University of Minnesota Athletics
Friday, October 6
College Park, MD
7:00 PM
University of Minnesota
at
Maryland
Players Mentioned
Middle Blocker
/ Volleyball
Outside/Opposite
/ Volleyball
Outside
/ Volleyball
Libero
/ Volleyball
Setter
/ Volleyball
Outside
/ Volleyball
Photo by: Christopher Mitchell
'U' Heads East to Maryland and Rutgers
10/4/2023 3:56:00 PM | Volleyball
Friday's game is at 7 p.m. CT on BTN
COLLEGE PARK, Md. -- The No. 16 Minnesota Golden Gophers (6-6, 2-2 Big Ten) travel east to play the Maryland Terrapins (12-4, 2-2 Big Ten) and Rutgers Scarlet Knights (8-6, 0-4 Big Ten) on Friday and Saturday night, respectively.Friday's game will be at 8 p.m. ET/7 p.m. ET on BTN while Saturday's game will be at 7 p.m. ET/6 p.m. CT on B1G+.
MARYLAND GAME INFORMATION
No. 16 Minnesota at Maryland
Friday, Oct. 6
7 p.m. CT
Xfinity Center Pavilion
College Park, Md.
TV/Stream: BTN - Jason Knapp (Play-By-Play) and Rainelle Jones (Analyst)
Live Stats
RUTGERS GAME INFORMATION
No. 16 Minnesota at Rutgers
Saturday, Oct. 7
6 p.m. CT
Jersey Mike's Arena
Piscataway, N.J.
TV/Stream: B1G+ - Pat Boyle (Play-By-Play) and Eddie Kalegi (Analyst)
Live Stats
NOTES TO KNOW
204 -- Keegan Cook won his 200th career game as a head coach on Aug. 26 vs. Baylor. His 204th and latest win came on Friday in a sweep over Michigan.
18 -- Minnesota has won all 18 games in the overall series against Maryland.
16 -- Minnesota's current rank in the AVCA poll. The Gophers started the season at seven and moved up to as high as fifth after the first week of 2023.
12 -- Sophomore outside Mckenna Wucherer has had a breakout campaign in year two, leading the team and ranking 12th in the Big Ten with 3.38 kills per set.
8 -- Melani Shaffmaster ranks 8th all-time in Gophers history with 3,433 career assists.She ranks 15th among active DI players.
7 -- Middle Phoebe Awoleye ranks No. 7 in the nation and No. 3 in the Big Ten in blocks per set with 1.52.
6 -- After playing eight ranked opponents in their first 12 games, the Gophers will play six straight unranked opponents before taking on No. 19 Purdue on Oct. 26.
- Fifth year libero Kylie Murr ranks fourth in the Big Ten in digs per set through six weeks of play with 4.17. She's one of two players in the league to tally two 20+ dig matches in 2023. She had 27 vs. TCU (Aug. 25) and 22 vs. Oregon (Sep. 8). Murr has 10+ digs in all 12 matches this season.
3 -- Melani Shaffmaster ranks third in the Big Ten with 9.75 assists per set against B1G teams.
2 -- The Gophers are 2-6 against ranked opponents this season, taking wins over then No. 15 Baylor and No. 6 Oregon. The 'U' has lost ranked tilts to now No. 8 Texas, No. 9 Florida, No. 3 Stanford, No. 15 Creighton, No. 2 Nebraska and No. 14 Penn State.
2 -- Minnesota ranks second in the B1G in conference games in service aces per set with 1.67. The 'U' has totaled 25 total aces in its four conference games in 2023.
1 -- Minnesota junior outside Taylor Landfair was the 2022 Big Ten Player of the Year and an AVCA First Team All-American last season. She was the only Big Ten player to make first team honors.
LAST TIME OUT
• The 'U' defeated Michigan in three sets (25-9, 25-17, 25-18) on Friday night, paced by 19 combined kills from Landfair and Wucherer. The Gophers then fell 3-1 (14-25, 25-23, 20-25, 26-28) to No. 15 Penn State on Saturday night at the Pav. Minnesota heads into this weekend 6-6 (2-2 Big Ten).
HEADING INTO CONFERENCE PLAY
• For the first time since 2006, the Gophers headed into Big Ten play with four losses in the preseason. The 2006 team ended up finishing 26-8 (17-3 Big Ten), finishing second in the league and making the Elite Eight.
• Minnesota went 5-3 in non-conference play in each of the past two seasons before making the Elite Eight and Sweet 16 in each year, respectively.
GOPHERS RANKED 16TH IN AVCA POLL
• The Gophers entered the 2023 season with a No. 7 overall ranking in the Preseason AVCA poll. They come in at No. 16 this week after splitting games versus Michigan and Penn State. It's the first time since Sept. 28, 2015 (No. 16 ranking) that Minnesota is not ranked in the AVCA's top-15.
SCOUTING MARYLAND
• Maryland is led by head coach Adam Hughes, who is in his sixth year at the helm of Maryland volleyball. The Terps went 16-16 (7-13 Big Ten) last season. They're hoping to make their first NCAA Tournament since 2005.
• Anastasia Russ ranks second in the Big Ten with a .428 hitting percentage for the season. She combines (1.33 bps) with Eva Rohrbach (1.23 bps) to form the most productive middle blocking core in the Big Ten. Setter Sydney Dowler ranks fourth in the league with 9.72 assists per set.
• Maryland is searching for its first top-25 ranked win of the season on Friday night. The Terps lost in four to then No. 19 Purdue and were swept by then No. 22 Ohio State last weekend. They defeated Michigan and Rutgers for their conference wins.
SCOUTING RUTGERS
• The Rutgers Scarlet Knights are led by fourth-year head coach Caitlin Schweihofer. Rutgers is off to a strong start, with eight wins already in 2023. They won eight games overall in each of the last two seasons.
• RU holds non-conference wins over Virginia, Winthrop, Howard, Columbia and Marist amongst others. They fell in Big Ten play to Penn State, Purdue, Maryland and Michigan State thus far.
• The Scarlet Knights rank fifth in the Big Ten in opponent service aces (1.15) and sixth in opponent hitting percentage (.180). Madyson Chitty ranks seventh in the league with 3.52 digs per set.
MINNESOTA'S HISTORY VS. MARYLAND AND RUTGERS
• The Gophers are 18-0 against the Terps all-time. 15 of the matches came since 2014 when Maryland joined the Big Ten. In those 15 matches, 12 of them were decided in three sets. Minnesota is 8-0 all-time in College Park, with just three of the matches going past three sets. In 2021, Minnesota beat Maryland 3-1 on the road in their last trip to the Xfinity Center Pavilion.
• Minnesota is 10-2 all-time against Rutgers. The Gophers have won nine of the 10 matchups against RU in three sets. They played just once in 2022, with Minnesota winning in three sets in Piscataway. In their five meetings at RU, the Gophers have won all five three sets to nothing.
GOPHERS GO THROUGH GAUNTLET IN NON-CONFERENCE
• The Gophers played ranked opponents in six of their eight non-conference matchups, which is the most ranked teams that any team in the country played in the preseason.
• They played Baylor (18), Texas (8) and Florida (9), Oregon (5), Stanford (3) and Creighton (15), who are all ranked in the top 20.
• Of all the teams currently ranked in the top-25, Minnesota and Stanford are the only ones who have played five top-25 ranked opponents. Both have played four top-10 ranked opponents already. Only No. 3 Florida has played more than two (4) top-10 ranked opponents in the opening four weeks of the season.
GOPHERS IN BIG TEN COMPETITION
• Since 2012, Minnesota is 163-49 (.771) in B1G play, including 10 seasons over .500 in league games.
• In all of 10 those seasons, the 'U' went 15-5 or better in B1G play, with the best being 19-1 in 2018. The Gophers are the only Big Ten team to win 15+ conference wins in each of the past eight seasons.
• The Gophers won Big Ten titles in 2016 and 2018 and have finished either first, second or third in 10 of the last 11 seasons. The Gophers tied with Ohio State for third place last season.
GROTE KEEPS GROWING ON GOPHER NATION
• A transfer from California, Lydia Grote has stepped up in a big way at the opposite position for the Maroon and Gold. She ranks second on the team in kills per set (2.57) and first in pin hitters in hitting percentage (.281). She places third in aces per set (0.25) and fourth in blocks per set (0.66).
• The Burbank, Calif., native is one of three Gophers, joining Taylor Landfair and Mckenna Wucherer, to tally double digit kills in five-or-more matches this fall. She's posted 13-more-more kills in four of her last eight matches, including a season-best 20 kills with 13 digs and two aces on Sept. 16 versus Creighton.
SERVING STEPS UP FOR THE MAROON AND GOLD
• One of head coach Keegan's Cook's points of emphasis is for Minnesota to be a tough serving team to compete against. In their first six games, Minnesota had five-or-less service aces in each match (21 total).
• In their last six matches, however, the 'U' has tallied 48 service aces, an average of 8.0 per match. The Gophers totaled a season-best 12 Sept. 14 against High Point and added 11 versus Creighton Sept. 14 before putting down eight last Thursday at Iowa.
GOPHERS CLIMB THE LADDER IN B1G CATEGORIES
• Through their first four Big Ten games in 2023, the Gophers rank in the top-five of the conference in points (17.07 ps, 4th), hitting percentage (.257, 4th), kills (13.13 ps, 4th), assists (11.80, 4th), opponent kills (11.40 ps) and service aces (1.67, 2nd).
LANDFAIR COMING INTO FORM TO BEGIN BIG PLAY
• 2022 Big Ten Player of the Year and First Team All-American Taylor Landfair had her best showing of the season to kick off Big Tn play on Thursday night at Iowa. She led the team with 18 kills (tied her season-high) on a 2023-best .405 hitting. She also totaled season-bests in digs (11), assists (6) and blocks (4).
• In conference play (four games), Landfair is hitting .357 with 3.33 kills, 1.80 digs and 0.40 blocks per set. In eight non-conference games, Landfair hit just .123 with 2.47 kills, 1.66 digs and 0.44 blocks per set.
UP NEXT
Minnesota stays on the road to play Michigan Wednesday night. The game will start at 7 p.m. CT on BTN.
MARYLAND GAME INFORMATION
No. 16 Minnesota at Maryland
Friday, Oct. 6
7 p.m. CT
Xfinity Center Pavilion
College Park, Md.
TV/Stream: BTN - Jason Knapp (Play-By-Play) and Rainelle Jones (Analyst)
Live Stats
RUTGERS GAME INFORMATION
No. 16 Minnesota at Rutgers
Saturday, Oct. 7
6 p.m. CT
Jersey Mike's Arena
Piscataway, N.J.
TV/Stream: B1G+ - Pat Boyle (Play-By-Play) and Eddie Kalegi (Analyst)
Live Stats
NOTES TO KNOW
204 -- Keegan Cook won his 200th career game as a head coach on Aug. 26 vs. Baylor. His 204th and latest win came on Friday in a sweep over Michigan.
18 -- Minnesota has won all 18 games in the overall series against Maryland.
16 -- Minnesota's current rank in the AVCA poll. The Gophers started the season at seven and moved up to as high as fifth after the first week of 2023.
12 -- Sophomore outside Mckenna Wucherer has had a breakout campaign in year two, leading the team and ranking 12th in the Big Ten with 3.38 kills per set.
8 -- Melani Shaffmaster ranks 8th all-time in Gophers history with 3,433 career assists.She ranks 15th among active DI players.
7 -- Middle Phoebe Awoleye ranks No. 7 in the nation and No. 3 in the Big Ten in blocks per set with 1.52.
6 -- After playing eight ranked opponents in their first 12 games, the Gophers will play six straight unranked opponents before taking on No. 19 Purdue on Oct. 26.
- Fifth year libero Kylie Murr ranks fourth in the Big Ten in digs per set through six weeks of play with 4.17. She's one of two players in the league to tally two 20+ dig matches in 2023. She had 27 vs. TCU (Aug. 25) and 22 vs. Oregon (Sep. 8). Murr has 10+ digs in all 12 matches this season.
3 -- Melani Shaffmaster ranks third in the Big Ten with 9.75 assists per set against B1G teams.
2 -- The Gophers are 2-6 against ranked opponents this season, taking wins over then No. 15 Baylor and No. 6 Oregon. The 'U' has lost ranked tilts to now No. 8 Texas, No. 9 Florida, No. 3 Stanford, No. 15 Creighton, No. 2 Nebraska and No. 14 Penn State.
2 -- Minnesota ranks second in the B1G in conference games in service aces per set with 1.67. The 'U' has totaled 25 total aces in its four conference games in 2023.
1 -- Minnesota junior outside Taylor Landfair was the 2022 Big Ten Player of the Year and an AVCA First Team All-American last season. She was the only Big Ten player to make first team honors.
LAST TIME OUT
• The 'U' defeated Michigan in three sets (25-9, 25-17, 25-18) on Friday night, paced by 19 combined kills from Landfair and Wucherer. The Gophers then fell 3-1 (14-25, 25-23, 20-25, 26-28) to No. 15 Penn State on Saturday night at the Pav. Minnesota heads into this weekend 6-6 (2-2 Big Ten).
HEADING INTO CONFERENCE PLAY
• For the first time since 2006, the Gophers headed into Big Ten play with four losses in the preseason. The 2006 team ended up finishing 26-8 (17-3 Big Ten), finishing second in the league and making the Elite Eight.
• Minnesota went 5-3 in non-conference play in each of the past two seasons before making the Elite Eight and Sweet 16 in each year, respectively.
GOPHERS RANKED 16TH IN AVCA POLL
• The Gophers entered the 2023 season with a No. 7 overall ranking in the Preseason AVCA poll. They come in at No. 16 this week after splitting games versus Michigan and Penn State. It's the first time since Sept. 28, 2015 (No. 16 ranking) that Minnesota is not ranked in the AVCA's top-15.
SCOUTING MARYLAND
• Maryland is led by head coach Adam Hughes, who is in his sixth year at the helm of Maryland volleyball. The Terps went 16-16 (7-13 Big Ten) last season. They're hoping to make their first NCAA Tournament since 2005.
• Anastasia Russ ranks second in the Big Ten with a .428 hitting percentage for the season. She combines (1.33 bps) with Eva Rohrbach (1.23 bps) to form the most productive middle blocking core in the Big Ten. Setter Sydney Dowler ranks fourth in the league with 9.72 assists per set.
• Maryland is searching for its first top-25 ranked win of the season on Friday night. The Terps lost in four to then No. 19 Purdue and were swept by then No. 22 Ohio State last weekend. They defeated Michigan and Rutgers for their conference wins.
SCOUTING RUTGERS
• The Rutgers Scarlet Knights are led by fourth-year head coach Caitlin Schweihofer. Rutgers is off to a strong start, with eight wins already in 2023. They won eight games overall in each of the last two seasons.
• RU holds non-conference wins over Virginia, Winthrop, Howard, Columbia and Marist amongst others. They fell in Big Ten play to Penn State, Purdue, Maryland and Michigan State thus far.
• The Scarlet Knights rank fifth in the Big Ten in opponent service aces (1.15) and sixth in opponent hitting percentage (.180). Madyson Chitty ranks seventh in the league with 3.52 digs per set.
MINNESOTA'S HISTORY VS. MARYLAND AND RUTGERS
• The Gophers are 18-0 against the Terps all-time. 15 of the matches came since 2014 when Maryland joined the Big Ten. In those 15 matches, 12 of them were decided in three sets. Minnesota is 8-0 all-time in College Park, with just three of the matches going past three sets. In 2021, Minnesota beat Maryland 3-1 on the road in their last trip to the Xfinity Center Pavilion.
• Minnesota is 10-2 all-time against Rutgers. The Gophers have won nine of the 10 matchups against RU in three sets. They played just once in 2022, with Minnesota winning in three sets in Piscataway. In their five meetings at RU, the Gophers have won all five three sets to nothing.
GOPHERS GO THROUGH GAUNTLET IN NON-CONFERENCE
• The Gophers played ranked opponents in six of their eight non-conference matchups, which is the most ranked teams that any team in the country played in the preseason.
• They played Baylor (18), Texas (8) and Florida (9), Oregon (5), Stanford (3) and Creighton (15), who are all ranked in the top 20.
• Of all the teams currently ranked in the top-25, Minnesota and Stanford are the only ones who have played five top-25 ranked opponents. Both have played four top-10 ranked opponents already. Only No. 3 Florida has played more than two (4) top-10 ranked opponents in the opening four weeks of the season.
GOPHERS IN BIG TEN COMPETITION
• Since 2012, Minnesota is 163-49 (.771) in B1G play, including 10 seasons over .500 in league games.
• In all of 10 those seasons, the 'U' went 15-5 or better in B1G play, with the best being 19-1 in 2018. The Gophers are the only Big Ten team to win 15+ conference wins in each of the past eight seasons.
• The Gophers won Big Ten titles in 2016 and 2018 and have finished either first, second or third in 10 of the last 11 seasons. The Gophers tied with Ohio State for third place last season.
GROTE KEEPS GROWING ON GOPHER NATION
• A transfer from California, Lydia Grote has stepped up in a big way at the opposite position for the Maroon and Gold. She ranks second on the team in kills per set (2.57) and first in pin hitters in hitting percentage (.281). She places third in aces per set (0.25) and fourth in blocks per set (0.66).
• The Burbank, Calif., native is one of three Gophers, joining Taylor Landfair and Mckenna Wucherer, to tally double digit kills in five-or-more matches this fall. She's posted 13-more-more kills in four of her last eight matches, including a season-best 20 kills with 13 digs and two aces on Sept. 16 versus Creighton.
SERVING STEPS UP FOR THE MAROON AND GOLD
• One of head coach Keegan's Cook's points of emphasis is for Minnesota to be a tough serving team to compete against. In their first six games, Minnesota had five-or-less service aces in each match (21 total).
• In their last six matches, however, the 'U' has tallied 48 service aces, an average of 8.0 per match. The Gophers totaled a season-best 12 Sept. 14 against High Point and added 11 versus Creighton Sept. 14 before putting down eight last Thursday at Iowa.
GOPHERS CLIMB THE LADDER IN B1G CATEGORIES
• Through their first four Big Ten games in 2023, the Gophers rank in the top-five of the conference in points (17.07 ps, 4th), hitting percentage (.257, 4th), kills (13.13 ps, 4th), assists (11.80, 4th), opponent kills (11.40 ps) and service aces (1.67, 2nd).
LANDFAIR COMING INTO FORM TO BEGIN BIG PLAY
• 2022 Big Ten Player of the Year and First Team All-American Taylor Landfair had her best showing of the season to kick off Big Tn play on Thursday night at Iowa. She led the team with 18 kills (tied her season-high) on a 2023-best .405 hitting. She also totaled season-bests in digs (11), assists (6) and blocks (4).
• In conference play (four games), Landfair is hitting .357 with 3.33 kills, 1.80 digs and 0.40 blocks per set. In eight non-conference games, Landfair hit just .123 with 2.47 kills, 1.66 digs and 0.44 blocks per set.
UP NEXT
Minnesota stays on the road to play Michigan Wednesday night. The game will start at 7 p.m. CT on BTN.
Best of Julia Hanson
Monday, December 22
Gophers Preview NCAA Sweet Sixteen
Tuesday, December 09
Cinematic Recap: Gophers Reach Sweet Sixteen
Tuesday, December 09
NCAA Postgame Reaction
Sunday, December 07