By James Kay
The Hawkeyes are going into this weekend’s Hawkeye Classic with unyielding confidence after blowing away their competition last weekend.
After going 3-0 and dropping only one set in the tournament overall, the Hawkeye volleyball team will try to maintain its dominance.
“[Going 3-0] makes us feel more confident about ourselves as a team,” said redshirt freshman Meghan Buzzerio. “We expect to win every single game this weekend.”
While their confidence is high, the Hawkeyes seem to be calm and collected.
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“It’s just been a week like any other,” said senior outside hitter Lauren Brobst. “We came into practice Monday and the first thing [head coach Bond Shymansky] said was, ‘OK, back to work.’ ”
The Hawkeyes will host four teams they didn’t get to go up against last year, which makes the matchups enticing. They will face Western Illinois and Arizona State today, followed by matches against Butler and Oakland on Saturday.
Western Illinois (0-3) is mired in a three-game losing streak heading into the weekend. Last year, the team sported a 3-28 record and recorded only two wins on the road. The Leathernecks are in the process of rebuilding their roster; they have nine freshmen this year.
Shymansky believes Western Illinois can “present a lot of challenges,” though its play this year may suggest otherwise.
The Hawkeyes will take on the Leathernecks at 11:30 a.m. today in Carver-Hawkeye.
Arizona State (2-1) looks to be — on paper, at least — the Hawkeyes’ toughest opponent. The Pac-12 is one of the most competitive volleyball conferences in the country.
The Sun Devils are ranked seventh in the country in assists per set (14.60), and they are led by sophomore setter Kylie Pickrell, who is 13th in the country in assists per set (11.80). Pickrell has had at least 34 assists in every match she has played thus far.
“They have a lot of weapons,” Buzzerio said. “Their outside hitters are very consistent, they have a really good setter, and they have a strong middle.”
Keeping Pickrell in check will be one of the team’s main focuses.
The starting time for Iowa’s matchup against the Sun Devils is set for 7 p.m. today.
Butler (2-2) is going into the weekend with mixed results so far in the season, suffering losses to Gonzaga and Utah, though it has also notched wins against Idaho State and Eastern Illinois.
Last year, it went 12-19. It only has four upperclassmen on the active roster.
The Bulldogs will get their shot at the Hawkeyes at 10 a.m. Saturday.
Oakland (2-1) will be the Hawkeyes’ final match.
Junior defensive specialist Darrin Rice leads the team in digs, while senior outside hitter Melissa Deatsch has the most aces. This year, Deatsch became Oakland’s all-time leader in service aces when Oakland defeated Bowling Green, 3-0. Last year, she was named to the All-Horizon League team.
The Hawkeyes are hoping to get the same level of production from Brobst as they did last weekend — she was named the tournament MVP at the Northern Illinois Invitational. She led the Hawkeyes with 38 kills and a staggering 0.471 hit percentage. Her teammates are expecting her to continue to handle their opponents.
“Brobst killed it last weekend,” Buzzerio said. “She was extremely effective, and it was exciting to watch.”
Buzzerio herself had an impressive tournament performance, and she was named to the all-tournament team. She tallied 32 kills to go along with 21 digs.
The Hawkeyes are using this weekend’s matchups to get ready for Big Ten play, but that doesn’t mean they won’t take these teams seriously.
“Anyone can come in at any time and play her best game,” Brobst said. “We just have to go in and play our best game.”