University of Minnesota Athletics
University of Minnesota
26-3
Bryant
22-13
Gophers Advance in NCAA Tournament After Sweeping Bryant University
11/30/2018 9:37:00 PM | Volleyball
The No. 2 seed University of Minnesota volleyball team defeated Bryant University in straight sets (25-10, 25-16, 25-21) tonight, at Maturi Pavilion in front of 5,101 fans. With the win, the Golden Gophers advance to the Second Round of the NCAA Tournament and improve to 26-3 overall.
Alexis Hart led the team with 12 kills and hit a team-high .478. Taylor Morgan added eight, hit .467 and chipped in a team-best nine blocks. Adanna Rollins put up seven and had nine digs. CC McGraw led the team with 14 digs and was followed by Stephanie Samedy with 13. Samantha Seliger-Swenson recorded 31 assists, three service aces and nine digs. The Gophers outhit the Bulldogs .280 to .008 and held a 16-2 block advantage. As a team, Minnesota had 35 kills and 54 digs while Bryant had 33 kills and 55 digs.
The Gophers will face South Carolina tomorrow night, who defeated Colorado in five-sets earlier this evening. Match time is set for 8 p.m., and will be televised on Big Ten Network.
Set Breakdown:
Set 1: Minnesota opened the match with an 11-2 run en route to a 25-10 win. Bryant called a timeout as the Gophers led, 7-2, on a block from Samedy and Morgan. In that start, Minnesota had eight points during Lauren Barnes' serve rotation. Another block, this time from Hart and Pittman, put the Gophers up, 15-6. Minnesota went up 10 at 18-8 on a Hart kill as Bryant called another timeout. Seliger-Swenson delivered back-to-back aces to go up, 22-9. A Morgan kill, followed by a Barnes ace gave the Gophers a 1-0 lead.
Set 2: Minnesota had nine blocks in the second to take a 25-16 set win. After back-to-back blocks from Samedy and Morgan, Minnesota went up 10-5, which forced Bryant to use its first timeout. A Barnes ace put the Gophers up, 12-6, while a Rollins kill put Minnesota up, 16-11. Bryant called its second timeout of the set after a Bulldog attack error and a 19-11 Gopher lead. A Seliger-Swenson/Pittman block gave the Gophers a 23-13 lead, while two attack errors gave the Gophers a 25-16 set win and a 2-0 match lead.
Set 3: Minnesota opened with a 4-1 lead, but the Bulldogs cut the lead to one at 5-4 and 6-5. Hart pushed the Gopher lead to three at 9-6, while a Seliger-Swenson ace added an 11-8 advantage. Bryant called a timeout as the Gophers lead, 12-8 off a Morgan kill. Bryant responded out of its timeout and went on a 4-0 run and tied the set at 12-12. The teams traded points through 20-20 before Minnesota finished the match on a 5-1 run. Hart added a kill at 21-20 and another at 23-21. The Gophers finished off the match on a Morgan kill for match point and a Rollins kill for the 3-0 win.
