Match Stats
- Minnesota shuts down Louisville 3-0 (25-10, 25-12, 25-13)
No. 5 Minnesota Gophers volleyball team dominated the Louisville Cardinals in their first match of the AAC/Big Ten Challenge in Chapel, Hill, NC.
Minnesota led a huge defensive game, with 15 blocks and 42 digs total. The No. 5 Gophers made the win look easy, only allowing Louisville 25 points throughout the entire match. The Cardinals struggled on the defense, with just 4 blocks and 29 digs.
The Gophers’ personal stats hit match-highs for Alexis Hart, Samantha Seliger-Swenson and Dalianliz Rosado.
In the first set, Minnesota was ahead 6-0 before Louisville had its first side out. They were up 17-7 when the Cards had a net violation, and Minnesota finished out the game strong.
With the offense working like a well-oiled machine, the Gophers jumped to a 21-11 lead in the second set and only allowed the Cards one more point before Minnesota finished the game with a kill.
In the third set, Louisville took its first lead of the match, ahead 25-13. After losing the advantage, the Cards switched the setter, the Minnesota offense couldn’t be stopped.
PRESS RELEASES
Courtesy of Minnesota Athletics
The No. 5 University of Minnesota volleyball team earned a 3-0 win over Louisville, today, in Chapel Hill, N.C. As a part of the ACC/Big Ten Challenge, Minnesota won, 25-10, 25-12, 25-13 to improve to 4-1 on the season. Louisville drops to 4-3 this year.
As a team, the Gophers hit .462, outblocked the Cardinals, 15-4, and held a 42-29 dig advantage. Alexis Hart led all attackers when she had a match-high 13 kills, followed by Sarah Wilhite with 12. Hart hit .522 in the match (13-1-23), while Wilhite produced a .733 hitting efficiency (12-1-15). Molly Lohman and Hannah Tapp had eight and seven blocks respectively, as Paige Tapp had eight kills,, hit .412 and had five blocks. Samantha Seliger-Swenson had a match-high 35 assists, while Dalianliz Rosado had a match-best 12 digs.
Minnesota plays No. 11 and host North Carolina, tomorrow at 5:30 CT in Carmichael Arena.
Set Breakdown:
Set 1: The Gophers hit .588 in the opening set and provided five blocks to win, 25-10. Minnesota opened the first set with a 6-0 lead before a Louisville sideout. Wilhite put the Gophers up 12-5 off back-to-back kills, while she and Lohman combined for a block to put the score at 14-6. The block forced the Cardinals to call their first timeout of the set. Gophers added back-to-back blocks to put the score at 17-7 before Louisville added kill. A Cardinal net violation put Minnesota up, 19-8 and forced Louisville to call its second timeout. Minnesota, however, would close out the set with its fifth block for set point (Hart/P Tapp) and a Hart kill to take a 1-0 lead.
Set 2: Minnesota hit .484 in the second set, as Wilhite provided six kills for a 25-12 set win. After trailing early, 4-2, Minnesota came back and went on a 6-1 run to take an 8-5 lead as Louisville called a timeout. Hart added a kill for a 10-6 lead, while Wilhite added a kill for a 14-7 score as the Cardinals called their second timeout of the set. H Tapp put the Gophers up 20-10 off a kill, while Wilhite added a back row kill for a 21-11 lead. P Tapp pushed the score to 23-12 with a kill, followed by a Hart kill for set point and a Katie Schau kill put Minnesota up, 2-0.
Set 3: The Gophers closed out the match with a 25-13 win. After Louisville took a 5-3 lead, Hart responded with a kill, while P Tapp and Seliger-Swenson earned a block to tie it up and then take the lead for good. Louisville called a timeout after a Wilhite solo block for an 11-7 lead as the Cardinals called a timeout. Louisville briefly changed out its setter and cut the Gopher lead to 14-10, however, Minnesota had a kill (Wilhite), a block (H Tapp/Lohman) and a Louisville attack error for a 17-10 lead. Louisville called its second timeout of the set, but Minnesota finished the match with a 12-4 run to win, 3-0.
Up Next: Minnesota faced No. 11 and host North Carolina in Carmichael Arena to finish out the ACC/Big Ten Challenge.
Gopher Stats
Alexis Hart (13 kills, 2 digs)
Sarah Wilhite (12 kills, 7 digs, 1 block)
Molly Lohman (3 kills, 8 blocks)
Hannah Tapp (7 blocks, 5 kills, 1 dig)
Samantha Seliger-Swenson (35 assists, 10 digs)
Dalianliz Rosado (12 digs, 1 ace)
Keep up with the Gophers on Facebook, Twitter @GopherVBall and Instagram @gophervball
Courtesy of Louisville Athletics
Alexis Hart had 13 kills and two blocks to lead the No. 5 Minnesota Gophers to a 25-10, 25-12, 25-13 sweep of the University of Louisville volleyball team Friday afternoon at the ACC/Big Ten Challenge on the campus of the University of North Carolina.
“I thought we passed really well but we had trouble converting those great passes into points,” said Anne Kordes, UofL head coach. “Minnesota runs really fast and one way to slow down a fast team is to make them play the ball. We need to focus on taking care of the ball and eliminating unforced errors. This was a learning experience and we will get there.”
UofL (4-3) hit .038 and four blocks and were led by Janelle Jenkins‘ 10 kills. Minnesota blocked the Cards 15 times and hit .462 with Sarah Wilhite adding 12 kills.
In the first set, Minnesota powered out to a 6-0 lead that included two aces by Sarah Wilhite. At one point the Gophers were hitting .775 against the Cardinals, who were without two starters, including setter Kali Eaken. Minnesota continued to build its lead with an 8-1 run to get to a 21-8 lead and then scored four straight points to end the set 25-10. The Gophers had eight blocks in the first set alone.
In the second set, Louisville was able to pop out to a 4-2 lead but the Gophers tied at five, went ahead on the next play and then never trailed again. The Cardinals called timeout at 14-7 but ended up being outscored 8-2 down the stretch before falling 25-12. Jenkins had three kills in the set to lead the Cards offensively.
In the third set, the Cardinals switched to a 6-2 offense and inserted freshman Megan Sloan into the left side slot to try to change up the momentum. UofL took a 5-3 lead but Minnesota had a 10-3 run to go up 14-6 and never looked back.
Up Next: The Cards will face Wisconsin at the AAC/Big Ten Challenge
Cardinal Stats
Janelle Jenkins (10 kills, 4 digs)
Melanie McHenry (7 kills, 1 ace, 6 digs)
Molly Sauer (7 digs)
Follow Cardinals Volleyball on Facebook, Twitter @GoCards and Instagram @gocards
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