Iowa volleyball finished its non-conference season 9-3 overall, boosted by a 2-0 showing at Hawkeye Invitational at Xtream Arena in Coralville. Despite coming off losses to Weber State and Iowa State, Iowa bested East Texas A&M in four sets on Friday before sweeping Lindenwood on Sunday.
Lindenwood: Offense from everyone
Iowa nabbed a 3-0 sweep over Lindenwood in Sunday’s game, officially cementing its most non-conference wins since 2014, per Iowa Athletics.
Iowa pulled ahead to an early lead in the first set, winning the race to 10 points before Lindenwood closed the gap to 12-9.
Leading, 15-10, coming out of a media timeout, the Hawkeyes maintained a lead for the remainder of the set, with notable kills from sixth-year Chard’e Vanzandt, fourth-year Claire Ammeraal, and first-year Gia McGrew keeping momentum rolling, allowing Iowa to conquer the first set, 25-21.
“I think we came together and brought a community aspect to the court,” McGrew told The Daily Iowan. “I think that on every aspect of the game we executed.”
The Hawkeyes again took an early 10-4 lead in the second set, keeping a fast tempo to limit the Lions’ offense. An 8-0 scoring run propelled Iowa to an early 13-5 lead the Hawkeyes would never relinquish.
Equipped with a 24-11 lead, first-year Peyton Young killed her first ball of the day to grant the Hawkeyes a 14-point win in the second, tying their largest margin of victory in a set this season.
“I have to shout out our back row,” Vanzandt said. “They were diming passes on that net, which puts us in a great position to run our offense. Claire can set anyone and we can get a kill.”
For the third consecutive set, Iowa came out to a hot start and early lead, pacing Lindenwood from start to finish. The sweep featured kills from nine different Hawkeyes, led by Vanzandt with 12 and McGrew with eight.
East Texas A&M: Defense amid adversity
Iowa snagged its first four-set victory of the season against East Texas A&M. The Hawkeyes took the first set, 25-16, posting 13 kills and holding the Lions to only seven. Despite two lead changes and two ties early on, Iowa quickly won the race to 10 points and gained a major 20-11 lead, forcing East Texas A&M to take its second timeout.
Held to three attack errors, the lowest of the night, the Hawkeyes found themselves with a comfortable eight-point lead, with a service error from the Lions ending the first set.
Iowa took the second set with another 25-16 triumph, upping the ante to 15 kills, albeit with six attack errors. The Hawkeyes controlled the tempo to lead from start to finish, allowing for only one tie in the process.
Upon a 19-16 lead, Iowa embarked on an efficient 6-0 run to close out the set, punctuated by a kill from Vanzandt, who finished with 10 kills.
A messy third set left East Texas A&M clutching a 25-23 win to extend the contest to four sets. The Lions forced seven attack errors and outkilled the Hawkeyes, 15-13. Iowa closed out the contest with a 25-21 victory in the fourth-set, spurred on by a high of 17 kills, including five from first-year Carmel Vares, who posted seven skills, three digs, and three blocks during the contest.
Like the second set, the Hawkeyes held the lead for the entirety of play, breaking a deadlock at 21 apiece with a 4-0 run. Defense shined for the Hawkeyes, who matched their season-high with 15 blocks compared to the Lions’ three.
“We came out and played well,” head coach Jim Barnes told Iowa Athletics. “We weren’t in sync and that made for a rough finish, but the first two sets we got what we wanted done. Overall, not the strongest finish, but there were some positives.”
Up next
Iowa ventures into Big Ten play with home contests against Maryland on Sept. 25 and Wisconsin on Sept. 28.
The Badgers have won six straight and are 7-1 on the season while the Terrapins have posted consecutive victories for a 7-3 mark on the year. Both matches will receive coverage from Big Ten Plus and the Hawkeye Radio Network.