University of Minnesota Athletics
Friday, September 5
Nashville, TN
7:00 PM
University of Minnesota
at
Vanderbilt
Players Mentioned
Libero/DS
/ Volleyball
Opposite
/ Volleyball
Outside
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Outside
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Middle Blocker
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Libero/DS
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Setter
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Photo by: Claudia Staut
No. 14 Gophers Venture East to Play Vanderbilt, Lipscomb
9/3/2025 4:29:00 PM | Volleyball
The 'U' will play its first two road matches of the year
NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- The No. 14 Minnesota Golden Gophers (3-1, 0-0 Big Ten) head to Nashville, Tenn., to take on Vanderbilt and Lipscomb on Friday and Saturday, respectively. Friday night will be Vanderbilt's first true home match at Memorial Gymnasium for Vanderbilt, who has their volleyball team back for the first time in 45 years. Friday's match at Vanderbilt will be on SEC Network+ while Saturday's will be on ESPN+.
GAME 1 INFORMATION
No. 14 Minnesota at Vanderbilt
Friday, Sept. 5
7 p.m.
Memorial Gymnasium
Nashville, Tenn.
TV: SEC Network+ Alex Gould (Play-By-Play) and Katie Myers (Color Commentator)
Live Stats
GAME 2 INFORMATION
No. 14 Minnesota at Lipscomb
Saturday, Sept. 6
6 p.m.
Allen Arena
Nashville, Tenn.
TV: ESPN+ (Play-By-Play) and Katie Myers (Color Commentator)
Live Stats
NOTES TO KNOW
34 -- The 'U' ranks 34th nationally in kills per set with 14.20 ps.
29 -- The 2024 NCAA Tournament represented the 29th all-time postseason appearance for Minnesota volleyball.
27 -- Julia Hanson had 27 10+ kill matches in 2024 (.871).
16 -- Times last season Minnesota posted 10+ blocks as a team. They have not had a 10+ block match so far this year.
16 -- Straight wins in the 1st round of the NCAA Tournament.
15 -- Straight matches with 10+ kills for Julia Hanson to end 2024. She's 4-for-4 so far in 2025.
10 -- Last year was Minnesota's 10th consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance. They've made 25 of the last 26 (missed 2014). They've made three Final Fours, four Sweet 16s and an Elite Eight since 2015.
8 -- Minnesota has made eight Sweet 16's in the last 10 years.
4 -- Minnesota ranks fourth in the nation in total assists (194).
4 -- Gophers head coach Keegan Cook is 4-21 against AVCA Top-25 ranked opponents in two seasons.
3 -- Julia Hanson took home her third career Big Ten Player of the Week award on Monday. She hit nearly .400 with 51 kills in three matches this weekend. She was also named tournament MVP.
3 -- Minnesota ranks third in the nation in total kills with 213.
2 -- The Gophers were 2-11 against ranked opponents in 2023 and 2-9 in 2024. The 2024 wins were over No. 1 Texas and No. 7 Wisconsin. Losses came against No. 2 Nebraska, No. 3 Penn State, No. 5 Stanford, No. 6 Wisconsin, No. 10 Purdue, No. 11 Kentucky, No. 12 Oregon, No. 21 USC and No. 23 Baylor.
2 -- Minnesota ranked second in the Big Ten (100th in the NCAA) with 15.32 digs per set.
2 -- Julia Hanson and Mckenna Wucherer were named as two of the 20 players in the Big Ten to be named Preseason All-B1G.
Hanson was a Unanimous First Team All-B1G selection in 2024.
2 -- Stella Swenson ranks second nationally with 163 assists thus far. Her 10.87 assists per set ranks 22nd nationally and second in the Big Ten.
2 -- Julia Hanson ranks fourth nationally and second in the Big Ten with 67 kills through four matches.
1 -- Calissa Minatee ranks first the Big Ten and 23rd nationally with a .509 hitting percentage. She's tallied 34 kills in four matches thus far, including two 10+ kill bouts.
1 -- Hanson was named as one of the 30 players to the AVCA Preseason Player of the Year Watch List.
1 -- Stella Swenson earned her first career Big Ten Weekly award when she earned Big Ten Setter of the Week on Monday afternoon. She averaged over 11 assists and nearly three digs per set, helping Minnesota's offense hit over .350 for the weekend.
1 -- The Gophers rank first in the Big Ten and 14th nationally through two weeks with a .326 hitting %.
1 -- This will be Minnesota's first ever matches against Vanderbilt and Lipscomb.
LAST TIME OUT
• Then No. 11 Minnesota took down Cal Poly (3-1), Ball State (3-0) and UST (3-1) to win the Golden Gopher Invitational this weekend in Minneapolis. Julia Hanson was named tournament MVP after going for 21, 12 and 18 kills, respectively, during the matches this weekend. The offense hit over .300, led by setter Stella Swenson, who joined middle Calissa Minatee and libero Zeynep Palabiyik on the all-tournament team.
• Minnesota hit .523 Saturday night in a sweep of Ball State. It was their highest-hitting offensive performance since the 2017 season. Swenson went for a career-high 48 assists vs. Cal Poly.
HANSON, SWENSON EARN BIG TEN WEEKLY AWARDS
• Minnesota senior outside Julia Hanson and redshirt freshman setter Stella Swenson were named Big Ten Player and Setter of the Week, respectively, the conference announced on Monday.
• Hanson was named Golden Gopher Invitational Tournament MVP after going for 4.64 kills, 1.73 digs, 0.36 blocks and 0.09 aces per set in the three matches. She hit .370 for the weekend with 51 kills.
• Swenson was named to the Golden Gopher Invitational All-Tournament Team after going for 11.27 assists, 2.91 digs, 0.91 kills and 0.45 blocks per set. She had a career-high 48 assists and 14 digs Friday vs. Cal Poly.
RETURNING PRODUCTION
• In 2025, Minnesota returned 62% of its kills, 68% of their digs, 43% of its blocks and 56% of its aces.
• Four players who had significant starting experience are back this season. Senior outsides Julia Hanson and Mckenna Wucherer, both Preseason All-Big Ten honorees, have combined to play in almost 150 matches in their careers and have nearly 1,400 kills.
• Junior libero Zeynep Palabiyik came back for her second year as a regular after starting in all 32 matches a year ago. She averaged 3.86 digs per set, a figure that put her at seventh in the Big Ten Conference.
• Junor middle blocker Calissa Minatee hit over .300 in extended action as a starter in 2024, going for 1.52 kills and 0.98 blocks per set.
SCOUTING VANDERBILT
• Led by head coach Anders Nelson, Vanderbilt (1-2, 0-0 SEC) is in its first season of action in 45 since bringing its volleyball program back two years ago. Nelson's older sister, Meredith Nelson Uram, played at Minnesota from 2002-06 and helped the Gophers make a pair of Final Fours, including their only national title appearance.
• Friday's match will be Vanderbilt's first ever match at Memorial Gymnasium. The program hired Nelson in December of 2022 and has been prepping for this season ever since.
• Vandy lost in five sets to No. 14 Kansas in their first match before beating Belmont 3-1 last Friday. They fell 3-1 to Illinois in their third match. Kamryn Chaney leads the Commodores with 3.46 kills per set.
SCOUTING LIPSCOMB
• Lipscomb (1-2, 0-0 ASUN) is led by head coach Brandon Rosenthal, who's in his 23rd season in charge. The Bisons were picked to win the Atlantic Sun Conference by the league coaches. Outside Courtney Jones, a first team selection last year, and setter Sophia Hudepohl, were picked to the Preseason All-ASUN Team.
• In 2024, Lipscomb finished 19-11 (14-2 ASUN) and won the regular season league title. So far in 2025 they've had a challenging schedule. They've been swept in home matches against No. 1 Nebraska and No. 7 Kentucky. They defeated Seton Hall 3-1 for their first win on Sunday afternoon.
• Syndey Strenger leads the team with 3.25 kps while Hudepohl paces the offense at 10.10 assists a set. Defensively, Berkley Mischler holds 1.20 blocks per set, a team-best.
MINNESOTA'S HISTORY VS. VANDERBILT AND LIPSCOMB
• The 'U' has never played Vanderbilt or Lipscomb.
GOPHERS IN THE RANKINGS
• The Gophers entered the 2025 season with a No. 11 overall ranking in the Preseason AVCA poll.
• After week one, the 'U' dropped to No. 14.
• Minnesota finished 18th in the final AVCA poll last season.
• Minnesota was ranked as high as 12 last year (Sept. 30) and as low as 19 (Sept. 9).
SERVE AND PASS
• Big areas of emphasis in the offseason for the Gophers were serving and passing. So far in 2025, they lead the Big Ten in reception percentage at 96.2%. From the service line, Minnesota ranks fifth with 20 aces in four matches. They had a season-high 10 on Sunday in a win over St. Thomas.
WUCHERER TO MISS 2025 SEASON
• Mckenna Wucherer will miss the 2025 season, the program announced. This decision was made out of an abundance of caution for her health. She has been dealing with a back injury since last season.
• "While I am heartbroken to not be able to compete this year, I know this is the best decision for my long-term health," Wucherer said. "I am fully committed to using this time to put in the work behind the scenes to return stronger than ever for one final season in the Maroon and Gold."
• A 2025 Preseason All-B1G selection, Wucherer has played in 77 career matches for Minnesota, posting 2.86 kills, 1.34 digs, 0.5 blocks per set. Her 764 career kills are the highest on Minnesota's 2025 roster.
FRESHMEN FOUR ALL GETTING EARLY REPS
• Minnesota started four freshmen on Sunday afternoon against St. Thomas, and played five. Champlin Park H.S. alum Carly Gilk started at opposite and currently ranks second on the team with 2.78 kps.
• Middle Jordan Taylor, defensive specialist McKenna Garr and setter Stella Swenson joined her in the starting group. West Palm Beach, Fla., native Kelly Kinney came off the bench and was second on the Gophers with 11 kills. Garr, Gilk, Kinney and Taylor made up a top-10 recruiting class in 2025 while Swenson was a top-10 recruit on her own accord in 2024. All five make up a key core of the future of Minnesota.
UP NEXT
Minnesota heads home to host the Diet Coke Classic Sept. 12-14 against South Florida, Dayton and South Dakota State.
GAME 1 INFORMATION
No. 14 Minnesota at Vanderbilt
Friday, Sept. 5
7 p.m.
Memorial Gymnasium
Nashville, Tenn.
TV: SEC Network+ Alex Gould (Play-By-Play) and Katie Myers (Color Commentator)
Live Stats
GAME 2 INFORMATION
No. 14 Minnesota at Lipscomb
Saturday, Sept. 6
6 p.m.
Allen Arena
Nashville, Tenn.
TV: ESPN+ (Play-By-Play) and Katie Myers (Color Commentator)
Live Stats
NOTES TO KNOW
34 -- The 'U' ranks 34th nationally in kills per set with 14.20 ps.
29 -- The 2024 NCAA Tournament represented the 29th all-time postseason appearance for Minnesota volleyball.
27 -- Julia Hanson had 27 10+ kill matches in 2024 (.871).
16 -- Times last season Minnesota posted 10+ blocks as a team. They have not had a 10+ block match so far this year.
16 -- Straight wins in the 1st round of the NCAA Tournament.
15 -- Straight matches with 10+ kills for Julia Hanson to end 2024. She's 4-for-4 so far in 2025.
10 -- Last year was Minnesota's 10th consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance. They've made 25 of the last 26 (missed 2014). They've made three Final Fours, four Sweet 16s and an Elite Eight since 2015.
8 -- Minnesota has made eight Sweet 16's in the last 10 years.
4 -- Minnesota ranks fourth in the nation in total assists (194).
4 -- Gophers head coach Keegan Cook is 4-21 against AVCA Top-25 ranked opponents in two seasons.
3 -- Julia Hanson took home her third career Big Ten Player of the Week award on Monday. She hit nearly .400 with 51 kills in three matches this weekend. She was also named tournament MVP.
3 -- Minnesota ranks third in the nation in total kills with 213.
2 -- The Gophers were 2-11 against ranked opponents in 2023 and 2-9 in 2024. The 2024 wins were over No. 1 Texas and No. 7 Wisconsin. Losses came against No. 2 Nebraska, No. 3 Penn State, No. 5 Stanford, No. 6 Wisconsin, No. 10 Purdue, No. 11 Kentucky, No. 12 Oregon, No. 21 USC and No. 23 Baylor.
2 -- Minnesota ranked second in the Big Ten (100th in the NCAA) with 15.32 digs per set.
2 -- Julia Hanson and Mckenna Wucherer were named as two of the 20 players in the Big Ten to be named Preseason All-B1G.
Hanson was a Unanimous First Team All-B1G selection in 2024.
2 -- Stella Swenson ranks second nationally with 163 assists thus far. Her 10.87 assists per set ranks 22nd nationally and second in the Big Ten.
2 -- Julia Hanson ranks fourth nationally and second in the Big Ten with 67 kills through four matches.
1 -- Calissa Minatee ranks first the Big Ten and 23rd nationally with a .509 hitting percentage. She's tallied 34 kills in four matches thus far, including two 10+ kill bouts.
1 -- Hanson was named as one of the 30 players to the AVCA Preseason Player of the Year Watch List.
1 -- Stella Swenson earned her first career Big Ten Weekly award when she earned Big Ten Setter of the Week on Monday afternoon. She averaged over 11 assists and nearly three digs per set, helping Minnesota's offense hit over .350 for the weekend.
1 -- The Gophers rank first in the Big Ten and 14th nationally through two weeks with a .326 hitting %.
1 -- This will be Minnesota's first ever matches against Vanderbilt and Lipscomb.
LAST TIME OUT
• Then No. 11 Minnesota took down Cal Poly (3-1), Ball State (3-0) and UST (3-1) to win the Golden Gopher Invitational this weekend in Minneapolis. Julia Hanson was named tournament MVP after going for 21, 12 and 18 kills, respectively, during the matches this weekend. The offense hit over .300, led by setter Stella Swenson, who joined middle Calissa Minatee and libero Zeynep Palabiyik on the all-tournament team.
• Minnesota hit .523 Saturday night in a sweep of Ball State. It was their highest-hitting offensive performance since the 2017 season. Swenson went for a career-high 48 assists vs. Cal Poly.
HANSON, SWENSON EARN BIG TEN WEEKLY AWARDS
• Minnesota senior outside Julia Hanson and redshirt freshman setter Stella Swenson were named Big Ten Player and Setter of the Week, respectively, the conference announced on Monday.
• Hanson was named Golden Gopher Invitational Tournament MVP after going for 4.64 kills, 1.73 digs, 0.36 blocks and 0.09 aces per set in the three matches. She hit .370 for the weekend with 51 kills.
• Swenson was named to the Golden Gopher Invitational All-Tournament Team after going for 11.27 assists, 2.91 digs, 0.91 kills and 0.45 blocks per set. She had a career-high 48 assists and 14 digs Friday vs. Cal Poly.
RETURNING PRODUCTION
• In 2025, Minnesota returned 62% of its kills, 68% of their digs, 43% of its blocks and 56% of its aces.
• Four players who had significant starting experience are back this season. Senior outsides Julia Hanson and Mckenna Wucherer, both Preseason All-Big Ten honorees, have combined to play in almost 150 matches in their careers and have nearly 1,400 kills.
• Junior libero Zeynep Palabiyik came back for her second year as a regular after starting in all 32 matches a year ago. She averaged 3.86 digs per set, a figure that put her at seventh in the Big Ten Conference.
• Junor middle blocker Calissa Minatee hit over .300 in extended action as a starter in 2024, going for 1.52 kills and 0.98 blocks per set.
SCOUTING VANDERBILT
• Led by head coach Anders Nelson, Vanderbilt (1-2, 0-0 SEC) is in its first season of action in 45 since bringing its volleyball program back two years ago. Nelson's older sister, Meredith Nelson Uram, played at Minnesota from 2002-06 and helped the Gophers make a pair of Final Fours, including their only national title appearance.
• Friday's match will be Vanderbilt's first ever match at Memorial Gymnasium. The program hired Nelson in December of 2022 and has been prepping for this season ever since.
• Vandy lost in five sets to No. 14 Kansas in their first match before beating Belmont 3-1 last Friday. They fell 3-1 to Illinois in their third match. Kamryn Chaney leads the Commodores with 3.46 kills per set.
SCOUTING LIPSCOMB
• Lipscomb (1-2, 0-0 ASUN) is led by head coach Brandon Rosenthal, who's in his 23rd season in charge. The Bisons were picked to win the Atlantic Sun Conference by the league coaches. Outside Courtney Jones, a first team selection last year, and setter Sophia Hudepohl, were picked to the Preseason All-ASUN Team.
• In 2024, Lipscomb finished 19-11 (14-2 ASUN) and won the regular season league title. So far in 2025 they've had a challenging schedule. They've been swept in home matches against No. 1 Nebraska and No. 7 Kentucky. They defeated Seton Hall 3-1 for their first win on Sunday afternoon.
• Syndey Strenger leads the team with 3.25 kps while Hudepohl paces the offense at 10.10 assists a set. Defensively, Berkley Mischler holds 1.20 blocks per set, a team-best.
MINNESOTA'S HISTORY VS. VANDERBILT AND LIPSCOMB
• The 'U' has never played Vanderbilt or Lipscomb.
GOPHERS IN THE RANKINGS
• The Gophers entered the 2025 season with a No. 11 overall ranking in the Preseason AVCA poll.
• After week one, the 'U' dropped to No. 14.
• Minnesota finished 18th in the final AVCA poll last season.
• Minnesota was ranked as high as 12 last year (Sept. 30) and as low as 19 (Sept. 9).
SERVE AND PASS
• Big areas of emphasis in the offseason for the Gophers were serving and passing. So far in 2025, they lead the Big Ten in reception percentage at 96.2%. From the service line, Minnesota ranks fifth with 20 aces in four matches. They had a season-high 10 on Sunday in a win over St. Thomas.
WUCHERER TO MISS 2025 SEASON
• Mckenna Wucherer will miss the 2025 season, the program announced. This decision was made out of an abundance of caution for her health. She has been dealing with a back injury since last season.
• "While I am heartbroken to not be able to compete this year, I know this is the best decision for my long-term health," Wucherer said. "I am fully committed to using this time to put in the work behind the scenes to return stronger than ever for one final season in the Maroon and Gold."
• A 2025 Preseason All-B1G selection, Wucherer has played in 77 career matches for Minnesota, posting 2.86 kills, 1.34 digs, 0.5 blocks per set. Her 764 career kills are the highest on Minnesota's 2025 roster.
FRESHMEN FOUR ALL GETTING EARLY REPS
• Minnesota started four freshmen on Sunday afternoon against St. Thomas, and played five. Champlin Park H.S. alum Carly Gilk started at opposite and currently ranks second on the team with 2.78 kps.
• Middle Jordan Taylor, defensive specialist McKenna Garr and setter Stella Swenson joined her in the starting group. West Palm Beach, Fla., native Kelly Kinney came off the bench and was second on the Gophers with 11 kills. Garr, Gilk, Kinney and Taylor made up a top-10 recruiting class in 2025 while Swenson was a top-10 recruit on her own accord in 2024. All five make up a key core of the future of Minnesota.
UP NEXT
Minnesota heads home to host the Diet Coke Classic Sept. 12-14 against South Florida, Dayton and South Dakota State.
Highlights: Gophers 3, Michigan State 0
Thursday, September 25
Highlights: Gophers 3, Marquette 0
Sunday, September 21
Highlights: Gophers 3, Loyola Chicago 0
Friday, September 19
Cinematic Recap: Diet Coke Classic
Wednesday, September 17