University of Minnesota Athletics
Gophers Ready to Begin Big Ten Season
9/22/2015 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
| Minnesota (8-2) at Ohio State (11-1) | |
| Wed., Sept. 23 | Minnesota at Ohio State (6 p.m. CT) |
| BTN Plus | | Game Day Live | |
| Location | Columbus, Ohio |
| Official Site | Minnesota | Ohio State |
| Social Media | @GopherVball | Facebook |
OSU Notes
GOPHERS READY TO BEGIN BIG TEN SEASON
The No. 21 University of Minnesota volleyball program opens the Big Ten Conference season against ranked opponents Ohio State and Penn State, this week. Minnesota faces the No. 12 Buckeyes Wednesday night, 6 p.m. CT, in Columbus, Ohio. The Golden Gophers then travel to University Park, Pa., to take on No. 1 Penn State, Saturday evening, 7 p.m. CT.
FOLLOWING THE GOPHERS
BTN Plus is set to stream the Minnesota/Ohio State match Wednesday. A game day live page and live statistics will be available on gophersports.com.
ON THE DOCKET
Following the Gophers' Saturday night match with No. 1 Penn State, Minnesota returns home for the second time this season. The Gophers host Northwestern, Sept. 30, followed by Illinois, Oct. 3. Both matches are slated for 7 p.m., starts and will be streamed on BTN Plus.
BIG TEN OPENERS
In the past decade, Minnesota has gone 8-2 in the Big Ten opener. Last year, the Gophers also opened the Big Ten season against Ohio State, as they won a 3-2 contest at the Sports Pavilion. The last time Minnesota opened the Big Ten season on the road was in 2012 when it defeated Illinois in three sets.
THE BIG TEN JUGGERNAUT
Arguably one of the toughest conferences in Division I volleyball, the Big Ten holds eight teams ranked in the recent AVCA poll with another two receiving votes. In this opening week of conference competition, there are eight match ups between ranked teams or teams receiving votes. Minnesota starts the conference season playing three ranked teams in four matches: No. 12 Ohio State (9/23), No. 1 Penn State (9/26) and No. 9 Illinois (10/3).
ABOUT OHIO STATE
The No. 12 Buckeyes enter the week with an 11-1 record. After dropping the first match of the year to Wyoming (3-1), the Buckeyes have won their last 11-straight. In that span, OSU defeated then-No. 14 Florida State twice, and won a 3-1 contest over then-No. 13 Arizona. Elizabeth Campbell has a team-high 182 kills, while Taylor Sandbothe is hitting a team-best .411 and averages 1.12 blocks per set. Taylor Hughes and Emily Ruetter had 272 and 214 assists respectively, while Valeria Leon has a team-high 228 digs.
ALL TIME SERIES & LAST TIME
Minnesota is 38-34 all-time against the Ohio State Buckeyes, dating back to 1975. Minnesota and OSU split action last year, both winning its home match against each other. The Gophers won the Big Ten opener at home in five sets (21-25, 25-23, 25-20, 27-29 and 15-12), while dropping a five-set decision in November to the host Buckeyes, 21-25, 26-28, 29-27, 25-13 and 8-15.
LAST WEEKEND RECAP
Minnesota swept its competition as it won the Charleston Classic last weekend in Charleston, S.C. Minnesota defeated Bryant 3-0 (25-12, 25-12, 25-17) to open the Classic, followed by a 3-0 win over Sam Houston State ( 25-15, 25-13, 25-11) and a 3-0 win over host Charleston (25-21, 25-17, 25-23). Daly Santana was named the tournament's Most Valuable Player for the second straight weekend. Paige Tapp and Molly Lohman also garnered all-tournament honors.
ON A ROLL
After dropping the first two matches of the season, Minnesota is riding an eight-match win streak. During that span, the Gophers have only dropped two sets and are currently on a 22-0 set run. After winning a five-set match against Louisville, the Gophers have won their past seven matches, 3-0. As a team, Minnesota is hitting .321, has 34 aces, 381 digs and averages 3.08 blocks per set during this win streak.
WHERE THEY RANK
Through the non-conference season, Minnesota ranks high within a few NCAA categories. The Gophers rank 13th in team hitting percentage (.321), 19th in kills per set (14.29) and 10th in blocks per set (2.94).
SELIGER-SWENSON RECEIVES B1G WEEKLY AWARD
For the third-straight week, freshman setter Samantha Seliger-Swenson has been named the Big Ten Freshman of the Week, announced Monday by the conference office. She shares this week's award with Nebraska's Mikaela Foecke. Seliger-Swenson's recent accolade is the sixth honor for the Golden Gophers this season.
Seliger-Swenson led the Gophers with 96 assists as the team hit .317 on the weekend. Minnesota hit .422 in the opening match against Bryant as she had 35 assists and an ace. Playing in two of the three sets against Sam Houston State, Seliger-Swenson tacked on another 21 assists, two digs and a block assist. In the College of Charleston finale, she posted 40 assists, an ace and a solo block and two block assists. On the season, the rookie has 368 assists to average 11.15 per set. She has also accomplished 11 blocks, eight aces and 49 digs in her young career.
GOPHERS RANKED NATIONALLY
Minnesota is ranked 21st in the recent American Volleyball Coaches Association poll, announced Monday by the organization. The Gophers jumped up two spots from 23 to 21 this week.
Minnesota received 297 votes for the No. 21 spot this week. After dropping the opening season contests against Texas A&M and then-No. 2 Stanford, Minnesota has won the last eight straight. The Gophers are one of eight teams ranked within the Big Ten Conference. Penn State holds the overall No. 1 spot, followed by Nebraska (4), Illinois (9), Ohio State (12), Wisconsin (16), Purdue (20) and Michigan (22).
