The 21st-ranked Upper Iowa volleyball team cruised to a straight-set victory over the Minot State University Beavers on Friday evening thanks to set scores of 25-14, 25-17 and 25-15. The Peacocks improve to 14-6 overall and 6-6 against NSIC opponents, while Minot State falls to 1-20 overall and 0-12 in the conference. 

Upper Iowa thrived on both sides of the ball on Friday evening. The Peacock offense hit .358 as a unit with 51 kills (17.0/set) and 12 errors in 109 attempts, while the defense generated 8.0 total blocks and tallied 50 digs (16.7/set). In comparison, Minot State hit .109 as a team (28-17-101) and managed 41 digs and just one block. 

With Augustana University also winning their Friday evening match and a loss by the University of Sioux Falls, Upper Iowa currently sits in a three-way tie for 9th place in conference standings. 

• Upper Iowa's offense was nearly unstoppable in the first set with 18 kills and just one error in 34 attempts for a .500 hitting percentage. The Peacocks were led by Kaitlin Niedert who turned seven of her eight attack attempts into points (.875) and Claire Milnes who hit .571 with four kills and three blocks.
• In the second set, the Peacocks did commit seven errors on the attack but a pair of 5-0 runs and another 4-0 spurt allowed the home team to create separation when they needed it to go up 2-0 in the match. Maggie Streightiff played a huge role in the frame with six kills on seven attempts (.857) to go with a block.
• The Peacocks continued to dominate in the third set, claiming a quick 18-7 lead fueled by 5-0 and 7-0 runs. Upper Iowa got back to hitting over .300 in the set with a .343 clip thanks to 16 kills and just four errors in 35 attempts. Three Peacocks had multiple kills without an error in the set including Streightiff (4-5), Anna Winter (4-9), and Milnes (2-3). 

• Maggie Streightiff went without an error in 18 attempts and knocked down 11 kills for a .611 hitting percentage
• Kaitlin Niedert posted a game-high 15 kills, swung at a .407 clip, and was involved in three blocks
• Anna Winter hit .370 with 13 kills, while Claire Milnes hit .400 with seven winners and also had a game-high four blocks
• Haley Weepie recorded her sixth 20+ digs game of the season with a game-high 23

• Upper Iowa hit over .300 for the seventh time this season
• The Peacocks matched their season-high 17.0 kills per set average with 51 total kills
• Upper Iowa held a 8.0-1.0 advantage in blocks, its second-highest differential of the season
• UIU has now won seven straight against the Beavers and leads the all-time series 9-2