Following a victory at Rutgers, the Iowa volleyball team continued their east coast road trip with a matchup against Maryland on Saturday.
The Hawkeyes earned a hard-fought, 3-2 victory, improving to 8-6 overall and 2-0 in Big Ten play. While Maryland had both a home court advantage and an impressive 9-3 record, the young Iowa team went up on the board early, winning the first, third, and fifth sets to ensure their triumph.
Second-year Gabby Deery took the Hawkeye offense to new heights with a career-high 20 kills, followed by fourth-year Michelle Urquhart with 16. Fifth-year Joy Galles held the team’s own defensively with 19 digs, followed by Urquhart with 16.
The first set of the evening established the intensity of the game ahead, with 14 tie scores and seven lead changes. Both numbers were the most of any set on the night.
With the match deadlocked at 25 apiece, a two-point effort from Urquhart brought the first set to an end, giving Iowa a 27-25 victory and a narrow 1-0 lead.
Maryland established themselves in the second set, which was much less tumultuous than its predecessor. The score tied only three times and the Terrapins held the lead for the entirety of the set despite a valiant effort from the Hawkeyes.
Trailing 23-18, the Hawkeyes forced two consecutive attack errors from Maryland, with Deery adding a kill to close the gap to three points and force the uneasy Terrapins to use their second timeout of the set.
But Maryland was ready to close the deal, forcing an Iowa service error and serving an ace shortly after, leaving the second set with a 25-21 victory to tie the game.
The Hawkeyes padded their lead with a win in the game’s third set to take a 2-1 lead, which saw a near-most 10 tie scores and only two lead changes. Deery logged eight kills in this set alone, while teammates Urquhart and fourth-year Gracie Gibson each contributed three.
Iowa nearly ended the set after leading 24-22, but an attack error narrowed the gap to one point. Deery delivered the final blow for the Hawkeyes with a kill to give Iowa the lead back.
Maryland barred the visiting Hawkeyes from going home early with a win in the fourth set, forcing a fifth and final set to 15 points to decide the winner of the night. The Terrapins managed to lead both on the board and in kills, recording 16 compared to Iowa’s 15.
Maryland held a 24-20 lead as the fourth set came to a close, one point away from forcing a fifth set. Undeterred, the Hawkeyes racked up a quick two kills from Urquhart and a third from fourth-year Anna Davis.
After calling a timeout, Maryland managed to grab the last kill it needed to earn the 25-23 set win, heading into the fifth set with a 2-2 draw.
Similar to the Thursday game against Rutgers, Iowa found themselves in the fifth set against a Big Ten team, one that had bested them the year prior. Both squads held their own, with Iowa ultimately coming away victorious in the set to earn their second conference win of the year.
Amidst four lead changes, the Hawkeyes found themselves with a narrow 14-13 lead. In the end, it was Urquhart who logged the game’s final kill to clinch an Iowa victory.
“The determination of our team helped us grit out another great win on the road,” head coach Jim Barnes told HawkeyeSports after the game. “Gabby and Michelle played big for us and Joy played relentless defense. We still aren’t playing close to our highest level, but the team is determined to find ways to win as we improve each day.”
Up next
The Hawkeyes will return to Xtreme Arena in Coralville for their next game against undefeated Washington on Oct 4. The game is scheduled to start at 8 p.m. and will be televised on Big Ten Network.