University of Minnesota Athletics
Players Mentioned
Gophers Open Week Two of Camp in Preparation for 2023 Season
8/14/2023 3:11:00 PM | Volleyball
Minnesota opens up with an exhibition on Friday
First year Keegan Cook takes over the reigns of the Minnesota volleyball program after spending the last eight years at Washington, where he led the Huskies to eight NCAA Tournament appearances, including a Final Four (2020-21), four Elite Eight's and six Sweet 16's. His teams went 198-56 (.780) during his time in Seattle. He spoke on his mentality in leading the Gophers program during Big Ten Media Days last week.
"The first thing I would say we talk a lot about aspirations versus expectations," said Cook. "It's something that we're trying to get in place culturally, that aspirations are within you and they're things you dream about, expectations are about other people. The other analogy I've been giving people lately is it's kind of like scuba diving. You're down at 100 meters and there's thousands of pounds of pressure around you but you feel it on all sides; and for some reason, when you're down there, it just feels normal."
All-Big Ten Talents Return to Dinkytown
Minnesota returns a pair of 2022 First Team All-Big Ten selections in junior outside Taylor Landfair, the 2022 Big Ten Player of the Year, and senior setter Melani Shaffmaster. Landfair led the Big Ten in points (4.91) and kills (4.35) per set while Shaffmaster ranked second in the league with 10.42 assists per set. Both accompanied Cook to media days in Chicago and have been looked to as two of the experienced leaders on this team. Landfair talked about how her leadership skills have developed since the spring began.
"I think [head coach] Keegan [Cook] has done a really good job of helping me become a better leader and understanding what a good leader looks like for my own personality," Landfair said. "I need to understand what ways leading works best for me. I think he's done a really good job of helping me with that, but also I think just understanding my teammates more on a personal level is important so I can then relate to them. That will allow me to then help them throughout the match and kind of understand what they need at a specific time - because I feel like I would do a good job with that and then applying all what I've learned to the game."
"I committed to Minnesota a very long time ago, now that I think about it," Shaffmaster said. "I think the coaching staff was a big part of me coming to Minnesota, and I think the other big part was the community and the people I had surrounded myself with. I've been here for three years, and the people I've grown close to, there was never a thought in my mind of leaving Minnesota."
Wucherer Ready to Make a Jump in Year Two
The No. 1 overall recruit in the class of 2022, Mckenna Wucherer (Brookfield, Wis.) made the Big Ten All-Freshman Team as a rookie and ranked second on Minnesota in both points and kills per set. She battled through early injuries last season and hopes to have a big time year as a sophomore.
"It's been a goal of mine to stay healthy the entire season," Wucherer said. "I've been getting in the weight room and getting stronger, so I think that's going to transfer onto the court as well. I've been working a lot on all aspects of my game, whether it's passing and receiving or serving. I'm just so excited to get it going with this team."
Transfers, Newcomers Look to Make an Impact
The 'U' brought in three transfers to supplement the seven letterwinners who departed at the end of the 2022 season. Two-time All-American libero CC McGraw expired her eligibility, but a fiery replacement comes to Dinkytown in 2022 Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year Kylie Murr. Murr comes from OSU with one year left of eligibility. Murr met with the Twin Cities media towards the end of July to talk about her transition to Minnesota.
"I knew I wanted to stay in the Big Ten, first and foremost," said Murr. "Minnesota's a really great program, historically, and everything with it just felt right. I just want to bring energy, leadership and hype up my teammates and the fans. I just really can't wait to play with these girls."
Phoebe Awoleye (Senior Middle, Loyola Marymount) and Lydia Grote (Senior Outside/Opposite, California) also came to campus ready to contribute. Awoleye was a First Team All-WCCÂ selection in 2022 while Grote led California in kills and points. They're joined by two freshmen in outside/opposite Sydney Schnichels (Willmar, Minn.) and middle Calissa Minatee (Kansas City, Mo.). Each was ranked in the top-50 nationally by multiple recruiting outlets and played in the Under Armour All-American game in early January.
Â
Volleyball Television Coverage Continues to Grow
Big Ten Network will televise at least 55 matches, the most in network history, in 2023. In total, more than 60 matches will appear across FOX, FS1, BTN and FS2, in addition to more than 145 streaming exclusively on B1G+. For the first time ever, the FOX broadcast network will carry a Big Ten volleyball match on Sunday, Oct. 29. Markets receiving an early NFL game (1:00 PM ET) will be shown the Minnesota vs. Wisconsin rivalry following the conclusion of the NFL game on FOX. Last year's Vikings/Packers game on FOX had over 18 million viewers. The Golden Gophers will be featured on BTN or streamed on B1G+ for every match this season besides five.
Other News & Notes to Know:
• The Big Ten hosted the second annual Big Ten Volleyball Media Days on Aug. 1 and 2 in Chicago, Ill. Taylor Landfair,  Melani Shaffmaster and head coach Keegan Cook represented Minnesota. The trio went through a press conference, studio show, social media segments and capped it off with a rooftop photoshoot overlooking the Chicago skyline.
• Minnesota is gearing up for its 52nd volleyball season in program history in the fall of 2023. The Golden Gophers will be looking to make their ninth consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance. They've missed the postseason just once (2014) since 1999.
• In 2022, the 'U' finished No. 10 in the final AVCA Poll, its eighth straight top-10 finish nationally. Minnesota finished 22-9 (15-5 Big Ten) last year and tied for third place in the conference standings. The 'U' fell to Ohio State in four sets in the Sweet 16.
• Seven Gophers, including Lauren Crowl, Arica Davis, Skylar Gray, Julia Hanson, Taylor Landfair, Elise McGhie and Melani Shaffmaster, have started at least one match in the past two years for Minnesota.
• Freshman All-Big Ten selection Mckenna Wucherer (2.73 kps) will see an increased role in her second season at Minnesota in 2023. Wucherer was the No. 1 overall recruit in the class of 2022 and played in just 21 matches as a rookie due to injury.
• Minnesota officially added top-ranked Turkish libero Zeynep Palabiyik to the 2023 roster last week. She arrived in Dinkytown on Monday afternoon.
• Three Gophers (Landfair, Murr, Shaffmaster) were named to the Preseason All-Big Ten team. The 'U' was polled to finish third by the league's coaches.
• Season tickets are sold out, but single game tickets are still available, but running out, for home matches.
• The exhibition match against Northern Iowa on Friday, Aug. 18 will be FREE for fans to attend.
• Game times and TV allocations are set for all but two games in 2023. See the team's schedule page for more information.
• Kylin Muñoz was been promoted to assistant coach of Minnesota volleyball, head coach Keegan Cook announced in early July. Muñoz, who has been working as the team's volunteer assistant since Jan. 1, 2023, was promoted to full-time upon the NCAA's new rule to allow three full-time assistant head coaches.