NSIC Tournament Homepage

The Peacock volleyball team (21-8, 12-8 NSIC) closed out the regular season with a three-set sweep of the Dragons of Minnesota State University Moorhead on Saturday. Upper Iowa earned their twenty-first win of the season and the seven-seed in the upcoming NSIC Tournament. The appearance in the NSIC Quarterfinals next Wednesday at Southwest Minnesota State University, the two-seed, is the program's first match in the NSIC Tournament since joining the league in 2006
 
Upper Iowa dominated their match with the Dragons on Saturday improving their record against all non-AVCA Top 25 teams to 18-0 this season. The Peacocks hit .252 for the night with 43 kills and only 12 attack errors. Haley Poula led the way for the offense with 14 kills and 1 error for a .433 hitting percentage, while Anna Winter knocked down 10 kills with only 2 errors. Lauren Wombles was big in the middle with 9 kills, 2 errors and a .467 hitting percentage. UIU's best hitting set came in the opening frame when the team converted 18 kills and a .311 hitting percentage.
 
Defensively, UIU was active tallying 68 dgis led by four players in double figures. Haley Weepie, Gabby Holmes and Ashley Larson all picked up 13 digs, while Malissa LeClaire got her hands on 10 digs. In addition to the back line defense, the Peacocks knocked back 6 Dragon attacks with blocks.
 
In the first set, the Peacocks jumped out to an early 6-0 lead, maintained their lead to the late stages of the frame and won 25-17. Upper Iowa wasted little time establishing a big lead in the second set as well. Leading 13-8, the visitors rattled off five straight points fueled by two kills and a block to extend their lead to ten, 18-8, en route to a 25-14 win. The Peacocks fell behind 4-0 early in the third set, but used a 16-6 run to rally and take a 16-10 lead. UIU scored the final four points of the set to claim the frame 25-17 and earn the sweep.
 
In the final NSIC standings, the Peacocks tied with the Wildcats of Wayne State College. Upper Iowa earned the seven-seed in the NSIC Tournament after the conference tiebreakers settled out. UIU and WSC had identical strength of schedules in the conference, so the five-set victory that the Peacocks claimed in Wayne, Neb. proved to be the deciding factor.