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University of Northern Iowa
7-7,2-0MVC
Missouri State
6-9,0-3MVC
UNI volleyball defeats Missouri State in 3-0 sweep
9/28/2024 7:27:00 PM | Women's Volleyball
Panthers improve to 2-0 in league play and extend MVC match winning streak to 20. UNI visits Valparaiso, UIC next weekend.
CEDAR FALLS, Iowa --- Three Panthers tallied double-digit kill totals with Kira Fallert reaching a historic milestone as the UNI volleyball team overcame a persistent Missouri State Bears team on Saturday night in a 3-0 sweep in Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) play.
An impressive outing on offense, plus a strong defensive performance would push Fallert past 1,000 career digs and add her to an exclusive list as the latest member of the program's Double Grand Club. Northern Iowa would overcome a strong blocking defense from the Bears early and a barrage of service aces late to secure its third straight 2-0 start to league play.
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HOW IT HAPPENED
The Panthers faced an early challenge from the Bears' defense as Missouri State put up six blocks in the first set and took advantage of holes in UNI's defense. Northern Iowa gradually got into its rhythm and pulled away after an early 5-5 tie as Fallert and Cassidy Hartman paced the Panther offense with seven kills each, part of a 22-kill opening frame for the purple and gold on .348 hitting. Holding the Bears under .200 hitting, UNI held off a late push by Missouri State to take the first set by a 25-19 score.
UNI opened the second stanza with a dominant 7-1 run, which included a pair of back-to-back service aces by Sydney Golden. Missouri State would hold firm offensively with Iva Halacheva leading the charge for the Bears, who tied the set up at 8-8 and put MSU ahead at 12-9. Kacie Rewerts' four blocks in the set aided in stifling the Bears and put UNI back in front as the Panthers tallied 15 team kills on .219 hitting. An ace by Taryn Rice that narrowly cleared the net would fall on the Bears' side of the floor on set point to give the Panthers a 25-21 win and a two set to none lead.
Northern Iowa would have to pull away from Missouri State in another hotly contested set in the third as the Bears service game continued to rack up aces, finishing the frame with five in total. The Panther offense continued to click however despite Missouri State's persistence, notching 17 team terminations on .359 hitting while the Bears narrowly fell short of a .150 hitting clip. MSU staved off four straight match points, but a Hartman kill would finish the deal for a 25-21 set win for the Panthers to secure the three set sweep.
Fallert finished the night with a match-high 18 kills along with six digs, while Hartman notched 11 terminations and eight digs with ten kills from Tjernagel. Lily Dykstra also tallied seven terminations. Reese Booth led the Panthers with 21 assists as Golden recorded 20 assists and two aces, her fifth multi-ace match of the season. Rewerts finished with four blocks with Erin Powers notching a match-high 11 digs.
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ADDITIONAL NOTES
- UNI has now won five consecutive matches vs. Missouri State and improves to 59-28 all-time against the Bears. The Panthers are also 37-17 against MSU under head coach Bobbi Petersen.
- Northern Iowa has now started 2-0 in MVC play in eight of the last 11 seasons (2014-15, 2017-19, 2022-24), and won 20 consecutive regular season conference matches dating back to its undefeated 2023 conference schedule. UNI has also won 24 straight contests against MVC opponents overall.
- The Panthers' current 20 match MVC winning streak is the sixth-longest in program history.
- Kira Fallert became the 20th player in UNI history to record 1,000 career digs on Saturday, and the 13th player to join the program's Double Grand Club, which recognizes athletes for reaching quadruple-digit career stat figures in two statistical categories. Fallert in the tenth Panther player to do so with 1,000 career kills and digs, with three others reaching the milestone with 1,000 career kills and assists.
- After posting four block assists on Friday, Kacie Rewerts is just eight block assists to tie Missouri State's Mindy Stuckhoff (1985-88) for fifth most block assists in MVC history.
- Saturday marked Sydney Golden's ninth career match with multiple service aces. Defensive specialist Taryn Rice's ace to secure the second set was also the first ace of her collegiate career.
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UP NEXT
UNI returns to action late Saturday afternoon as it hosts the Missouri State Bears to wrap up its five-match homestand. First serve is scheduled for 5 p.m. CT at the McLeod Center with live coverage also available on ESPN+ and the Panther Sports Radio Network.
Youth tickets are available for purchase for just $5, while both adult and youth slushies will also be for sale at the concession stands.
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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.
