The Peacock volleyball team had a set point in the first set and a three-point lead late in the second set, but Winona State was able to rally in both sets to post victories in the first two frames. The Warriors then pulled away in the third set to sweep Upper Iowa and improve to 16-6 overall and 11-5 in the Northern Sun. After the loss, UIU falls to 10-14 overall and 5-11 in the conference.
Jennifer Mundt led the Peacock offense with 14 kills bringing her season total to 359 and her career total to 979. The Utica, Minn. native needs just 21 kills over her final four matches of the season to become the first junior in Upper Iowa history to reach the 1,000-kill milestone. Mundt added 11 digs and a pair of blocks against Winona State.
Jenna Hermsen also had a good match for UIU with 16 assists and 15 digs, while
Amanda Weiss led the team in digs with 16 and added a pair of service aces.
As a team, Upper Iowa struggled on the attack recording just 29 kills and a hitting percentage of .088, while Winona State registered a .199 percentage with 49 kills.
In the first set, the Peacocks and Warriors exchanged points all the way to a 14-14 tie. Winona State was the first to break away taking a three-point lead and maintaining that advantage as the end of the set apporached. Trailing 23-20, UIU rattled off four straight points to take a 24-23 lead forcing a timeout by their guests. After the break, the Warriors scored three straight points and ended the first set, 26-24.
Upper Iowa trailed by four points for much of the opening rallies in set two, but a 9-0 run by the home team gave the Peacocks an 18-15 lead. The dominant run kicked off thanks to a pair of kills from
Jennifer Mundt. After the Warriors rallied to tie the match at 22-22, WSU scored three straight points on kills and a errant attack from the Peacocks to earn the second set win.
In the third and final set, the Warriors got out to an early lead and never looked back. WSU won the set, 25-18, to earn the match victory in straight sets.
Upper Iowa will get back onto Prochaska Court on Friday night against the Dragons of MSU Moorhead at 7 p.m. as the program recognizes their parents prior to the match.
