Box Score

The No. 18 Peacock volleyball team earned their ninth sweep of the season with a straight-set victory over the Augustana University Vikings. Upper Iowa outscored its visitors by set scores of 25-13, 25-16, and 25-13 to improve to 12-3 overall and 4-3 in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference, while Augustana is now 11-5 overall and 4-3 against conference foes.

The Peacocks controlled the match much thanks to .359 hitting from the UIU offense that racked up 44 kills, 38 assists and a pair of aces in three sets, however Upper Iowa's strong defensive unit was even more impressive in the victory. The Peacock defense held the Vikings to just 28 kills and a season-low .061 hitting percentage thanks to 56 digs (18.7/set) and eight total blocks.   

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TURNING POINT... 

• The two teams started the match going back and forth out to a 13-9 Peacock lead. Anna Winter then knocked down four consecutive kills to ignite a 12-4 run that would give Upper Iowa a win in the first frame and set the tone for the remainder of the match.

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PEACOCKS OF THE GAME...

• Anna Winter led all attackers with 18 kills (6.0/set) and committed just one error in 35 attempts for a .486 hitting efficiency. She also added five digs, a block, and an ace.
• Claire Milnes posted a game-high .600 hitting percentage, knocking down six kills without an error in 10 attempts, and had three total blocks
• Kaitlin Niedert hit .375 (7K, 1E, 16TA) and got her hands on four total blocks
• Sarah Johnson recorded eight kills with two errors in 18 attempts (.333), four blocks and an ace
• Haley Weepie spearheaded the backline defense with a game-high 18 digs (6.0/set)
• Carlee Ketchum dished out 35 assists (11.7/set)

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STAT OF THE GAME...

• The Peacock offense recorded its second-highest hitting percentage of the season (.359) while the defense held the Vikings to a season-low .061 hitting clip

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QUOTABLES... 

• "It was a good match for us. It's one of our more complete matches of the season from start to finish. We passed well and served tough to start with and that was part of the game plan. We did a great job executing our defensive game plan, making sure we got touches on the block and staying disciplined as we took care of angles on them. They had a really hard time getting off on service receive and getting anything clean today, we did a great job on defense." –Head Coach Aaron Nelson
• "Our defense was playing lights out tonight and they were getting everything up. Carlee was spreading out the ball really well so we had a lot of open net for all of the hitters, and overall it was just a really good team effort today. It's been a great season, we had a big win last weekend against Sioux Falls and we're kind of looking to build on that as we go further in the conference play and hopefully the conference tournament which is our goal." –Senior Anna Winter

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UP NEXT... The Peacocks will welcome No. 15 Wayne State College to Dorman Gym on Saturday at 2 p.m. The Wildcats took a 3-1 decision over No. 19 Winona State University on Friday evening.