Upper Iowa's volleyball team nearly scored their first victory over the No. 7 Mustangs of Southwest Minnesota State University on Saturday. The Peacocks won the first set, 25-21, but SMSU edged UIU 26-24 in the second set and 28-26 in the third set before closing the match out in the fourth set to win 3-1. The loss moves UIU to 8-5 overall and 1-4 in the Northern Sun, while the home team improved to 9-4 overall and 4-1 in the conference.
 
Junior Anna Winter put down 18 kills to lead the Peacock offense, while Kaitlin Niedert knocked down 11 and Lauren Wombles posted 10. Wombles hit a whopping .562 in the match thanks to just one attack error on her 16 swings. Malissa LeClaire handed out 40 assists and added 13 digs. Defensively, UIU got a match-high 29 digs (7.25/set) from Haley Weepie and 12 more from Gabby Holmes.
 
A 6-0 run midway through the first set powered the Peacocks to a nice lead, but the Mustangs rallied and tied the score at 19-19. Upper Iowa scored six of the final eight points fueled by three kills from Wombles to win the opening frame.
 
In the second set, the teams went back and forth for the majority but Upper Iowa pulled away near the end to enjoy a 22-18 lead. SMSU battled back to take a one-point lead 24-23, but UIU was able to stave off the first set point to tie the score at 24-24. The Mustangs turned to Taylor Reiss, the 2017 AVCA DII National Player of the Year, for the final two kills and evened the match score at 1-1. Reiss finished the match with 32 kills on 75 swings.
 
UIU came out on fire in the third set moving out to a six-point lead 18-12 with a balanced offensive attack. The visitors kept their comfortable lead late into the set leading 23-19 after a Winter kill. Unfortunately, the Mustangs killed the momentum and used a 4-0 run to tie the score at 23-23. UIU kept battling and had set points and the serve at 24-23 and 26-25, but couldn't find the final point they needed. SMSU scored the final three points on a pair of kills from Angela Young and a block by Meg Schmidt to take the third frame.
 
The Mustangs controlled the fourth set and hit a blistering .552 with 16 kills and no attack errors on just 29 swings, while the Peacock offense struggled after a long week on the road.
 
Upper Iowa returns to the friendly confines of Dorman Gym this weekend, Sept. 21-22. The Peacocks host the No. 19 Wildcats of Wayne State College on Friday at 6 p.m. and the Vikings of Augustana University on Saturday at 2 p.m.