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University of Northern Iowa
18-7,13-0MVC
Belmont
8-17,3-10MVC
UNI volleyball wins four-set battle at Belmont
11/2/2024 7:23:00 PM | Women's Volleyball
Panthers stay unbeaten in MVC play after 3-1 win in Nashville. UNI hosts UIC, Valparaiso in final regular season homestand next weekend.
NASHVILLE, Tenn. --- Erin Powers racked up a career-high six service aces while Cassidy Hartman notched another double-double on Saturday as the UNI volleyball team defeated the Belmont Bruins by a 3-1 score in Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) action at the Curb Event Center.
After being outblocked by a combined 7-1 margin in the first two sets, Northern Iowa stormed back thanks to stellar play from Kira Fallert and Hartman on offense to grab its 13th consecutive victory as the final month of the regular season began.
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HOW IT HAPPENED
The Panthers offense opened the match firing on all cylinders with 15 team kills on a .333 hitting percentage, led by an impressive effort from Fallert, who racked up eight kills in the opening frame on 14 attacks and no errors. Powers anchored the UNI backline with eight digs, along with a service ace in the face of a hard hitting Belmont offense, breaking an early back-and-forth with the Bruins to win the first set, 25-17, marking the ninth time Northern Iowa has won the opening set in a match against an MVC opponent this season.
Belmont gave Northern Iowa a challenge in the second frame as UNI's blocking defense struggled to slow the Bruins, who notched 11 kills on .258 hitting. The Panthers would battle back thanks to a stellar service day from Powers, as well as 14 kills on .116 hitting, but Belmont's four blocks would prove to be enough as the Bruins took the second frame by a 25-21 score, the fifth set the Panthers have dropped in league play this year.
UNI quickly rebounded from its second set loss with improved defense of the net with three stops and a focused offensive attack. The Panthers grabbed an early lead and never looked back, thanks to 14 kills on .265 hitting, including six terminations from Hartman and an ace from Sydney Golden en route to a 25-17 win. Belmont meanwhile struggled with nine attack errors with nine terminations and a .000 hitting clip.
Northern Iowa scored seven of the first eight points in the fourth frame and racked up 16 team kills on .302 hitting, leadings from the first service to the final whistle in a commanding 25-14 win. Powers notched her sixth ace of the match, with Fallert adding four kills to her tally, while Kacie Rewerts and Olivia Tjernagel each notched three terminations. Belmont was held to eight kills and six errors on .051 hitting.
Fallert finished the night with a match-high 18 kills along with six digs, while Hartman recorded a double-double with 11 kills and 11 digs. Rewerts notched nine terminations with four blocks, as Tjernagel posted eight kills. Lily Dytstra finished with four terminations, with both Kaitlyn Sellner and Calia Clubb recording three each. Golden tallied 26 assists with seven digs, as Reese Booth posted 22 assists and six digs, and Powers recorded a match-high 23 digs to complement her six aces.
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ADDITIONAL NOTES
- UNI improves to 4-0 all-time against Belmont with Saturday's win. All four meetings have come since 2022 when the Bruins joined the MVC.
- Northern Iowa has now started 13-0 in MVC play in each of the last three seasons, including four of the last seven years and for the 11th time since 1995.
- The Panthers have now won 31 consecutive regular season MVC matches dating back to last season's undefeated conference schedule, the fourth-longest league winning streak in team history. UNI has also won 35 in a row overall against MVC opponents in the regular season and postseason.Â
- Kira Fallert has recorded double-digit kill figures in 20 matches this season, including 11 of UNI's previous 12 contests.
- Saturday night marked Cassidy Hartman's sixth double-double performance of the season and her career.
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UP NEXT
UNI returns to the McLeod Center next weekend as it hosts the UIC Flames and Valparaiso Beacons for the final homestand of the regular season. Both matches will begin at 6 p.m. CT with this year's senior class being recognized on Saturday, as well as military and first responders. Live coverage of both matches can be found on ESPN+ and the Panther Sports Radio Network.
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UNI volleyball action can be followed all season long on social media on Facebook (UNI Volleyball), X (@UNIVolleyball) and on Instagram (@univolleyball). The full 2024 schedule and roster, along with the latest Panther news and information can be found online at UNIpanthers.com.
