University of Minnesota Athletics
Minnesota Defeats No. 24 Northwestern
10/30/2010 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
The 20th-ranked Minnesota volleyball team (17-5, 7-5) defeated No. 24 Northwestern (15-7, 5-6) in four sets by scores of 25-17, 25-23, 16-25, 25-18 at the Sports Pavilion on Friday, Oct. 29.
Senior Lauren Gibbemeyer (St. Paul, Minn.) led the way with a double-double, as she collected 14 kills, 10 blocks and hit .333 (14-4-30). Tabi Love (Dauphin, Manitoba) tied with a match-high 17 kills and had four blocks, while Ashley Wittman (Shakopee, Minn.) finished with eight kills, 17 digs and three blocks.
Tori Dixon (Burnsville, Minn.) also had eight kills, five digs, four blocks and two service aces, while Ariana Filho (Monument, Colo.) had five blocks. Junior libero Jessica Granquist (Blaine, Minn.) had a match-high 18 digs and two assists, while Stephanie Nucci (Gilbert, Ariz.) had 42 assists, seven digs and a career-high six blocks.
Minnesota stormed out to an 18-7 lead after a service ace by Dixon. Northwestern cut the lead to 22-16 after a kill by Naomi Johnson, but the Gophers scored three of the next four points and put the set away on a kill by Dixon. Minnesota outhit Northwestern .216 (11-3-37) to .049 (11-9-41), and had six blocks in the first set.
Northwestern ran out to a 7-2 lead in the second set, but Minnesota went on a 5-0 run and tied it when Gibbemeyer and Nucci combined on a block. The Wildcats led 18-17, before the Gophers went on a 6-0 run to take a 23-18 lead. Minnesota moved it to set point at 24-18 on a kill by Love, but Northwestern fought off five set points to cut it to 24-23. Gibbemeyer put away a kill to give the Gophers a 2-0 lead in the match. Minnesota limited Northwestern a .024 hitting percentage in second set and had six blocks.
The Wildcats limited the Gophers to a .000 (12-12-37) hitting percentage in the third set, and hit .267 (11-3-30) on the way to a 25-16 third-set victory. Minnesota bounced back and limited Northwestern to a .054 hitting percentage, while the Gophers hit .242 (14-6-33). The Gophers trailed 17-16 in the set, before going on a 9-1 run to close out the set.
Minnesota outhit Northwestern .137 (50-30-146) to .087 (43-30-149), and had a season-high 19 blocks to 14 for the match. The Gophers also had 65 digs to 60 for the Wildcats. Northwestern finished with six service aces and nine service errors, while Minnesota had two service aces and four service errors.
Northwestern was led by Christina Kaelin who had 17 kills and five digs. Sabel Moffit had eight kills and eight blocks, while Elyse Glab had 38 assists and 12 digs.
The Golden Gophers will return to the road when they face Indiana on Friday, Nov. 5 at 6 p.m. Minnesota will also take on Purdue on Saturday, Nov. 6 at 6 p.m. Both matches can be heard live in the Gold Zone.
Senior Lauren Gibbemeyer (St. Paul, Minn.) led the way with a double-double, as she collected 14 kills, 10 blocks and hit .333 (14-4-30). Tabi Love (Dauphin, Manitoba) tied with a match-high 17 kills and had four blocks, while Ashley Wittman (Shakopee, Minn.) finished with eight kills, 17 digs and three blocks.
Tori Dixon (Burnsville, Minn.) also had eight kills, five digs, four blocks and two service aces, while Ariana Filho (Monument, Colo.) had five blocks. Junior libero Jessica Granquist (Blaine, Minn.) had a match-high 18 digs and two assists, while Stephanie Nucci (Gilbert, Ariz.) had 42 assists, seven digs and a career-high six blocks.
Minnesota stormed out to an 18-7 lead after a service ace by Dixon. Northwestern cut the lead to 22-16 after a kill by Naomi Johnson, but the Gophers scored three of the next four points and put the set away on a kill by Dixon. Minnesota outhit Northwestern .216 (11-3-37) to .049 (11-9-41), and had six blocks in the first set.
Northwestern ran out to a 7-2 lead in the second set, but Minnesota went on a 5-0 run and tied it when Gibbemeyer and Nucci combined on a block. The Wildcats led 18-17, before the Gophers went on a 6-0 run to take a 23-18 lead. Minnesota moved it to set point at 24-18 on a kill by Love, but Northwestern fought off five set points to cut it to 24-23. Gibbemeyer put away a kill to give the Gophers a 2-0 lead in the match. Minnesota limited Northwestern a .024 hitting percentage in second set and had six blocks.
The Wildcats limited the Gophers to a .000 (12-12-37) hitting percentage in the third set, and hit .267 (11-3-30) on the way to a 25-16 third-set victory. Minnesota bounced back and limited Northwestern to a .054 hitting percentage, while the Gophers hit .242 (14-6-33). The Gophers trailed 17-16 in the set, before going on a 9-1 run to close out the set.
Minnesota outhit Northwestern .137 (50-30-146) to .087 (43-30-149), and had a season-high 19 blocks to 14 for the match. The Gophers also had 65 digs to 60 for the Wildcats. Northwestern finished with six service aces and nine service errors, while Minnesota had two service aces and four service errors.
Northwestern was led by Christina Kaelin who had 17 kills and five digs. Sabel Moffit had eight kills and eight blocks, while Elyse Glab had 38 assists and 12 digs.
The Golden Gophers will return to the road when they face Indiana on Friday, Nov. 5 at 6 p.m. Minnesota will also take on Purdue on Saturday, Nov. 6 at 6 p.m. Both matches can be heard live in the Gold Zone.
Players Mentioned
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