily Holterhaus and Kira Fallert tallied three terminations and one block each as the Panthers rolled to a 25-13 win, its tenth straight opening set victory.
The Panther offense and blocking defense turned up the heat in the second stanza as UNI opened the set on a 7-1 run. Thanks to a ten-kill second set from Holterhaus, a pair of solo blocks and four block assists, the purple and gold jumped out to a 13-4 lead. Belmont would cut into the Panther lead midway through the frame after calling its second timeout, but UNI would finish strong with a .727 hitting percentage and 17 team terminations on a second 7-1 run to take the set, 25-12.
Capitalizing off momentum from the second frame, Belmont jumped out to a commanding lead in the third set, racking up nine kills and four aces to take a 20-14 lead, its largest of the match. The Panthers would gradually turn the tables however, as Powers dished out two more aces, while Layanna Green and Holterhaus provided four blocks for UNI in the final 14 points. The duo, along with Olivia Tjernagel would combine for three terminations down the final stretch, as UNI closed on an 11-3 run after trailing by six points to take the third, 25-23 and the match.
Holterhaus finished the night matching her season-high with 18 terminations for a third time this year, while also setting a new season-best with three solo blocks. Green notched seven total kills in the win with four blocks, with Fallert recording a six-kill, seven-dig performance. Alden tallied three kills with 33 assists and three blocks, as Powers set a new season-high with her four aces, complimenting her match-high 15 digs.
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ADDITIONAL NOTES
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Friday's match was just the second all-time meeting between the Panthers and Bruins. UNI won last year's lone meeting in Cedar Falls in straight sets.
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Friday night's victory marks the 11th time the Panthers have started 10-0 in Gateway/Missouri Valley Conference play (1995, 1998-01, 2009-11, 2018, 2022). In all ten previous instances, UNI went on to win at least a share of the league's regular season title, including nine outright championships.
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With its 25-13 first-set win, UNI improves to 16-6 overall and 10-0 in first sets this season. Eight of the Panthers' first ten MVC matches have gone beyond three sets, with UIC and Drake both taking UNI to four frames.
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The Panthers committed just one attack error in the second set against the Bruins, tying a season-low from their Sept. 29 home match against Valparaiso.
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Emily Holterhaus has now recorded 10+ kills in seven consecutive matches, including ten of her last 11 outings. She has also posted 10 kills or more in all but one MVC match this year.
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Holterhaus is just eight kills shy of becoming the fifth player in school history to reach 1,500 career terminations
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Tayler Alden surpassed 3,600 career assists on Friday night, sitting 371 assists shy of passing Mary Bernhardt (1984-87) for seventh all-time in UNI history.
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UP NEXT
The Panthers will head north as they take on the Murray State Racers on Saturday at Racer Arena in western Kentucky. First serve is scheduled for 5 p.m. CT in Murray with live coverage available on ESPN+ and the Panther Sports Radio Network.
