University of Northern Iowa Athletics
University of Northern Iowa
Murray State
UNI volleyball closes out 2025 regular season at Murray State, Belmont
11/12/2025 2:28:00 PM | Women's Volleyball
Panthers eye third straight undefeated conference season this weekend against the Racers and Bruins.
UNI volleyball (21-5 / 14-0 MVC) at Murray State (4-19 / 2-12 MVC)
- Friday, Nov. 14, 2025
- 6 p.m. CT
- Murray, Ky. | Racer Arena (5,550)
- WATCH (ESPN+)
- LISTEN (Panther Sports Radio Network) [Chris Kleinhans-Schulz: Play-by-Play / Jay Grassley: Analyst)
- LIVE RESULTS
UNI volleyball (21-5 / 14-0 MVC) at Belmont (16-9 / 7-7 MVC)
- Saturday, Nov. 15, 2025
- 5 p.m. CT
- Nashville, Tenn. | Curb Event Center (5,000)
- WATCH (ESPN+)
- LISTEN (Panther Sports Radio Network) [Chris Kleinhans-Schulz: Play-by-Play / Jay Grassley: Analyst))
- LIVE RESULTS
CEDAR FALLS, Iowa --- The UNI volleyball team will close out the 2025 regular season this weekend with its final road trip of the year as it heads south to Kentucky and Tennessee to take on the Murray State Racers and Belmont Bruins in Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) play.
First serve for Friday's match with Racers is scheduled for 6 p.m. CT, with UNI and Belmont set to square off on Saturday at 5 p.m. CT. Both matches will be broadcast live on ESPN+ with live radio coverage available on the Panther Sports Radio Network (106.5 FM Corn Country / 93.5 HD-2) with Chris Kleinhans-Schulz and Jay Grassley on the call.
Northern Iowa, which clinched its fourth consecutive MVC regular season championship and 23rd overall in program history last week, will look to complete its third straight undefeated conference schedule for the first time since 2009-11.
UNI is riding a 17-match winning streak heading into the week, tied for the second-longest active streak in Division I, as well as tied for the tenth -longest streak in team history. The Panthers hold a combined 11-0 record all-time against both opponents this weekend and swept both teams in the McLeod Center last month.
The Panthers secured their fourth straight regular season conference title by virtue of a Valparaiso loss at Belmont last Friday, as well as a hard fought five-set victory over UIC at home on Senior Night. Cassidy Hartman led the charge with 19 kills while Lily Dykstra, the reigning MVC Player of the Week added 18 terminations. UNI's blocking defense also showed out with a season-high 17 blocks, with nine stops from Lindsay Oldendorf, and eight a piece from both Maryn Bixby and Isabelle Elliott.
The Panthers are in the midst of a 50-match winning streak against MVC opponents in the regular season dating back to the start of the 2023 MVC schedule, the third-longest stretch in team history. UNI's last loss to an MVC opponent came in the 2022 regular season finale at Drake. The Panthers have also won 56 consecutive matches against MVC opponents overall (regular season and postseason), the nation's longest active streak.
Additionally, UNI head coach Bobbi Petersen is three wins away from passing former Panther softball coach Meredith Bakley as the university's all-time winningest female coach, and becoming Northern Iowa's second-winningest coach ever in any sport:
- Peter Mazula (Men's & Women's Tennis) - 725 victories
- Meredith Bakley (Softball) - 632 victories
- Bobbi Petersen (Volleyball) - 630 victories
- Ryan Jacobs (Softball) - 529 victories
UNI ranks second in all of Division I volleyball with 14.7 kills, third with 13.7 assists per set, sixth in team attacks per set (38.3) and seventh in opponent hitting percentage (.150). Hartman leads the MVC in kills per set (4.1) and has posted 21 matches with ten or more kills in 2025, including four outings with 20+ kills. Dykstra has recorded eight or more kills in 24 of 26 matches this year and ranks second in the MVC with four kills per frame.
Reese Booth leads Northern Iowa with 6.3 assists per set, while Jadyn Petersen anchors the Panther backrow with 4.4 digs per frame and a team-high 23 service aces. At the net, Bixby has posted a team-high 98 blocks on the year, as Oldendorf has recorded 67 total blocks.
SCOUTING MURRAY STATE
The Racers close out their 2025 season amid a challenging year with a 4-19 record and just two wins in league play. Eliminated from MVC Tournament contention, Murray State has lost its last four matches, including 3-0 losses to Southern Illinois and Valparaiso last week. The Racers will host Belmont at home on Thursday.
Led by 27th year head coach David Schwepker, Murray State has allowed a league-worst .273 hitting percentage this season, but have also dished out 1.2 aces per set. Ella Vogel ranks third in the MVC behind both Hartman and Dykstra with 3.6 kills per set.
SCOUTING BELMONT
The Bruins look to make a final push with their final two matches of the season, sitting in a three-way tie for fifth in the MVC standings with Bradley and Illinois State for the remaining conference tournament qualifying spots. Belmont swept Valparaiso last Friday at home before outlasting Southern Illinois in five sets in Carbondale last Saturday.
Led by first year head coach Fritz Rosenberg, the Bruins boast a league-best .258 hitting clip and two aces per set. Brooke Gilleland leads Belmont with 3.5 kills per frame, as well as the conference in aces per set (0.5).
UNI volleyball action can be followed all season long on social media on Facebook (UNI Volleyball), X (@UNIVolleyball) and on Instagram (@univolleyball). The full 2025 schedule and roster, along with the latest Panther news and information can be found online at UNIpanthers.com.
