University of Minnesota Athletics
Friday, September 8
Palo Alto, CA
6:30 PM
University of Minnesota
vs
Oregon
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'U' to Partake in Final Big Ten/Pac-12 Challenge
9/6/2023 11:48:00 AM | Volleyball
Watch (Pac-12 Network)Oregon Live StatsStanford Live StatsCoach Cook, Phoebe Awoleye, Kylie Murr PresserMinnesota Game Notes (PDF)
The Gophers play No. 6 Oregon, No. 5 Stanford Friday and Saturday
PALO ALTO, Calif. --The No. 10 Minnesota Golden Gophers (2-2, 0-0 Big Ten) will look to bounce back this weekend when they travel to Palo Alto, Calif., to take on No. 6 Oregon (6-0, 0-0 Pac-12) and No. 5 Stanford (3-1, 0-0 Pac-12) in the final Big Ten/Pac-12 Challenge. The Gophers will be looking to win their second challenge in the last three seasons after taking down both Oregon and Stanford in 2021 in Eugene, Ore. The Pac-12 Network will stream both matches.
OREGON GAME INFORMATION
No. 10 Minnesota vs. No. 6 Oregon
Friday, Sept. 8
4:30 p.m. PT/6:30 p.m. CT
Maples Pavilion
Palo Alto, Calif.
TV: Pac-12 Network - Holly McPeak (Play-By-Play) and Kylen Mills (Analyst)
Live Stats
STANFORD GAME INFORMATION
No. 10 Minnesota at No. 5 Stanford
Saturday, Sept. 9
7 p.m. PT/9 p.m. CT
Maples Pavilion
Palo Alto, Calif.
TV: Pac-12 Network - Holly McPeak (Play-By-Play) and Kylen Mills (Analyst)
Live Stats
NOTES TO KNOW
200 -- Keegan Cook won his 200th career game as a head coach on Aug. 26 vs. Baylor.
21 -- Minnesota ranks No. 21 in the nation in blocks per set, averaging 2.86 per set after four matches.
21 -- Times last year Minnesota tallied over 10 blocks in a match. The Gophers were 16-5 in those games. The 'U' is 1-1 in 2023 when posting 10+ team blocks.
10 -- Minnesota's final 2022 rank in the AVCA poll. The Gophers are one of three programs to finish in the top 10 in the last eight seasons.
8 -- Melani Shaffmaster ranks 8th all-time in Minnesota history with 3,140 career assists.
8 -- For the first time in program history, all eight of the Gophers non-conference opponents in 2023 made the NCAA Tournament in the year prior.
6 -- Of the past eight Big Ten Players of the Year have been Minnesota Golden Gophers. Taylor Landfair (2022) joins Stephanie Samedy (2020-21), Sam Seliger-Swenson (2018), Sarah Wilhite (2016) and Daly Santana (2015) as award winners.
6 -- The Gophers are in the midst of a stretch where they play ranked opponents in six of seven games to end non-conference play. They played Baylor (14) last Saturday, Texas (7) Tuesday and Florida (3) Sunday. Up next is Oregon (6) and Stanford (5) in Palo Alto, Calif. After playing High Point (UR) on Sept. 14, the 'U' closes out the preseason against Creighton (16) on Sept. 16.
3 -- Sophomore outside Mckenna Wucherer ranks tied for third in the Big Ten in kills per set at 4.00 through three matches. She won the Big Ten/Big 12 Challenge MVP award this past weekend.
3 -- Minnesota is 0-3 all-time against Stanford in Palo Alto. They're 0-1 in Palo Alto against Oregon.
1 -- The 2023 season is Keegan Cook's first in charge at Minnesota. He was named as the eighth full-time head coach of the Minnesota volleyball program in Dec. 2022. He replaced Hugh McCutcheon, who went 277-74 as head coach, making three Final Fours, five Elite Eights and 10 Sweet 16s.
1 -- Middle Phoebe Awoleye ranked No. 1 in the nation in blocks per set after the first weekend (2.29). She ranks No. 2 in the Big Ten and No. 4 nationally with 1.79 per set after four games
LAST TIME OUT
• The 'U' fell to then No. 8 Florida in three sets, 22-25, 18-25, 22-25 on Sunday in Gainesville, Fla. Mckenna Wucherer led the Gophers with nine kills while Kylie Murr posted 19 digs to cross the 2,000 dig threshold for her career.
SCOUTING OREGON
• No. 6 Oregon is led by seventh-year coach Matt Ulmer. He's led UO to five NCAA Tournament appearances,
including Elite Eights in 2018/22, a Sweet 16 in 2020-21 and a Round of 32 trip in 2017, his first year as coach.
• The unbeaten Ducks have beaten San Diego, Northwestern, Hawaii, San Diego State, UC Santa Barbara and Pepperdine. SDSU was the only team to take a set off the Ducks.
• The Ducks were chosen to finish third in the Preseason Pac-12 Coaches Poll, behind Stanford and Washington State. 2022 AVCA Freshman of the Year Mimi Colyer and Second Team All-American Hannah Pukis were both named to the preseason all-league team. Colyer leads the team with 4.84 kills per set while Ohio State graduate transfer Gabby Gonzales ranks second with 2.68 kps.
SCOUTING STANFORD
• The No. 5 ranked Stanford Cardinal are led by seventh-year head coach Kevin Hambly, who has won two national titles and led them to three straight national semifinals from 2017-19. Stanford has won 11 of the last 17 Pac-12 crowns.
• This year, Stanford is 3-1 with wins over Northern Colorado, Colorado State and Texas. Their only loss was last Tuesday to Florida as the Gators took a 3-0 victory in Palo Alto.
• Stanford was picked by its peers to win the Pac-12 in the preseason poll and had a league-high six preseason all-league selections. Caitie Baird, Sami Francis, Kendall Kipp, Kami Miner, Elena Oglivie and Elia Rubin made up six of the 16-player team.
MINNESOTA'S HISTORY VS. OREGON AND STANFORD
• The Gophers are 5-4 all-time against Oregon, including victories in the last two Big Ten/Pac-12 Challenges. Minnesota defeated UO 3-1 in Minneapolis last year and won 3-2 in Eugene in the 2021 challenge. The Gophers have won the last three matches against the Ducks.
• Minnesota dominated Oregon, 3-0, in their 2019 matchup in the Big Ten/Pac-12 Challenge, getting revenge for their 2018 Sweet 16 loss at the Pav. The Ducks defeated the Gophers 3-1 in their postseason matchup in addition to a 3-1 loss at the 2018 Big Ten/Pac-12 Challenge at Stanford.
• Minnesota is 3-11 all-time against Stanford. The Gophers fell 3-1 in Minneapolis last year in the Big Ten/Pac-12 Challenge. The Gophers defeated Stanford in three sets in the 2021 NCAA Tournament and 3-1 in the 2021 challenge in Eugene, Ore. The 'U' has taken three of the past five from the Cardinal.
• Minnesota is 0-3 all-time against Stanford in Palo Alto. They're 0-1 in Palo Alto against Oregon.
MINNESOTA AGAINST THE PAC-12
• All-time, Minnesota is 25-35-1 (.418) against Pac-12 opponents.
GOPHERS RANKED 10TH IN LATEST AVCA POLL
• The Gophers entered the 2023 season with a No. 7 overall ranking in the Preseason AVCA poll. They come in at No. 10 this week. The 'U' finished 10th last year in the final poll, their eighth consecutive top-10 finish nationally. 14 of Minnesota's 28 games are versus opponents ranked in the AVCA Preseason top-25.
NEW COACHING STAFF READY TO ROLL IN 2023
• First year head coach Keegan Cook comes to Dinkytown after a tremendously successful eight-year run at Washington, where his teams made the NCAA Tournament each season. Washington advanced to the NCAA Elite Eight four times and the Final Four once. Cook posted an overall record of 198-56 at Washington and went 107-33 in conference play. With his 2-2 start at Minnesota, he reached 200 career wins vs. Baylor.
• His staff consists of associate head coach Kristen Kelsay and assistant coaches Eric Barber and Kylin Muñoz. Kelsay coached at both Michigan State and Northwestern while Barber comes to Minnesota from UCLA. Muñoz last coached at Loyola Marymount and played for Cook when he was an assistant at Washington.
BIG TEN BESTS
• Phoebe Awoleye is one of three Big Ten players to post 10 blocks in a match (Aug. 26 vs. Baylor). She's the only one to produce 10 blocks in a three set match, however.
• Kylie Murr's 27 digs on Sept. 25 vs. TCU were tied for the second most digs in a match by a Big Ten player on opening weekend. Amanda Darling (Iowa) and Sydney Dennis (Iowa) both have a 28-dig match this year.
• Minnesota's 12 team blocks vs. Baylor were the most by any Big Ten team in a three set match two weeks back.
• The Gophers rank fourth in the Big Ten in digs per set with 15.50.
SHAFFMASTER SETS THE TABLE
• A 6-foot-3 setter, Melani Shaffmaster ranked second in the Big Ten last year with 10.44 assists per set. She already ranks No. 8 in program history in assists (3,140).
• For the second straight year, Mel earned the Best Setter Award at the Big Ten/Big 12 Challenge after she averaged 8.14 assists, 1.0 kills, 3.71 digs and 1.0 blocks per set in two victories over TCU and Baylor (Aug. 25-26).
• Shaffmaster tallied 30+ assists 25 times, 40+ 11 times and 50+ three times in 2022.
• She registered 10+ digs 14 times in 2022 and 3+ blocks 19 times. She posted 3+ kills 19 times as well. Shaffmaster posted double doubles (36/13, 21/13, 31/12) in games to open 2023 against TCU, No. 15 Baylor and No. 7 Texas.
RANKED OPPONENTS ON TAP
• Starting with the Gophers game against then No. 15 Baylor, the Gophers are in the middle of taking on five ranked opponents in their final six non-conference games.
• They've already played Baylor (14), Texas (7) and Florida (3). Oregon (6), Stanford (5) and Creighton (16) are all ranked in the top 20.
WUCHERER TAKING THE NEXT STEP
• A 2021 AVCA and Under Armour First Team All-American and the Wis. Gatorade Player of the Year, the 6-foot-1 outside hitter from Brookfield, Wis., came to Minnesota as one of the most decorated players in Wisconsin prep history. She was the consensus No. 1 overall recruit in the class of 2022.
• In 2022, she missed the first six games with an injury before returning to hit double figures in kills in 11 matches in 2022.
• She ended the year averaging 2.79 kills per set, which ranked second on the team. Wucherer made the Big Ten All-Freshman Team in 2022.
• The start of 2023 has been all she can ask for, as Wucherer posted 30 kills on .464 hitting on her way to Big Ten/Big 12 Challenge MVP honors. Her 3.79 kills per set ranks seventh in the Big Ten after she posted 14 kills Tuesday night vs. No. 7 Texas and nine Sunday at No. 8 Florida.
WE WANT MURR
• 2022 Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year Kylie Murr comes to Dinkytown for her fifth year of college volleyball after spending the first four at Ohio State. She was named First Team All-Big Ten and earned AVCA All-America honorable mention in 2022.
• She led the Big Ten in both total digs (530) and digs per set (4.69) last year and is set to step into the Gophers libero position that two-time All-American CC McGraw departed from due to graduation.
• She totaled two 30+ dig matches last year, which tied a Big Ten-best. Her 35 digs against Maryland on Nov. 18, 2022 was a conference single game high for the season.
• Murr started 2023 off with a bang, winning Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week after posting 40 digs (5.71 dps) and 15 assists on her way to Big Ten/Big 12 Challenge All-Tournament honors. Murr holds 2,007 career digs, which ranks No. 6 of all active collegiate players in the nation.
AWOLEYE BUILDS A WALL
• A senior LMU transfer originally hailing from Marietta, Ga., Phoebe Awoleye started her Gophers career with a 'bang this past weekend. She posted 16 blocks (2.29 bps) and five kills on her way to Big Ten/Big 12 Challenge All-Tournament honors. Awoleye had a career-high 10 blocks in last Saturday's win over No. 15 Baylor as the Gophers silenced the Bears attack, holding them to .000 hitting. She ranks No. 4 nationally in blocks per set (1.79), including second in the Big Ten.
UP NEXT
Minnesota comes home to host the Diet Coke Classic next week against High Point and Creighton. All matches will be streamed on B1G+ from Thursday through Saturday.
OREGON GAME INFORMATION
No. 10 Minnesota vs. No. 6 Oregon
Friday, Sept. 8
4:30 p.m. PT/6:30 p.m. CT
Maples Pavilion
Palo Alto, Calif.
TV: Pac-12 Network - Holly McPeak (Play-By-Play) and Kylen Mills (Analyst)
Live Stats
STANFORD GAME INFORMATION
No. 10 Minnesota at No. 5 Stanford
Saturday, Sept. 9
7 p.m. PT/9 p.m. CT
Maples Pavilion
Palo Alto, Calif.
TV: Pac-12 Network - Holly McPeak (Play-By-Play) and Kylen Mills (Analyst)
Live Stats
NOTES TO KNOW
200 -- Keegan Cook won his 200th career game as a head coach on Aug. 26 vs. Baylor.
21 -- Minnesota ranks No. 21 in the nation in blocks per set, averaging 2.86 per set after four matches.
21 -- Times last year Minnesota tallied over 10 blocks in a match. The Gophers were 16-5 in those games. The 'U' is 1-1 in 2023 when posting 10+ team blocks.
10 -- Minnesota's final 2022 rank in the AVCA poll. The Gophers are one of three programs to finish in the top 10 in the last eight seasons.
8 -- Melani Shaffmaster ranks 8th all-time in Minnesota history with 3,140 career assists.
8 -- For the first time in program history, all eight of the Gophers non-conference opponents in 2023 made the NCAA Tournament in the year prior.
6 -- Of the past eight Big Ten Players of the Year have been Minnesota Golden Gophers. Taylor Landfair (2022) joins Stephanie Samedy (2020-21), Sam Seliger-Swenson (2018), Sarah Wilhite (2016) and Daly Santana (2015) as award winners.
6 -- The Gophers are in the midst of a stretch where they play ranked opponents in six of seven games to end non-conference play. They played Baylor (14) last Saturday, Texas (7) Tuesday and Florida (3) Sunday. Up next is Oregon (6) and Stanford (5) in Palo Alto, Calif. After playing High Point (UR) on Sept. 14, the 'U' closes out the preseason against Creighton (16) on Sept. 16.
3 -- Sophomore outside Mckenna Wucherer ranks tied for third in the Big Ten in kills per set at 4.00 through three matches. She won the Big Ten/Big 12 Challenge MVP award this past weekend.
3 -- Minnesota is 0-3 all-time against Stanford in Palo Alto. They're 0-1 in Palo Alto against Oregon.
1 -- The 2023 season is Keegan Cook's first in charge at Minnesota. He was named as the eighth full-time head coach of the Minnesota volleyball program in Dec. 2022. He replaced Hugh McCutcheon, who went 277-74 as head coach, making three Final Fours, five Elite Eights and 10 Sweet 16s.
1 -- Middle Phoebe Awoleye ranked No. 1 in the nation in blocks per set after the first weekend (2.29). She ranks No. 2 in the Big Ten and No. 4 nationally with 1.79 per set after four games
LAST TIME OUT
• The 'U' fell to then No. 8 Florida in three sets, 22-25, 18-25, 22-25 on Sunday in Gainesville, Fla. Mckenna Wucherer led the Gophers with nine kills while Kylie Murr posted 19 digs to cross the 2,000 dig threshold for her career.
SCOUTING OREGON
• No. 6 Oregon is led by seventh-year coach Matt Ulmer. He's led UO to five NCAA Tournament appearances,
including Elite Eights in 2018/22, a Sweet 16 in 2020-21 and a Round of 32 trip in 2017, his first year as coach.
• The unbeaten Ducks have beaten San Diego, Northwestern, Hawaii, San Diego State, UC Santa Barbara and Pepperdine. SDSU was the only team to take a set off the Ducks.
• The Ducks were chosen to finish third in the Preseason Pac-12 Coaches Poll, behind Stanford and Washington State. 2022 AVCA Freshman of the Year Mimi Colyer and Second Team All-American Hannah Pukis were both named to the preseason all-league team. Colyer leads the team with 4.84 kills per set while Ohio State graduate transfer Gabby Gonzales ranks second with 2.68 kps.
SCOUTING STANFORD
• The No. 5 ranked Stanford Cardinal are led by seventh-year head coach Kevin Hambly, who has won two national titles and led them to three straight national semifinals from 2017-19. Stanford has won 11 of the last 17 Pac-12 crowns.
• This year, Stanford is 3-1 with wins over Northern Colorado, Colorado State and Texas. Their only loss was last Tuesday to Florida as the Gators took a 3-0 victory in Palo Alto.
• Stanford was picked by its peers to win the Pac-12 in the preseason poll and had a league-high six preseason all-league selections. Caitie Baird, Sami Francis, Kendall Kipp, Kami Miner, Elena Oglivie and Elia Rubin made up six of the 16-player team.
MINNESOTA'S HISTORY VS. OREGON AND STANFORD
• The Gophers are 5-4 all-time against Oregon, including victories in the last two Big Ten/Pac-12 Challenges. Minnesota defeated UO 3-1 in Minneapolis last year and won 3-2 in Eugene in the 2021 challenge. The Gophers have won the last three matches against the Ducks.
• Minnesota dominated Oregon, 3-0, in their 2019 matchup in the Big Ten/Pac-12 Challenge, getting revenge for their 2018 Sweet 16 loss at the Pav. The Ducks defeated the Gophers 3-1 in their postseason matchup in addition to a 3-1 loss at the 2018 Big Ten/Pac-12 Challenge at Stanford.
• Minnesota is 3-11 all-time against Stanford. The Gophers fell 3-1 in Minneapolis last year in the Big Ten/Pac-12 Challenge. The Gophers defeated Stanford in three sets in the 2021 NCAA Tournament and 3-1 in the 2021 challenge in Eugene, Ore. The 'U' has taken three of the past five from the Cardinal.
• Minnesota is 0-3 all-time against Stanford in Palo Alto. They're 0-1 in Palo Alto against Oregon.
MINNESOTA AGAINST THE PAC-12
• All-time, Minnesota is 25-35-1 (.418) against Pac-12 opponents.
GOPHERS RANKED 10TH IN LATEST AVCA POLL
• The Gophers entered the 2023 season with a No. 7 overall ranking in the Preseason AVCA poll. They come in at No. 10 this week. The 'U' finished 10th last year in the final poll, their eighth consecutive top-10 finish nationally. 14 of Minnesota's 28 games are versus opponents ranked in the AVCA Preseason top-25.
NEW COACHING STAFF READY TO ROLL IN 2023
• First year head coach Keegan Cook comes to Dinkytown after a tremendously successful eight-year run at Washington, where his teams made the NCAA Tournament each season. Washington advanced to the NCAA Elite Eight four times and the Final Four once. Cook posted an overall record of 198-56 at Washington and went 107-33 in conference play. With his 2-2 start at Minnesota, he reached 200 career wins vs. Baylor.
• His staff consists of associate head coach Kristen Kelsay and assistant coaches Eric Barber and Kylin Muñoz. Kelsay coached at both Michigan State and Northwestern while Barber comes to Minnesota from UCLA. Muñoz last coached at Loyola Marymount and played for Cook when he was an assistant at Washington.
BIG TEN BESTS
• Phoebe Awoleye is one of three Big Ten players to post 10 blocks in a match (Aug. 26 vs. Baylor). She's the only one to produce 10 blocks in a three set match, however.
• Kylie Murr's 27 digs on Sept. 25 vs. TCU were tied for the second most digs in a match by a Big Ten player on opening weekend. Amanda Darling (Iowa) and Sydney Dennis (Iowa) both have a 28-dig match this year.
• Minnesota's 12 team blocks vs. Baylor were the most by any Big Ten team in a three set match two weeks back.
• The Gophers rank fourth in the Big Ten in digs per set with 15.50.
SHAFFMASTER SETS THE TABLE
• A 6-foot-3 setter, Melani Shaffmaster ranked second in the Big Ten last year with 10.44 assists per set. She already ranks No. 8 in program history in assists (3,140).
• For the second straight year, Mel earned the Best Setter Award at the Big Ten/Big 12 Challenge after she averaged 8.14 assists, 1.0 kills, 3.71 digs and 1.0 blocks per set in two victories over TCU and Baylor (Aug. 25-26).
• Shaffmaster tallied 30+ assists 25 times, 40+ 11 times and 50+ three times in 2022.
• She registered 10+ digs 14 times in 2022 and 3+ blocks 19 times. She posted 3+ kills 19 times as well. Shaffmaster posted double doubles (36/13, 21/13, 31/12) in games to open 2023 against TCU, No. 15 Baylor and No. 7 Texas.
RANKED OPPONENTS ON TAP
• Starting with the Gophers game against then No. 15 Baylor, the Gophers are in the middle of taking on five ranked opponents in their final six non-conference games.
• They've already played Baylor (14), Texas (7) and Florida (3). Oregon (6), Stanford (5) and Creighton (16) are all ranked in the top 20.
WUCHERER TAKING THE NEXT STEP
• A 2021 AVCA and Under Armour First Team All-American and the Wis. Gatorade Player of the Year, the 6-foot-1 outside hitter from Brookfield, Wis., came to Minnesota as one of the most decorated players in Wisconsin prep history. She was the consensus No. 1 overall recruit in the class of 2022.
• In 2022, she missed the first six games with an injury before returning to hit double figures in kills in 11 matches in 2022.
• She ended the year averaging 2.79 kills per set, which ranked second on the team. Wucherer made the Big Ten All-Freshman Team in 2022.
• The start of 2023 has been all she can ask for, as Wucherer posted 30 kills on .464 hitting on her way to Big Ten/Big 12 Challenge MVP honors. Her 3.79 kills per set ranks seventh in the Big Ten after she posted 14 kills Tuesday night vs. No. 7 Texas and nine Sunday at No. 8 Florida.
WE WANT MURR
• 2022 Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year Kylie Murr comes to Dinkytown for her fifth year of college volleyball after spending the first four at Ohio State. She was named First Team All-Big Ten and earned AVCA All-America honorable mention in 2022.
• She led the Big Ten in both total digs (530) and digs per set (4.69) last year and is set to step into the Gophers libero position that two-time All-American CC McGraw departed from due to graduation.
• She totaled two 30+ dig matches last year, which tied a Big Ten-best. Her 35 digs against Maryland on Nov. 18, 2022 was a conference single game high for the season.
• Murr started 2023 off with a bang, winning Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week after posting 40 digs (5.71 dps) and 15 assists on her way to Big Ten/Big 12 Challenge All-Tournament honors. Murr holds 2,007 career digs, which ranks No. 6 of all active collegiate players in the nation.
AWOLEYE BUILDS A WALL
• A senior LMU transfer originally hailing from Marietta, Ga., Phoebe Awoleye started her Gophers career with a 'bang this past weekend. She posted 16 blocks (2.29 bps) and five kills on her way to Big Ten/Big 12 Challenge All-Tournament honors. Awoleye had a career-high 10 blocks in last Saturday's win over No. 15 Baylor as the Gophers silenced the Bears attack, holding them to .000 hitting. She ranks No. 4 nationally in blocks per set (1.79), including second in the Big Ten.
UP NEXT
Minnesota comes home to host the Diet Coke Classic next week against High Point and Creighton. All matches will be streamed on B1G+ from Thursday through Saturday.
Cinematic Recap: Diet Coke Classic
Wednesday, September 17
Highlights: Gophers 3, SDSU 1
Sunday, September 14
Highlights: Gophers 3, Dayton 0
Saturday, September 13
Highlights: Gophers 3, South Florida 0
Friday, September 12