University of Minnesota Athletics
University of Minnesota
Kentucky
Gophers Fall in Five to Ranked Opponent
9/14/2013 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
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Sept. 14, 2013
The University of Minnesota fell in five sets tonight, to No. 19 Kentucky in Lexington, Ky. With the loss, the Golden Gophers drop to 8-1 this season. The Gophers fell in the first set, 25-18, won the second, 25-22, fell in the third, 25-19, won the fourth 25-23, but fell in the fifth, 15-8.
The Gophers were led by Ashley Wittman, who had 17 kills and hit .304, while Tori Dixon had 14 kills. Adrianna Nora added 13 kills, followed by Santana with 12. Alexandra Palmer had a season-high 50 assists. Wittman led the Gophers with 17 digs for a double-double, while Santana and Lawmaster had 14 digs.
The match marked the first ranked opponent Minnesota played this season. Prior to the Kentucky match, Minnesota hadn't dropped a set this season. Kentucky outhit Minnesota .249 to .174, held a 76-71 dig ratio and out blocked Minnesota, 14.0-11.0.
Notables
-Minnesota held its lowest attack percentage of the season at .174. It marks only the second time in nine games the Gophers have not hit above .300.
-Kentucky coach Criag Skinner was issued a yellow card in the match.
-Ashley Wittman tied her season-best 17 kills. She also had 17 kills in the Samford match (8/31).
-The double-double for Wittman was the third of the season.
Turning Points in the Match:
Set 1: With the two teams tied at 11-11, Kentucky would jump up three on a kill by Whitney Billings, an ace and a block on Santana. The Wildcats would then use a 6-1 run to make it 20-14 on back-to-back kills and a Gopher attack error. After Hannah Tapp put the Gopher deficit to 22-16, the Wildcats added two kills from Billings and one by Lauren O'Conner to close out the set.
Set 2: Minnesota and Kentucky went through 14 ties and three lead changes before the Gophers took the second set, 25-22. After the two teams were tied at 13, both teams went on small runs and would tie the set at 16 and again at 17 before Minnesota pulled away. After an attack error by Kentucky, a Gopher block by Dixon and Wittman, the Gophers were up 19-17. A Jackie Napper ace would tie the set for the 14th time at 21-21, but Minnesota would take the next four points as Dixon and Nora each had two kills to end the set. Dixon had seven kills and hit .385 in the set, while Wittman had six for .400.
Set 3: Kentucky held a commanding lead in the third set at the Wildcats were up, 23-12. However, the Gophers came back and made the set interesting as it finished at 25-19. As Kentucky's O'Conner had a kill to put it at set point (24-13), Minnesota came back and would have a kill from Wittman, a Kentucky attack error, a block from Dixon and Nora to push the set to 24-16. After another kill from Nora, Dixon and Wittman combined for a block, while O'Conner had an attack error to bring the set to 24-19. However, O'Conner finished off the set with a kill, her fifth of the set.
Set 4: Minnesota earned a fourth-set win to force a set five. Minnesota built up a 14-9 lead after Nora added a kill. The Gophers would go up, 21-14, but like the Gophers did in the third set, Kentucky came back and closed the gap. In Dixon's serve rotation, the Gophers had two aces by the senior, a Kentucky attack error and a Santana kill to put the Gophers up by seven. Kentucky, however, would go on a 6-0 run in Anni Thomasson's serve rotation to tie the set at 21. However, the Gophers would get two kills from Wittman, one from Santana and Dixon to end the set.
Set 5: Kentucky hit .500 in the fifth and deciding set to Minnesota's .143 to win the match. The Wildcats jumped up to a 9-3 lead and maintained control for the rest of the set. A dump by setter Morgan Bergren put the set at 13-6 and an attack error by Nora put it at match point. The Gophers had a kill by Dixon and a combined block from Dixon and Nora before Bergren added another kill to end the set and match.
