THIS WEEKEND IN PEACOCK VOLLEYBALL… UIU is back at home for just the second weekend of the season as the calendar rolls into October. The Peacocks host the Wolves of Northern State University on Friday at 6 p.m. and the Dragons of Minnesota State University Moorhead on Saturday at 2 p.m. Upper Iowa heads into the home stand with a three-match win streak, while NSU just snapped a three-match slide with a 3-1 win at home over Minnesota State University, Mankato and MSUM has dropped four straight contests.
LIVE OPTIONS... Fans that can't be in Fayette for this weekend's volleyball matches in Dorman Memorial Gymnasium have several options to follow along in real time. Live stats and a webcast are available through links at UIUPeacocks.com/Live. In addition, the matches can be streamed through most mobile devices at NSICNetwork.com/UIUPeacocks or through the NSIC Network app on Roku and Amazon Fire devices, as well as Apple and Android televisions. The matches will also be broadcast on KCRG 9.2 (delayed till 9:30 p.m.) on Friday and Eastern Iowa's CW 9.3 on Saturday.
GET YOUR TICKETS… Upper Iowa has partnered with HomeTown Ticketing for all of this season's volleyball matches in Dorman. Tickets can be purchased ahead of time at UIUPeacocks.com/Tickets or by paying cash in person prior to the match. Fans are encouraged to stay ahead of the curve this season with the HomeTown Ticketing Fan App available on all mobile device platforms.
DIGITAL MATCHDAY PROGRAM… Digital programs are available to fans in the stadium or at home for both matches. Fans can access the interactive gameday program at any time at
UIUPeacocks.com/Programs. QR Codes will also be located around the lobby to scan with your cell phone's camera that will link you directly to that game's specific digital gameday program.
THREE IN A ROW… The Peacock volleyball team has clawed back to even in the Northern Sun Conference thanks to three straight wins. Upper Iowa has only dropped one set in the last three matches and while the spark may have begun in UIU's four-set loss at home to No. 3 Wayne State College, the team has put together three impressive performances led by their defense. In the last three outings, the Peacocks have forced their opponents into a .040 hitting percentage with only 85 kills and 71 attack errors. Upper Iowa has averaged 16.6 digs/set in the streak and has added to the pressure on their opponents with a 25-7 advantage in service aces.
DIRECTING TRAFFIC… Second year setter
Nicole Pozorski is directing the Peacock attack this season. Her 9.25 assists/set rank ninth in the conference. While her offensive output is solid and consistent, the Eagle, Wis. product has improved her defensive presence this season. Pozorski is averaging 2.85 digs/set and 0.33 blocks/set by getting her hands on more balls to help the team. When the Peacocks are forced out of system,
Kaci Beesecker has stepped up to assist on 35 successful attacks.
MEET ME IN THE MIDDLE… Upper Iowa's deepest position group is their middle blockers. Led by
Zoe Semelroth, the group has combined to record 226 kills in 517 attempts with just 71 errors for a hitting percentage of .300. Semelroth leads the offense with a 2.92 kills/set average, while
Sarah Johnson is fourth on the team at 1.97 kills/set.
Carlee Dove has 14 kills in her four sets on the floor and has not committed an attack error, while
Kylie Willis has nine kills in her 20 swings in two sets. Semelroth has added a team-high 19 service aces, while Johnson (0.78) and Semelroth (0.73) combine for 1.51 blocks per set.
CAUTION – DIG SITE… Beesecker and
Madelyn Rettler lead UIU's back line defense with 200 and 170 digs, respectively. While Rettler adds offense to her stat sheet with kills (2.02/set), Beesecker is able to score at the service line with 16 aces on the season. Beesecker is averaging 4.17 digs/set, which ranks seventh in the NSIC, with a season-high average of 7.0/set coming in UIU's sweep of the University of Illinois Springfield.
GOING OUTSIDE TO PLAY… Maggie Streightiff leads the Peacock outside hitters with a 2.66 kills/set average this season. The Hayfield, Minnesota native is one of five hitters that Upper Iowa has relied on for both hitting and blocking at the net. In addition to Streightiff's offense, UIU is getting 2.02 kills/set from Rettler, 1.92 kills/set from
Emily Kono, 1.69 kills/set from
Kylee Oldenburger and 1.44 kills/set from Lydia Imrogno. As a team, UIU is hitting .188, which ranks eighth in the conference, and is averaging 1.83 blocks/set, which ranks eleventh in the NSIC. To the Peacocks' credit, only three other teams in the NSIC are blocked less than Upper Iowa, whose opponents are only denying 1.53 attacks/set.
SCOUTING THE WOLVES… Northern State enters the weekend with an 8-6 record overall and a 3-3 mark in the Northern Sun. After dropping three straight matches, the Wolves were able to battle at home for a four-set win over Minnesota State last Saturday. NSU is hitting .254 this season and averages 12.8 kills, 11.9 assists, 13.3 digs, 1.9 aces, and 2.2 blocks per match. Sally Gaul has a team-high 180 kills and averages over four kills per set, while Abby Brooks is registering a team-high .339 hitting percentage. The offense runs through Keri Walker, while the defense is shaded to push through the hands of Madison Langlie.
SCOUTING THE DRAGONS… The Dragons are 5-9 on the season and 2-4 in the Northern Sun. MSU Moorhead has lost four straight matches, but were sitting with an even record prior to the slide. The Dragons are hitting .163 on offense with 10.4 kills/set. Defensively, MSUM is putting their hands on 16.3 digs/set and adding 1.9 blocks/set making it difficult for opponents to score points in bunches on the Dragons. Bridget Witzmann leads the team in kills with 171, followed by Jadyn Feist with 99. Emily Shalicky leads the team in assists with 346, while Tori Thompson leads the team in blocks with 36.
ON THE HORIZON… The Peacocks have a busy week with three Northern Sun Conference matches including a quick road trip to Winona State University for a Tuesday night affair with the Warriors in Winona, Minn. on Oct. 4. Upper Iowa will then head to Minnesota for a pair of NSIC matches at St. Cloud State University on Friday, Oct. 7 and at the University of Minnesota Duluth on Saturday, Oct. 8.
