University of Minnesota Athletics
Gophers Set to Compete at ACC/Big Ten Challenge
9/1/2015 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
| Minnesota (0-2) vs. Louisville/North Carolina | |
| Fri., Sept. 4 | Minnesota at Louisville (6 p.m. CT) |
| Sat., Sept. 5 | Minnesota vs. North Carolina (3:30 p.m. CT) |
| Location | Louisville, Ky., KYC Yum! Center |
| Live Video | Minnesota at Louisville - Subscription Video |
| Live Updates | UM vs. UL | UM vs. UNC |
| Social Media | @GopherVball | Facebook |
Sept. 1, 2015
GOPHERS TRAVEL TO LOUISVILLE
The University of Minnesota continues its road trek this weekend as it travels to Louisville, Ky., to face the Louisville Cardinals and the No. 18 North Carolina Tarheels, Sept. 4-5, at the KYC Yum! Center, in conjunction with the ACC/Big Ten Challenge. Wisconsin will also represent the Big Ten at the tournament. Minnesota plays host Louisville at 6 p.m. CT on Friday, followed by a 3:30 p.m. CT tilt Saturday.
FOLLOWING THE GOPHERS
Both games will provide a live gameday page on gophersports.com. Tweets will provide fans with the latest updates.
ALL TIME SERIES & LAST TIME
Minnesota is 2-4 all time against Louisville, dating back to 1982. The Gophers and Cards battled last year at the Sports Pavilion as Louisville took a five-set win last Sept., also during the Big Ten/ACC Challenge. Prior to that, the Gophers faced the Cards in 2013 at the Bluegrass Battle (hosted by Kentucky) and won the match in three sets.
Minnesota is 6-1 all time against North Carolina, however, the last meeting dates back to 2008. This also marked the last time UNC defeated Minnesota, in a 3-2 win at the Gopher Invitational.
ABOUT THE CARDINALS
Louisville enters the tournament with a 2-1 record after dropping the season-opening contest to No. 8 Illinois (L, 3-0), but rebounded to defeat Creighton (W, 3-2) and Miami (OH) (W, 3-1). Picked to finish fifth in the ACC Preseason poll, Louisville also had two earn Preseason All-ACC honors in outside hitter Erin Fairs and setter Katie George. After one weekend, Fairs and Janelle Jenkins both have 46 kills, while Jenkins leads the team in hitting efficiency at .430. Molly Sauer leads the team with 47 digs, while George has 132 assists in three matches played. As a team, the Cards hit .238 last weekend, had 158 kills, averaged 15.00 digs per set and 2.42 blocks per set.
ABOUT THE TAR HEELS
The Tar Heels enter the ACC/Big Ten Challenge with a 1-2 record after competing against two ranked teams in No. 22 USC (L, 3-0) and No. 11 BYU (L, 3-1) before defeating Chicago State (W, 3-0). Coming off a 2014 Elite Eight appearance, UNC is tabbed as the favorite to win the ACC this year, voted by the league coaches. Middle blockers Victoria McPherson and Paige Neuenfeldt and opposite Taylor Treacy all landed a spot on the Preseason All-ACC Team. Leigh Andrew and Neuenfeldt have 31 and 28 kills respectively, after one weekend of play. As a team, UNC hit .165 after one tournament, averaged 13.64 digs per set and 3.09 blocks per set.
THE 2015 GOPHER OPPONENTS
During the 2015 season, the Golden Gophers face 10 teams that advanced to the 2014 NCAA tournament, including four during the preseason and six in Big Ten play. After facing NCAA qualifiers Texas A&M and Final Four participant Stanford, Minnesota faces Louisville and 2014 Elite Eight contender North Carolina, this weekend, in Louisville, Ky.
OPENING WEEKEND
Minnesota dropped two contests in the opening weekend, falling to Texas A&M and No. 2 Stanford. Against TAMU, Minnesota fell in five sets, 24-26, 25-21, 25-18, 21-25, 10-15. Sarah Wilhite led the team with 17 kills, while Daly Santana had a double-double with 16 kills and 18 digs. Paige Tapp had 13 kills and hit a match-best .478.
Minnesota dropped a 3-0 contest to the Cardinal on Sunday, 25-15, 25-23, 25-18. Daly Santana had a match-high 13 kills, while Paige Tapp had 10 kills, followed by Hannah Tapp with nine. Paige Tapp also led the Gophers with five block assists.
COLLEGIATE DEBUTS
Two Gopher freshmen made their collegiate debuts as Samantha Seliger-Swenson and Kayla Buford both saw action at the Stanford Invite. Seliger-Swenson started in both matches against Texas A&M and No. 2 Stanford. During that span, the rookie setter had 64 assists and nine digs. Kayla Buford saw action in one set vs. Texas A&M.
ON THE DOCKET
After two weeks on the road, the Gophers will have their home opener, Sept. 11-12, hosting the Diet Coke Classic at the Sports Pavilion. Minnesota welcomes UC Irvine, North Dakota State and UCF to Minneapolis. Friday's match is set for 7 p.m. against the Anteaters, followed by the Bison at 10 a.m. Sept. 12 with the tournament finale against UCF at 7 p.m., Sept. 12.
