University of Northern Iowa Athletics
University of Northern Iowa
8-6,2-0MVC
Illinois State
2-12,0-2MVC
UNI volleyball sweeps Illinois State for third straight victory
9/23/2023 9:07:00 PM | Women's Volleyball
Offense shines in third straight Panther win. UNI returns home to host Valparaiso, UIC next weekend.
NORMAL, Ill. --- Following a spirited challenge on Friday in its Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) opener at Bradley, UNI volleyball took full command on Saturday night in a sweep of the Illinois State Redbirds at CEFCU to improve the Panthers to 2-0 in league play.
The victory marks a season-high third straight win for UNI, who also picked up its fourth consecutive victory over the Redbirds, the longest streak for the Panthers against Illinois State since winning 16 in a row from 2007 to 2013.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Early challenges at the service line troubled both teams to open the match in a back-and-forth effort before the Panther offense clicked into gear. Aided by a defense that racked up 12 digs and blocked three attacks at the net, UNI rattled off a 7-0 run with terminations by Emily Holterhaus, Tayler Alden and Layanna Green, as well as an ace by Erin Powers. With Illinois State struggling to combat the Panther attack, UNI finished the opening stanza strong with another 6-0 streak, capping a 13-2 run to close the set and win the frame, 25-15.
UNI's momentum carried over into the second set as the Panthers used a 4-0 run to take a 7-3 lead and never looked back. Taking advantage of a struggling Redbird offense, the Panthers continued to force Illinois State into attack errors and held the Redbirds to a sideout percentage under 40% as UNI also used a 5-0 run to extend its lead to ten points at 17-7. The Panthers would set up set point after a challenge on a block assist off the antenna was overturned, scoring on consecutive Illinois State errors to win the second frame, 25-16.
The Redbirds showed fight in the third stanza, riding early momentum to a short lead before the Panthers defense set up the offense from a strong finish. Tallying 16 team kills on a .308 hitting percentage, UNI rallied to take a two-point advantage at 20-18 before the Redbird tied things up at 20-20. The Panthers would score five of the final seven points thanks to kills from Green and Holterhaus for the 25-22 victory and the three-set sweep.
Holterhaus led the night with a match-high ten terminations, while Layanna Green recorded nine kills on 12 attacks for a career-high .750 hitting percentage and a career-best three blocks. Kira Fallert tallied nine kills and ten digs in the victory, as Kaylissa Arndorfer and Olivia Tjernagel each notched six kills in the win. Alden finished the match with 31 assists, while Powers led the match with 16 digs.
ADDITIONAL NOTES
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UNI improves to 58-30 all-time against the Redbirds after Saturday's win. The Panthers are also 20-18 playing on the road at Illinois State.
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The Panthers finished the match with a .344 hitting percentage as a team. The win marks the first time this season that UNI has hit .300 or better in every set in a match.
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UNI tallied 54 digs on defense on Saturday. The Redbirds' 32 digs are the fewest recorded by a Panther opponent this season.
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Kaylissa Arndorfer played in her 300th career set on Saturday night.
UP NEXT
UNI returns home next weekend for its first home conference matches of the season against Valparaiso on Friday and UIC on Saturday. First serve is scheduled for 6 p.m. CT for both matches, with live coverage available on both ESPN+ and the Panther Sports Radio Network.
