UNIVERSITY OF NORTHERN IOWA ATHLETIC COMMUNICATIONS UNI PANTHERS

UNI PANTHERSUNIVERSITY OF NORTHERN IOWA ATHLETIC COMMUNICATIONS

Upper NW UNI-Dome • Cedar Falls, Iowa • 50614-0314 • unipanthers.comColin McDonough (319-273-5456) • Kara Moran (319-273-5455) • Laurie Wild (319-273-3642)

Fax (319-273-3602)

2010 UNI VOLLEYBALLNov. 30, 2010; Release #15

1 • UNI VOLLEYBALL

THIS WEEK IN PANTHER VOLLEYBALL

2010 Schedule/Results (30-2, 18-0 MVC)Aug. 27-28 at Mortar Board Premier, West Lafayette, Ind.Aug. 27 vs. Central Michigan W, 3-0Aug. 28 vs. Western Kentucky W, 3-0 at Purdue W, 3-2Sept. 3-4 at Diet Coke Classic, Minneapolis, Minn.Sept. 3 vs. No. 20 Dayton L, 3-2Sept. 4 at No. 8 Minnesota W, 3-2 vs. Baylor W, 3-2Sept. 8 at Iowa State L, 3-0Sept. 10-11 at Kansas Invitational, Lawrence, Kan.Sept. 10 vs. Arkansas - Little Rock W, 3-0 at Kansas W, 3-2Sept. 11 vs. Winthrop W, 3-0Sept. 17 vs. Missouri State * W, 3-0Sept. 18 vs. Wichita State * W, 3-0Sept. 24 at Creighton * W, 3-1Sept. 25 at Drake * W, 3-1Oct. 1 vs. Evansville* W, 3-1Oct. 2 vs. Southern Illinois * W, 3-0Oct. 6 vs. South Dakota State W, 3-0Oct. 8 vs. Bradley * W, 3-0Oct. 14 at Illinois State * W, 3-0Oct. 15 at Indiana State * W, 3-1Oct. 22 vs. Drake * W, 3-1Oct. 23 vs. Creighton * W, 3-0Oct. 29 at Southern Illinois * W, 3-0Oct. 30 at Evansville * W, 3-0Nov. 5 at Bradley * W, 3-0Nov. 7 at Notre Dame W, 3-0Nov. 12 vs. Indiana State * W, 3-0Nov. 13 vs. Illinois State * W, 3-1Nov. 19 at Wichita State * W, 3-1Nov. 20 at Missouri State* W, 3-0Nov. 26 vs. Illinois State& W, 3-0Nov. 27 vs. Creighton& W, 3-1Dec. 3 vs. Missouri ^ 8 p.m.Dec. 4 vs. Winner of Arizona vs. Northwestern^ 4 p.m. ^ NCAA Tournament match*Missouri Valley Conference match& State Farm Missouri Valley Conference Tournament match All times central Home matches in bold and played at McLeod Center

UNI Athletics Media RelationsAssistant AD/Athletic Communications: Colin McDonoughOffice Phone: 319-273-5456Media Relations Assistant (VB Contact): Laurie WildOffice Phone: 319-273-3642Cell Phone: 563-880-0868Email: [email protected]

Fri. Dec. 3 vs. Missouri 8 p.m.Sat. Dec. 4 vs. Northwestern/Arizona 4 p.m.

The No. 10 University of Northern Iowa volleyball team (30-2, 18-0 MVC) earned the No. 5 overall seed in the tournament and will face Missouri in the first round of the NCAA Volleyball Championships Fri., Dec. 3 at the McLeod Center. The winner of Friday’s match will face the winner of the Northwestern and Arizona match on Sat., Dec. 4 at 4 p.m.

Matches will be broadcast by KWLO 1330 AM. Eric Braley will provide play-by-play, and Chris Mahi will serve as color commentator. The NCAA will also stream live video content on its website free of charge.

PANTHER QUICK SETS...• This is UNI’s fifth consecutive appearance in the NCAA tournament, and 16th appearance in the program’s his-tory. The Panthers have an overall NCAA tournament record of 12-15. UNI has won its first round match seven of the last nine times it has made the tournament (1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2006 and 2009), advancing to the Sweet 16 in 1999, 2001 and 2002. The Panthers have lost their first round NCAA match just six times.

• This mark’s UNI’s eighth trip to the NCAA Tournament under 11th-year head coach Bobbi Petersen. UNI is 7-7 in the NCAA Tournament under Petersen’s reign, including two trips to the Sweet 16.

• UNI is 6-0 hosting NCAA Tournament matches. This marks the fifth time UNI will host first and second round NCAA Tournament matches as the Panthers have hosted in 1994, 1995, 2001 and 2002. However, this is the first time the Panthers will host in the McLeod Center having hosted the previous contests in the West Gym.

• UNI earned an automatic berth into the NCAA Tournament by winning its 15th Missouri Valley Conference Tournament title. The Panthers topped Creighton 3-1 in the finals to earn the MVC’s automatic bid.

• UNI holds a 10-4-3 advantage over Missouri in the all-time series, winning the last five matches. The last time the two teams met was in the second round of 2002 NCAA Tournament when UNI came from behind to top the Tigers 3-2 in the West Gym.

• UNI earned its 15th MVC Tournament title and second-straight last weekend. UNI’s 15 titles matches the number of titles by the rest of the league combined as Illinois State has nine titles, Missouri State has four and Wichita State has won once.

• 2010 marks the fourth MVC regular season championship for the Panthers under head coach Bobbi Petersen and the 14th overall.

SIDE BOXES: -- One point solid frame-- Inset spacing Op3 all-around-- Drop Shadow: Opacity, 70%; X and Y offset, Op4-- Swatches -- Paper, not none

Text in Boxes: Garamond, what-ever size fits and looks adequate

TENTATIvE UNI LINEUPNo. Pos. Name Ht. Yr. Hometown KPS Att.% DPS BPS PTS10 OH AmyBraun 5-10 So. Lakeville,Minn. 2.48 .161 3.69 0.33 323.017 OH BethDischer 6-0 Sr. Grimes,Iowa 2.92 .245 0.56 0.39 324.015 MB ShelbyKintzel 6-3 RFr. MountVernon,Iowa 2.13 .255 0.41 0.81 274.016 MB MichelleBurrow 6-1 Jr. Lincoln,Neb. 3.16 .353 0.65 0.63 410.518 MB KristaDeGeest 6-2 So. Spencer,Iowa 2.53 .347 0.23 1.08 357.52 S BrePayton 5-9 Jr. Waterloo,Iowa 1.96 .268 2.77 11.16* 273.51 L EllieBlankenship 5-10 Sr. CedarRapids,Iowa 0.06 .263 5.47 0.00 38.0 *Assistspergame

2010 NCAA ChampionshipFirst and Second Rounds • Dec. 3-4, 2010

Cedar Falls, Iowa • McLeod Center


2010 UNI Volleyball Quick Facts

School ........................................ University of Northern IowaNickname .................................................................. PanthersColors .......................................................Purple and Old GoldEnrollment ...................................................................13,201President ...................................................Dr. Benjamin AllenDirector of Athletics ............................................ Troy Dannen

Head Coach .....................................Bobbi Petersen (UNI '90)Record at UNI ........................................... 289-75 (11th Year)Overall Record ................................................................ SameOffice: ..............................................................319-273-7170Assistant Coaches .........................................Kalani Mahi, Kim DavisVolunteer Asst. ................................................... Kekaila PaleaAdministrative Asst. ......................................Michelle CoulterAthletic Trainer ...................................................Megan Brady

2010 UNI Volleyball RosterNo. Name Yr. Pos. Ht. Hometown/HighSchool1 EllieBlankenship Sr. L 5-10 CedarRapids,Iowa/Kennedy2 BrePayton Jr. S 5-9 Waterloo,Iowa/Columbus3 MollyTurk RFr. S 5-10 Elgin,Ill./BurlingtonCentral4 JennyWillms RFr. DS 5-7 Dike,Iowa/Dike-NewHartford8 MeganLehman So. OH 6-1 NewHampton,Iowa/NewHampton9 BrittanyNelson Fr. OH 5-9 IowaCity,Iowa/CityHigh10 AmyBraun So. OH 5-10 Lakeville,Minn./North11 MacyUbben RFr. OH 6-2 Ackley,Iowa/AGWSR12 AnnaWernimont Fr. DS 5-5 Atlantic,Iowa/Atlantic13 ChelseaSaunders Jr. DS 5-11 FlowerMound,Texas/Marcus14 ErycaHingtgen Fr. OH 5-10 Fairbank,Iowa/WapsieValley15 ShelbyKintzel RFr. MB 6-3 MountVernon,Iowa/MountVernon16 MichelleBurow Jr. MB 6-1 Lincoln,Neb./Norris17 BethDischer Sr. OH 6-0 Grimes,Iowa/DallasCenter-Grimes18 KristaDeGeest So. MB 6-2 Spencer,Iowa/Spencer19 CandiceBurke So. DS 5-6 Waterloo,Iowa/East

HeadCoach:BobbiPetersen(UNI‘90)AssistantCoaches:KalaniMahi(Graceland’87),KimDavis(UNI‘02)VolunteerAssistant:KekailaPaleaAdministrativeAssistant:MichelleCoulterAthleticTrainer:MeganBrady

HEAD COACH BOBBI PETERSEN

11th SeasonRecord at UNI: 289-75Career Record: Same

When thinking about the tradition-filled history of UNI volleyball, few names jump out like Bobbi Petersen’s. A former standout on the court for UNI – and arguably the greatest player in the school’s history – she has continued her connection with the Purple and Old Gold as both an assistant coach, and as head coach. Under her guidance, she has taken UNI volleyball from its usual standard of excellence to a tier with the nation’s elite programs. Now in her 11th year as the Panthers head coach, Petersen has posted an impressive 289-75 record at the helm of UNI’s program, with three Missouri Valley Conference regular season titles, five MVC tournament crowns and two NCAA Sweet 16 appearances to her credit. She ranks in the top 10 of active Division I coaches in winning percentage (.780), with the Panthers winning 20 or more matches nine of her ten years as head coach. During her tenure as head coach, Petersen has helped 27 student-ath-letes earn first-team All-Missouri Valley Conference honors, including coaching four conference players of the year. She has also placed at least one student-athlete on the league’s all-freshman team each of the past six years. In addition, she has helped six athletes earn AVCA All-District honors, with Molly O’Brien earning third team AVCA All-America honors in 2002 and Bre Payton and Ellie Blankenship earning All-America Honorable Mention accolades. Academically, the Panthers have shined under Petersen’s guidance as well. A total of 20 players have earned first-team Missouri Valley Conference Scholar-Athlete honors during her time at the helm, with two players earning CoSIDA Academic All-America honors. 2009 was a record-breaking season for the Panthers, as Petersen led UNI to a perfect 18-0 Missouri Valley Conference season and regular-season and tournament championships. UNI finished with a 31-3 overall mark, going 29 straight matches without a loss, the second-longest win streak in the nation. UNI advanced to the NCAA Tournament for the 15th time in program history. The Panthers advanced to the second round with a 3-0 win over Washington State in the first round of the tournament before falling to eventual Elite Eight team Nebraska. Petersen was named the Missouri Valley Conference Coach of the Year, her second time claiming the honor. Seven Panthers picked up conference hon-ors, including MVC Player of the Year and MVC Tournament MVP Bre Payton and MVC Freshman of the Year Amy Braun. Payton and libero Ellie Blankenship also earned AVCA All-Region and All-America accolades. As a player at UNI from 1986-89, the former Bobbi Becker was a three-time first team all-conference selection and two-time first team all-region pick. Although it has been more than 15 years since she last donned a Panther uni-form, her name still appears on UNI’s top 10 lists in numerous statistical catego-ries. Her 40 kills in a 1989 match against Illinois State not only is tops in UNI history, but also stands as the all-time Missouri Valley/Gateway Conference re-cord. A native of Dike, Iowa, Petersen compiled 1,611 career kills and 1,457 digs during her career. In 1992, she was voted UNI’s Gateway Conference Volleyball Athlete of the Decade. In 2006, she was further honored by being voted to the Missouri Valley Conference All-Centennial volleyball team. A former standout as a Panther player, Petersen replaced the legendary Iradge Ahrabi-Fard as head coach when he retired in 2001. It marked the second time she had replaced Ahrabi-Fard; she served as interim head coach in 1997, going 18-9 while he was serving as a consultant to USA Volleyball. Petersen earned her bachelor’s degree in therapeutic recreation in 1990 and her master’s from UNI in physical education in 1992. She served as a gradu-ate assistant with the Panthers in 1990 and, after completing her master’s, was employed as a therapeutic recreation specialist in Fort Smith, Ark., and Fort Dodge, Iowa. Petersen and her husband, Duane, reside in Dike with their two sets of twin daughters, Baylee and Sydney (10), and Jadyn and Payton (4).

UNI VS. THE NCAA FIELD10 of UNI’s 30 wins this season have come against teams selected to play in the 2010 NCAA Championships. UNI posted wins over Purdue, Western Kentucky, Minnesota, Missouri State (twice), Wichita State (twice) and Creigh-ton (three times). In contrast, UNI has just two losses to NCAA teams falling to Iowa State and Dayton. Two of UNI’s 10 wins came over seeded teams in the tournament with a win over No. 10-seeded Minnesota and No. 16-seeded Purdue. Dayton earned the No. 14 seed.

PANTHERS ON THE MVC ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAMEllie Blankenship, Amy Braun and Bre Payton each earned a spot on the 2010 State Farm MVC Championships All-Tournament team. Blankenship was also named Most Valuable Player of the tournament.

PETERSEN NAMED COACH OF THE YEARUNI head coach Bobbi Petersen earned her third Missouri Valley Conference Coach of the Year honor after guiding the Panthers to their second-straight undefeated season in Valley play. The Panthers own the longest active con-ference winning streak in the nation, having won 36-straight MVC regular-season matches. Petersen also earned the award in 2006 and 2009.

PAYTON EARNS VALLEY PLAYER OF THE YEAR HONORSJunior setter Bre Payton was named Missouri Valley Conference Player of the Year for the second season in a row. Payton is the 10th UNI player to earn the honor. She ranks in the top-20 in the Valley in assists, aces and hitting percentage. She is the only player in the Valley to register a triple-double in 2010, totaling five this season and 12 for her career, the most of any Panther in school history.

BLANKENSHIP NAMED MVC LIBERO OF THE YEAREllie Blankenship was named Missouri Valley Conference Libero of the Year for the first time in her career. Blanken-ship, one of the league’s most consistent back row players, ranks second in the conference with 5.37 digs per set, helping the Panthers to the nation’s ninth-best digs per set total. . She is the first UNI player to win the league’s


AVCA Coaches PollWeek of Nov. 29

RankSchool (1st Place Votes) Total Points 2010 Record Last Week1 Florida(55) 1486 27-1 12 Stanford(2) 1420 24-3 43 Nebraska(1) 1364 27-2 54 California(2) 1311 25-3 25 SouthernCalifornia 1243 25-4 66 Texas 1164 23-5 87 Hawai’i 1137 27-2 38 PennState 1112 26-5 79 UCLA 994 21-8 910 NorthernIowa 930 31-2 1111 Washington 848 21-8 1312 Minnesota 808 24-8 1513 Dayton 780 27-3 1214 Illinois 693 22-8 1015 LSU 626 25-4 1716 IowaState 566 20-8 1617 ColoradoState 537 25-4 1418 SanDiego 520 23-5 1819 Tennessee 387 24-6 2120 Arizona 351 20-11 2021 Cincinnati 296 29-5 2222 Tulsa 238 30-2 2323 Michigan 195 23-9 19T-24CalStateFullerton 126 26-5 25T-24Purdue 126 21-10 NROthers Receiving Votes and appearing on two or more ballots: Oregon 79; Long Beach State 34; Duke 28; St. Mary’s (Calif.) 22; Pepperdine 19; Oklahoma 18; Ohio State 13; Louisville 12; Northwestern 11; Middle Tennessee 7Dropped Out: Oregon (25)

Previous PollsAVCAPreseasonPoll:UNI-No.24AVCAAug.30Poll:UNI-No.22AVCASept.6Poll:UNI-No.18AVCASept.13Poll:UNI-No.17AVCASept.20Poll:UNI-No.16AVCASept.27Poll:UNI-No.15AVCAOct.4Poll:UNI-No.14AVCAOct.11Poll:UNI-No.14AVCAOct.18Poll:UNI-No.14AVCAOct.25Poll:UNI-No.13AVCANov.1Poll:UNI-No.13AVCANov.8Poll:UNI-No.12AVCANov.16Poll:UNI-No.12AVCANov.22Poll:UNI-No.11

Libero of the Year honor.

BUROW, DISCHER, DEGEEST ALSO LAND SPOTS ON FIRST TEAM ALL-CONFERENCEMichelle Burow, Beth Discher and Krista DeGeest also earned Missouri Valley Conference first team all-conference honors. Burow leads the Panther offensive attack, ranking first on the team in kills (338), kills per set (3.16) and attack percentage (.357). Discher ranks second in the team in kills (283) and kills per set (2.95) while also ranking ninth in kills in MVC play. The senior had a string of six matches with double-digit kill numbers including four straight matches of hitting .300 or better. DeGeest earned a first-team all-conference spot after becoming the only Panther to register more than 100 kills and 100 blocks in 2010. DeGeest is averaging 2.52 kills per set and 1.09 blocks per set, ranking her second in the league in blocks and 16th in kills.

KINTZEL NAMED TO ALL-FRESHMAN TEAMShelby Kintzel earned her first all-conference honors of her career, landing a spot on the All-Freshman team. Kintzel is averaging 2.05 kills per set while hitting at a .243 clip. The Mount Vernon, Iowa native registered a career-high 15 kills vs. Evansville. She also ranks second on the team in blocks, averaging 0.80 blocks per set.

MAKE IT SEVEN PERFECT SEASONSThe Panthers recorded their seventh undefeated conference season with an 18-0 record in MVC play. Just four teams in the history of the Missouri Valley Conference and its predecessor, the Gateway Conference, have recorded perfect conference seasons. UNI has more undefeated conference seasons than the rest of the league combined, owning seven perfect conference seasons while Wichita State, Missouri State and Illinois State have combined for five undefeated seasons.

THAT’S NUMBER 14UNI clinched its second consecutive Missouri Valley Conference regular-season title, again finishing with an 18-0 record. UNI has won 14 regular-season league titles, winning the crown in 1986, 1987, 1988, 1990, 1991, 1994, 1995, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2006, 2009 and 2010.

DISCHER, BUROW EARN MVC SCHOLAR-ATHLETE HONORSBeth Discher and Michelle Burow each earned places on the Missouri Valley Conference Scholar-Athlete teams. Discher earned a place on the first team while Burow garnered honorable mention honors. Discher, who holds a 4.00 GPA as a graduate student in accounting, was a unanimous selection to the first team. Discher was also a first team selection in 2009. This marks the second season Burow has earned honorable mention honors. The Lincoln, Neb. native holds a 3.48 GPA with a double major in statistics and actuarial science and finance.

JUST ANOTHER TRIPLE-DOUBLE NIGHTBre Payton recorded her sixth triple-double of the season and 13th of her career against Creighton in the MVC Tournament final, knocking down 12 kills, dishing out 45 assists and grabbing 18 digs. Payton’s 13 triple-doubles are the most of any Panther in school history and the most by any player in the history of the Missouri Valley Conference.

THE STATS DON’T LIEUNI ranks in the top ten nationally in four statistical categories. UNI ranks first in kills per set (15.26), second in winning percentage (.938), fifth in assists per set (14.10) and eighth in digs per set (18.60). The Panthers also rank in the top 25 in hitting percentage with a team efficiency of .260, ranking them 24th. Individually, Ellie Blanken-ship ranks 15th in digs per set (5.47) and Bre Payton ranks 27th in assists per set (11.16).

ROAD WARRIORSPlaying on the road has become the norm for the Panthers during the regular season as they played 20 of their 30 matches away from Cedar Falls. UNI is an impressive 13-1 in true road contests and 5-1 in neutral court contests. In addition, the Panthers won 13 straight matches on the road this season.

THE MCLEOD ADVANTAGEWith the Panthers wins over Illinois State and Creighton in the MVC Tournament UNI completed a perfect 11-0 record in the McLeod Center. The last time the Panthers lost inside the McLeod Center was Sept. 2, 2009 against Iowa State. UNI has now won 22 consecutive matches at home.

ELITE COMPANYWith her 2,622 career digs, Ellie Blankenship is just the eighth player in Division I history to record over 2,500 career digs. Currently, Blankenship ranks second among active players for career digs and is on track to challenge

Weekly Award WinnersMissouri Valley Conference Player of the WeekAug.30-BrePaytonSept.7-MichelleBurowNov.1-AmyBraun

Missouri Valley Conference Defensive Player of the WeekSept.7-EllieBlankenshipSept.27-EllieBlankenshipOct.25-EllieBlankenship

Missouri Valley Conference Freshman of the WeekSept.20-ShelbyKintzel

CVU.com Top PerformerSept.2-BrePaytonSept.27-EllieBlankenshipNov.9-BrePayton


Missouri Valley Conference StandingsAs of 11/22

MVC OVERALL VS. TOP 25TEAM W L PCT. W L PCT. W L STRK.UNI 18 0 1.000 28 2 .933 1 2 W23WSU 14 4 .778 21 6 .778 0 0 W1CU 13 5 .722 18 10 .643 0 1 W3MSU 12 6 .667 21 8 .724 0 0 L1DU 8 10 .444 23 10 .697 0 0 L1ILS 8 10 .444 18 13 .581 0 1 W1UE 6 12 .333 17 13 .567 0 0 W1SIU 5 13 .278 14 14 .500 0 0 L6INS 3 15 .167 11 20 .355 0 0 L3BU 3 15 .167 8 23 .258 0 0 L2

2010 STATE FARM MVCVOLLEYBALL CHAMPIONSHIP

McLeod Center • Cedar Falls, Iowa • UNI, host

Thursday, November 25 - QuarterfinalsNo. 3 Creighton def. No. 6 Drake ........ .....................................................3-1No. 5 Illinios State def. No. 4 Missouri State .............................................3-1Friday, November 26 - SemifinalsNo. 3 Creighton def. No. 2 Wichita State ...................................................3-1No. 1 UNI def. No. 5 Illinois State ........... ..................................................3-0Saturday, November 27 - FinalNo. 1 UNI def. No. 3 Creighton .................. .............................................3-1

MVC All-Tournament TeamWhitney Westrum, Drake

LeighAnn Hranka, Illinois StateBethany Fuller, Missouri StateCameo Zweisler, Wichita State

Allie Oelke, CreightonNayka Benitez, Creighton

Amy Braun, UNIBre Payton, UNI

Ellie Blankenship, UNI (MVP)

for a spot in the all-time top 10 for career digs.

A GOOD STRING OF GOOD HITTINGThe Panthers have hit .200 or better for 20-straight matches and 25 out of 32 matches this season. UNI posted a season-best .455 efficiency against Evansville (10/30). UNI is a perfect 24-0 when hitting .200 or better. UNI’s two losses of the season have come when the Panthers have failed to hit better than .200.

NOT A BAD FOUR YEARSIn four years on the court seniors Ellie Blankenship, Beth Discher and Chelsea Saunders have a combined record of 108-25, including a 63-9 record in league play the last four seasons. In addition, they have captured three MVC Tournament titles, two regular season titles and advanced to four-straight NCAA Tournaments.

DISCHER EARNS ACADEMIC ALL-DISTRICT HONORSSenior Beth Discher has been named to the CoSIDA/ESPN Academic All-District VII First team. The senior holds a perfect 4.0 in graduate school and graduated with a 3.91 GPA in accounting.

CRACKING THE TOP 10UNI moved up one spot in the American Volleyball Coaches Association Coaches’ Poll this week, cracking the top 10 and coming in at No. 10. This is the highest the Panthers have been ranked since the 2003 season. UNI was ranked as high as No. 6 that year.

DOUBLE-DOUBLE TROUBLEBetween Bre Payton and Amy Braun the Panthers have had a player finish with a double-double in 15 of the Panthers’ 18 MVC matches this season, including three matches with Payton and Braun each recording a double-double. Payton has finished with 10 double-doubles in MVC play while Braun has notched five.

BRAUN EARNS MVC HONORSSophomore Amy Braun was named Missouri Valley Conference Player of the Week after her performance against Southern Illinois and Evansville (10/29-30). Braun was key on both the offensive and defensive end in the Pan-thers’ two wins, averaging 4.17 kills per set and 3.67 digs per set while hitting .478. Against Southern Illinois, the sophomore just missed reaching a double-double, hammering down 10 kills on .400 hitting while also snagging nine digs and chipping in two solo blocks. Against Evansville, Braun notched her seventh double-double of the season hammering down a match-high 15 kills on .538 hitting and snagging 13 digs. JUST ANOTHER 30 WIN SEASON

Double-Double and Triple-Double Club2010 Double-DoublesPlayer K-D K-A K-B A-D TotalAmy Braun 9 -- -- -- 9Michelle Burow -- -- 1 -- 1Bre Payton -- -- -- 16 16

Career Double-DoublesPlayer K-D K-A K-B A-D TotalAmy Braun 19 -- -- -- 19Bre Payton -- -- -- 34 34Michelle Burow -- -- 1 -- 1

Career Triple-DoublesPlayerBre Payton 13 total at. Texas A&M (11 kills, 27 assists, 14 digs) vs. Iowa State (11 kills, 29 assists, 10 digs) at. Creighton (12 kills, 42 assists, 21 digs) vs. Missouri State (11 kills, 43 assists, 13 digs) at. Wichita State (11 kills, 36 assists, 16 digs) vs. Drake (17 kills, 46 assists, 11 digs) at Creighton (11 kills, 34 assists, 12 digs) at. Purdue (14 kills, 41 assists, 12 digs) vs. Dayton (11 kills, 51 assists, 16 digs) at. Minnesota (10 kills, 50 assists, 13 digs) vs. Baylor (14 kills, 45 assists, 15 digs) vs. Illinois State (11 kills, 41 assists, 12 digs) vs. Creighton (12 kills, 45 assists, 18 digs)


With UNI’s win over Illinois State in the final of the MVC Tournament, UNI picked up its 30th win of the season. This is the second consecutive season the Panthers have recorded back-to-back 30 win seasons, and the fourth time in the last ten years. UNI has recorded 10 30 win seasons in program history, reaching the benchmark in 1980, 1981, 1982, 1986, 1987,1999, 2001, 2002, 2009 and 2010. Earlier this season, in the Panthers’ sweep of Creighton (10/23), UNI picked up its 20th win this season. During Bobbi Petersen’s tenure, the Panthers have recorded 20 wins in 10 of her 11 seasons as head coach. This is the 13th straight season the Panthers have posted a 20-win season with UNI having claimed at least 20 victories in 23 of the past 25 seasons.

BLANKENSHIP DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK...AGAINEllie Blankenship earned Missouri Valley Conference Defensive Player of the Week honors three times during the 2010 regular-season. Blankenship earned MVC honors the week of Sept. 7, Sept. 27 and Oct. 25. Blankenship’s three honors are the most of any defensive player in the MVC.

KEEPIN’ THE STREAK ALIVEThe Panthers have three active winning streaks as they are currently riding a 25-match winning streak this season, a 36-match regular season Missouri Valley Conference streak and 22-straight home match win streak. Including MVC Tournament matches, UNI has not lost to a conference opponent in 40 consecutive matches. UNI’s conference winning streak is the longest in the nation and their current home court streak is tied for seventh best.

A PRETTY GOOD RUNSince the start of the 2009 season UNI has posted a record of 61-5. During those 66 matches the Panthers have lost just 47 sets. In addition, UNI has swept its opponent 37 times while being swept just twice during that span.

BLANKENSHIP NAMED LOWE’S SENIOR CLASS AWARD FINALISTUNI’s Ellie Blankenship has been named as one of 10 finalists for the Lowe’s Senior CLASS Award. To be eligible for the award, a student-athlete must be classified as an NCAA Division I senior and have notable achievements in four areas of excellence - community, classroom, character and competition. Fans can vote online for Blankenship by visiting www.seniorclassaward.com. The winner will be determined by votes from media and coaches as well as the fan vote.

RPI RELEASEDIn the final RPI released by the NCAA UNI came in at No. 4. The Panthers faced eight opponents ranked in the top 40 of the sixth RPI, picking up wins over Minnesota (7), Purdue (15), Wichita State (20), Creighton (29), Western Kentucky (33) and Missouri State (40) while falling to Dayton (9) and Iowa State (24).

HOME SWEET MCLEODThe Panthers have a solid home court advantage in the McLeod Center, posting a 43-7 record in the arena. UNI played its final regular season match of the 2006 season in the McLeod Center, topping Bradley. UNI finished 2007 with a 9-4 home record, 2008 with a 12-2 record, 2009 with a 10-1 mark and is a perfect 11-0 in the McLeod Center this season. In addition, UNI has lost just four league matches inside the McLeod Center.

NCAA DIGS PANTHERSThe Panthers earned some time in the national spotlight with NCAA.com featuring an article on Ellie Blankenship. The article, “Blankenship Digs Panthers’ Success” was written by Jerry Trickie and can be found at http://www.ncaa.com/blog/womens-volleyball/2010/10/blankenship-digs-panthers-succ.html

PAYTON DOES IT ALLBre Payton proved her versatility in UNI’s wins over Drake and Creighton (10/22-23), finishing with a double-double in each match. In the Panthers’ win over Drake, Payton finished with 50 assists and 10 digs while also

2010 Division I Women’s Volleyball AttendanceBy Average

No. School Avg. Total #1. Hawai’i 6,136 116,584 192. Nebraska 4,712 61,258 133. Wisconsin 3,737 52,323 144. PennState 3,333 46,657 145. Minnesota 3,055 48,873 166. Washington 3,019 33,213 117. Stanford 2,721 29,927 118. Florida 2,691 40,363 159. Texas 2,557 40,916 1610. WichitaState 2,501 30,014 1211. MichiganState 2,279 38,742 1712. NewMexico 2,232 33,480 1513. Illinois 2,171 28,221 1314. ColoradoState 2,153 32,290 1515. NorthernIowa 2,065 24,785 1216. Purdue 2,062 32,992 1617. Missouri 2,000 24,005 1218. KansasState 1,994 27,920 1419. IowaState 1,860 27,907 1520. USC 1,649 21,440 1321. Michigan 1,504 19,554 1322. NewMexicoState 1,476 16,241 1123. TexasA&M 1,474 20,643 1424. TCU 1,317 18,437 1425. Kentucky 1,316 22,370 17

2010 Top Match Attendances (UNI’s matches in top 100)1. 11,892 Illinoisvs.Nebraska,9/112. 7,866 SouthernCalatHawai’i,9/53. 7,040 SanJoseStateatHawai’i,10/154. 6,927 BYUatHawai’i,9/185. 6,824 MichiganatMichiganState,11/2432. 4,535 Northern Iowa at Minnesota, 9/4

Panthers in NCAA Statistics (as of 11/27)KillsPerSet 1st 15.26AssistsPerSet 5th 14.10DigsPerSet 8th 18.60MatchW-LPctg. 2nd 0.938HittingPercentage 24th 0.260BlocksPerSet 115th 2.11

IndividualDigsPerSetEllieBlankenship 15th 5.47AmyBraun 230th 3.69

IndividualAssistsPerSetBrePayton 27th 11.16

IndividualBlocksPerSetKristaDeGeest 95th 1.08

IndividualHittingPercentageMichelleBurow 48th 0.353KristaDeGeest 59th 0.347

IndividualKillsPerSetMichelleBurow 201st 3.16

NCAA Active Career Digs LeadersName, School Year Sets Digs1. Allison Nieters , Iona Sr. 457 2,682 2. Ellie Blankenship , UNI Sr. 470 2,622 3. Alana Wittenburg, Drake Sr. 490 2,423T4. Julie Hershkowitz , High Point Sr. 485 2,399 T4. Tracey Lam , Rice Sr. 458 2,399


chipping in five kills. In UNI’s win over Creighton, Payton just missed registering a triple-double, finishing with 31 assists, 18 digs and nine kills. Payton has registered 11 double-doubles this season while also finishing with four triple-doubles.

A DEFENSIVE EFFORTFor a string of four matches the Panther defense held their opponent to under .120 hitting percentage. UNI held South Dakota State to just .117 hitting followed by a .104 attack percentage for Bradley. UNI then held Illinois State to a .110 clip before holding Indiana State to just .101 hitting. Over the course of the season, UNI is holding opponents to just .167 hitting including a league-best .147 in MVC action.

A BALANCED ATTACKUNI features a completely balanced offensive attack, as six players have registered more than 100 kills this season including five players over 200. Michelle Burow leads the way (360) followed by Beth Discher (301), Krista DeGeest (288), Amy Braun (283), Shelby Kintzel (224) and Bre Payton (221).

WHAT CAN BRAUN DO FOR YOU?Amy Braun proved to be a playmaker on both the offensive and defensive end in the Panthers’ wins over Evansville and Southern Illinois (10/01-02). The sophomore finished with a team-high 26 kills and 32 digs. Braun averaged 3.71 kills per set and 4.57 digs per set over the course of the two matches. The Lakeville, Minn. native ham-mered down a career-high 17 kills and picked up 19 digs en route to her fifth double-double of the season in the Panthers’ win over Evansville. In UNI’s win over Southern Illinois, Braun was just short of her sixth double-double, picking up 13 digs and registering nine kills.

CONFERENCE LEADERSOverall, UNI leads the league in hitting percentage (.256), assists (13.97) and kills (15.17) in the Panthers 30 matches this season. In conference play, UNI leads the league in hitting percentage (.282), opponent hitting percentage (.149) assists (14.43) and kills (15.79).

BLANKENSHIP IN THE SPOTLIGHTEllie Blankenship earned national recognition after her performance against Creighton and Drake (9/24-25), being named a CVU.com Top Performer. Top performers are players who were finalists for the weekly honor and others who had exceptional individual matches. Blankenship led the Panther defense in the Panthers’ two wins, picking up 53 digs while averaging 6.62 digs per set.

CAREER NIGHT FOR BURKESophomore Candice Burke matched her career-high digs number in the Panthers’ win over Creighton (9/24), recording 20 digs. Burke’s 20 digs helped the Panther defense hold the Bluejays to just a .120 attack percentage. Burke also added two service aces in the win.

A FORCE AT THE NETKrista DeGeest was a force at the net for the Panthers against Drake and Creighton (9/24-25) averaging 1.62 blocks per set. The sophomore recorded 13 blocks over the course of the two matches, including seven against Creighton and six against Drake.

LOVIN’ THE HOME CROWDFor the 2010 season UNI ranks No. 15 in home attendance, averaging 2,065 fans. The Panthers ranked No. 16th in home attendance in 2009, averaging 1,958 fans per contest.

REWRITING RECORDSEllie Blankenship has made a habit of rewriting record books in her time as a Panther, most recently breaking the Missouri Valley Conference record for individual career digs. In the Panthers’ sweep of Missouri State Blankenship set a new MVC record for career digs and then added to that number against Wichita State. Blankenship’s 2,228 career digs surpassed the previous record of 2,202 digs held by Kelly Broussard.

KINTZEL NAMED FRESHMAN OF THE WEEKRedshirt freshman Shelby Kintzel was named MVC Freshman of the Week after her performance in the Panthers’ wins over Missouri State and Wichita State (9/17-18). Kintzel was a force on the offensive end, hitting a combined .323 over the course of the weekend. In the Panthers’ sweep of Missouri State, Kintzel finished with eight kills and hit .357 for the match. Against the Shockers, Kintzel hammered down six kills while hitting .294. For the weekend Kintzel finished with 14 kills (2.33 kills per set) and six blocks (1.00 blocks per set).

FINALISTEllie Blankenship

University of Northern Iowa senior Ellie Blankenship has been named one of 10 finalists for the Lowe’s Senior CLASS Award. To be eligible for the award, a student-athlete must be classified as an NCAA Division I senior and have notable achievements in four areas of excellence – community, classroom, character and competition.

The finalists were chosen by a media committee from the list of 30 candidates that was announced in August. Nationwide fan voting begins immediately to determine the winner. Fans are encouraged to vote via the Lowe’s Senior CLASS Award website through November 23. Fan votes will be combined with media and coaches votes to determine the winner. To vote visit www.seniorclassaward.com.

Player Bio: Ellie BlankenshipClassroomEllie Blankenship was named to the Missouri Valley Conference Honor Roll in 2009 and holds a cumulative grade point average of 3.01 while majoring in management: information systems. Blankenship is also a member of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes, working as a leader to plan and host activities while also holding bi-weekly meetings with group leaders to facilitate planning of activities. In addition to this, she is also a member of the Student Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) at UNI and serves as a representative for the volleyball team. In conjunction with SAAC, Blankenship worked on a committee to organize the annual Junior Panther Day hosted for young, aspiring athletes interested in meeting the Panther athletes. She is also a member of MISA (Management Information Systems Association), which is a club at UNI for management: information systems majors. The club works to bring speakers to campus as well as discuss current issues relating to the major.

CharacterUNI head coach Bobbi Petersen speaks very highly of Blankenship saying, “Ellie has been an exemplary student-athlete at the University of Northern Iowa. In my many years of coaching, I have not had a more gifted student-athlete who has so much to give her team, her university and her community. Ellie was a walk-on student athlete and because of her gifts as an athlete, she found her way onto the court her freshman year as our starting libero. Her talents and her extreme desire and passion to compete have made her one of the best liberos in the country. She not only gets it done on the court, but she is a tremendous student in an extremely com-petitive business program at UNI. Ellie is an incredible leader shown by the fact she has gained the respect of her teammates and coaches by being named a team captain for two consecutive years. Ellie is heavily involved in the community and has also done various world-wide projects. I feel extremely fortunate to not only coach a student-athlete like Ellie, but to also have such a special person and example a part of my life.”

CommunityBlankenship is active in her local community, volunteering at the humane society, Lutheran home, Relay for Life, and the local food bank on a regular basis. During the floods of 2008, she helped sandbag in the city of Cedar Falls in an effort to protect area homes and business from rising flood waters. Later, Blankenship helped beautify the city of Cedar Falls by helping plant trees as a part of the plan to restore the damages done during the flooding and destructive storms. She also helped at the local hospital appreciation breakfast as well as volunteering at the Little Panther Club outings. Finally, Blankenship has participated in the NCAA’s Just Read! Program, visiting local elementary schools to emphasize the importance of reading.

Blankenship has displayed her tremendous character in a number of ways, showing her deep care for others by traveling with her church, Prairie Lakes, to the village of Kwambekenya, Ke-nya, to help the village members with everyday activities and a few bigger projects over spring break. Also, through Friends of Jaclyn Foundation, she adopted a little girl - along with the rest of the UNI volleyball team - who is currently battling a brain tumor. Blankenship and the rest of the team continually visit and take her to various activities throughout the year, including sending her weekly gifts as she battles through her fight with cancer.

CompetitionBlankenship was selected as one of 24 collegiate athletes by USA Volleyball to participate in the U.S. Women’s National A2 program, later helping her team take bronze at the USA Volleyball Open Championships. In 2009, she earned American Volleyball Coaches Association All-America honorable mention honors. Blankenship currently owns the Missouri Valley Conference record for career digs and individual digs in a season. She also holds the UNI record for career digs, digs per set in a career and digs per set in a season. Blankenship was named MVC Defensive Player of the Week three times during her junior season and twice during her sophomore campaign and once so far during the 2010 season. She has posted double-digit digs in 100 of the 101 matches played entering her senior season. In 2009, Blankenship re-set the record for digs in a season with 698 while averaging 5.82 digs per set. She led the Valley in digs while also ranking fourth in service aces (38). Blankenship earned all-conference honors in each of her seasons with the Panthers, being named to the MVC All-Freshman team her first season, second-team All-MVC her sophomore campaign and MVC first-team as well as MVC all-tournament team her junior season.


UNI Career LeadersKills 1,779 Molly O’Brien (2000-03) 1,720 Kate Galer (1993-96) 1,611 Bobbi Becker (1986-89) 1,439 Kim Kester (1999-2002) 1,386 Laura Rowen (2004-07) 1,360 Alex Auker (1997-2000) 1,302 Ashten Stelken (2005-08) 1,272 Kim McCaffrey (1997, 99-2001) 1,239 Shannon Aschoff (2006-09) 1,226 Maryellen McCann (1984-87)

Hitting Percentage (min. 1,000 attempts) .318 Jill Arganbright (2000-03) .315 Molly O’Brien (2000-03) .308 Chris Less (1988-91) .306 Jill Sprague (1985-88) .302 Kara Galer (1992-95) .301 Shari Vermeer (2001-04) .298 Jodi DeVries (1997-99) .297 Stephanie Germann (2002-05) .294 Kate Marovich (1993-96) .292 Kate Galer (1993-96)

Digs 2,622 Ellie Blankenship (2007-present) 1,570 Stephanie May (2003-2006) 1,457 Bobbi Becker (1986-89) 1,368 Kate Galer (1993-96) 1,303 Alex Auker (1997-2000) 1,202 Mary Bernhardt (1984-87) 1,148 Miranda Weber (1999-2002) 1,145 Laura Rowen (2004-07) 1,025 Jill Arganbright (2000-03) 1,015 Kim McCaffrey (1997, 99-2001)

Assists 6,064 Jill Arganbright (2000-03) 4,881 Shannon Perry (1996-99) 4,265 Kara Galer (1992-95) 4,256 Kristin Belzung (2004-07) 3,977 Mary Bernhardt (1984-87) 3,364 Bre Payton (2008-present) 2,780 Bobbie Kreple (1987-90) 1,895 Katie Crowley (1988-91) 1,555 Erin Hirsch (2000-02, ’04)

Service Aces 321 Dawn Meester (1989-92) 234 Bobbi Becker (1986-89) 183 Kari Warren (1983-86) 169 Mary Bernhardt (1984-87) 166 Sylvia Eder (1982-85) 149 Jill Arganbright (2000-03) 146 Maryellen McCann (1984-87) 143 Bobbie Kreple (1987-90) 141 Jill Sprague (1985-88) 128 Kate Galer (1993-96)

AGAINST THE 2009 NCAA TOURNAMENT FIELDUNI is 3-2 this season against 2009 NCAA tournament teams. The Panthers posted wins over Minnesota, who advanced to the Final Four in 2009, Baylor, a Sweet 16 participant, and Wichita State, who advanced to the second round. The Panthers losses have come to Iowa State (Sweet 16) and Dayton (second round).

MVP Ellie Blankenship was named most valuable player at the Kansas Invitational while Amy Braun and Michelle Burow picked up all-tournament accolades as well. Burow has earned all-tournament honors in each of the tournaments the Panthers have played in this season.

TRIPLE-DOUBLE TROUBLEBre Payton has made triple-doubles the norm early this season as the junior has registered triple doubles in the Panthers’ wins over Purdue, Minnesota and Baylor as well as the loss to Dayton. Payton is the first player in Mis-souri Valley Conference history to produce a triple-double in four consecutive matches.

DOUBLE-DOUBLE TROUBLEAmy Braun had a stellar weekend for the Panthers on the offensive and defensive end at the Diet Coke Classic (9/03-04), registering two double-doubles. Braun recorded a career-high 24 digs and 13 kills in the Panthers’ loss to No. 20 Dayton while knocking down 11 kills and grabbing 19 digs in the Panthers’ win over Baylor.

ALL-TOURNAMENT HONORSBre Payton and Michelle Burow were awarded for their efforts at the Diet Coke Classic (9/03/04), both earning a place on the all-tournament team. This is the second consecutive tournament Payton and Burow have earned all-tournament team honors, as the pair was also named to the Mortar Board Premier all-tournament team.

TOUGH DAgainst a group of tough opponents, UNI managed to hold all three of their opponents to under .200 hitting per-centage at the Diet Coke Classic (9/03-04). UNI held No. 20 Dayton and No. 8 Minnesota to .193 hitting percentage while allowing Baylor a .175 hitting percentage.

PICKING UP RIGHT WHERE SHE LEFT OFFJunior setter Bre Payton picked up right where she left off last season, leading the Panthers to three victories at the Mortar Board Premier Tournament (8/27-28). Payton was named Most Valuable Player of the Tournament after registering 30 kills (2.73 per set), dishing out 98 assists (8.91 per set) and grabbing 22 digs. Payton also earned Missouri Valley Conference Player of the Week honors for her efforts.

HOT HITTINGThe Panthers put up impressive hitting numbers in their 3-0 sweep of Western Kentucky (8/28), hitting .398 as a team. Michelle Burow led the way for the Panthers, knocking down 11 kills.

NCAA REGULARSince making its first NCAA tournament appearance in 1986, the Panthers have failed to make the NCAA tourna-ment field just nine times. Three of those years UNI was selected to play in the now defunct National Invitational Volleyball Classic (NIVC), meaning that only six times in the last 24 years have the Panthers failed to make some sort of postseason play.

PETERSEN’S REIGNPanther head coach Bobbi Petersen, in her 11th season at the helm of the UNI volleyball program, has a 289-75 record during her tenure. Her .781 career winning percentage ranks her eighth among active Division I volleyball coaches. Petersen has claimed at least 20 wins in nine of her ten seasons as a head coach, while claiming six Missouri Valley Conference titles with seven NCAA tournament appearances. She was the MVC Coach of the Year in 2009 and 2006, and the 2002 AVCA National Coach of the Year.

WIN STREAKThe Panthers recorded a 29-match win streak during the 2009 season. That is the longest win streak since the 1999 team won 30 consecutive matches. The streak was the second-longest win streak among Division I teams, trailing only Penn State. The Panthers lost only 16 sets during that stretch.

AMONG THE NATION’S ELITE PROGRAMSUNI is just one of 22 college volleyball programs to have won more than 800 matches. The Panthers rank 15th in Division I will 877 school victories.

A WINNING TRADITIONUNI has recorded 25 consecutive winning seasons since the beginning of the 1981 season, ranking them sixth among Division I volleyball programs. The Panthers’ 29 consecutive non-losing seasons (beginning in 1981) cur-rently has them tied for first among Division I programs.

SCOUTING UNI’S NCAA OPPONENTS

Missouri - The Tigers come to the McLeod Center with a 20-10 overall record including a 12-8 record in Big 12 play. The Tigers finished fifth in the Big 12, earn a win over Iowa State in Ames.

UNI and Missouri have faced three common opponents this season including Western Kentucky, Iowa State and Kansas. UNI topped both Western Kentucky (3-0) and Kansas (3-2) while falling to Iowa State. Missouri fell to Western Kentucky (1-3) while splitting its matches with Kansas (W 3-0, L 1-3) and Iowa State (L 1-3, W 3-1)

UNI holds a 10-4-3 advantage in the all-time series, having won the last five meetings. The Panthers have never lost to Missouri in Cedar Falls.

Northwestern - The Wildcats come into the weekend with a record of 19-12 and 9-11 in the Big Ten. The Wild-cats finished tied for seventh in the Big 10, closing out the regular season with a 3-1 upset over No. 19 Michigan.

UNI and Northwestern share two common opponents this season including Purdue and Minnesota. UNI topped Purdue and Minnesota (both by 3-2) while Northwestern split against both teams.

Northwestern leads the all time series over the Panthers by a slim 1-2 margin, but the teams have not met since the 1991 season. UNI’s win over the Wildcats came during the 1990 season in Cedar Falls.

Arizona - Arizona comes to Cedar Falls with a 20-11 record and 9-9 in Pac10 play. The Wildcats finished 6th in the Pac10 closing out the season with losses to No.4 Stanford and No.2 California.

UNI and Arizona share one common opponent in 2010 with both teams sweeping Notre Dame in South Bend.

UNI is 0-1 against Arizona, having last met the Wildcats at the beginning of the 1996 season.

UNI in the NCAA TournamentYear Site Round Opponent Result1986 Champaign, Ill.1st at Illinois L, 3-1

1987 Lincoln, Neb.1st at Nebraska L, 3-0

1991 Long Beach, Calif.1st at Long Beach State L, 3-0

1994 Cedar Falls, Iowa1st Rider W, 3-0 Boulder, Colo.2nd at Colorado L, 3-1

1995 Cedar Falls, Iowa1st Colorado W, 3-0 Palo Alto, Calif.2nd at Stanford L, 3-0

1998 Fayetteville, Ark.1st Indiana L, 3-0

1999 Clemson, S.C.1st Ball State W, 3-22nd Indiana W, 3-1Regionals Stockton, Calif.3rd at Pacific L, 3-0

2000 Madison, Wis.1st Western Michigan W, 3-12nd at Wisconsin L, 3-1

2001 Cedar Falls, Iowa1st Northern Illinois W, 3-02nd Minnesota W, 3-2Regionals Long Beach, Calif.13 at No. 1 Long Beach State L, 3-0

2002 Cedar Falls, Iowa1st UW-Milwaukee W, 3-12nd No. 20 Missouri W, 3-2Regionals Gainesville, Fla.3rd No. 7 Washington State L, 3-0

2003 Minneapolis, Minn.1st No. 20 UC-Santa Barbara W, 3-22nd at No. 17 Minnesota L, 3-1

2006 Lincoln, Neb.1st Winthrop W, 3-12nd at No. 1 Nebraska L, 3-0

2007 Madison, Wis.1st at No. 8 Wisconsin L, 3-0

2008 Minneapolis, Minn.1st Iowa State L, 3-1

2009 Lincoln, Neb. vs. Washington State W, 3-0 at No. 7 Nebraska L, 0-3

Overall Record: 12-15Neutral: 5-3 Home: 6-0 Away: 0-11


THE LAST TIME UNI...Won a match 3-0 ............................................................................................................................. vs. Illinois State, 11/26/10Won a match 3-1 ............................................................................................................................. vs. Creighton, 11/27/10Won a match 3-2 ............................................................................................................................. vs. Kansas, 9/10/10Lost a match 3-0 .............................................................................................................................. vs. #11 Iowa State, 9/8/10Lost a match 3-1 .............................................................................................................................. vs. #12 Iowa State, 9/2/09Lost a match 3-2 .............................................................................................................................. at #20 Dayton, 9/03/10Beat a ranked team .......................................................................................................................... 3-2 at #8 Minnesota, 9/4/10Beat a ranked team at a neutral site ................................................................................................ 3-2 vs. #22 Colorado State, 9/3/05 (at Malibu, Calif.)Beat a ranked team on the road ...................................................................................................... 3-2 at #8 Minnesota, 9/04/10Beat a Top 10 team .......................................................................................................................... 3-2 at #8 Minnesota, 9/04/10Lost to a ranked team ...................................................................................................................... 3-0 at #11 Iowa State, 9/8/10Won a match it trailed 2-0 (home) ................................................................................................. vs. Drake, 11/21/09Won a match it trailed 2-0 (road) ................................................................................................... at Southern Illinois, 10/31/08Lost a match it led 2-0 (home) ....................................................................................................... vs. Creighton, 9/21/07Lost a match it led 2-0 (road) ......................................................................................................... vs. Northern Arizona, 8/30/96Had 100 or more kills ....................................................................................................................... 104 vs. Missouri State, 11/22/86Had 90 or more kills ......................................................................................................................... 94 at Illinois State, 10/6/07Had 80-89 kills................................................................................................................................. 85 at Saint Louis, 9/25/07Had 70-79 kills................................................................................................................................. 73 vs. Evansville, 10/01/10Had 220 or more attacks ................................................................................................................. 222 vs Baylor, 9/04/10Had 210-219 attacks ....................................................................................................................... 217 vs. Wichita State, 10/16/09Had 200-209 attacks ....................................................................................................................... 208 vs. Creighton, 11/28/08Had 10 or more services aces .......................................................................................................... 10, at Indiana State, 10/15/10Had 110 or more digs ...................................................................................................................... 111, vs. Baylor, 9/04/10Had 100-109 digs ............................................................................................................................ 100, vs. Creighton, 11/27/10Had 90-99 digs ................................................................................................................................ 97, vs. Evansville, 10/01/10Had 80-89 digs ................................................................................................................................ 84, vs. Illinois State, 10/13/10Had 70-79 digs ................................................................................................................................ 71, at Southern Illinois, 10/24/09Had 25 or more team blocks ........................................................................................................... 28 at Creighton, 9/17/05Had 20-24 team blocks ................................................................................................................... 20 vs. Wichita State, 11/16/07Had 15-19 team blocks ................................................................................................................... 17.5 vs. Kansas, 9/10/10Had 10-14 team blocks ................................................................................................................... 11.0 vs. Illinois State, 11/26/10Hit .500 or better as a team ............................................................................................................. .537 vs. Iowa State, 9/14/99Hit .450-.499 as a team ................................................................................................................... .455 at. Evansville, 10/30/10Hit .400-.449 as a team ................................................................................................................... .447 vs. Illinois State, 11/27/10Hit .350-.399 as a team ................................................................................................................... .398 at. Southern Illinois, 10/29/10Hit .300-.349 as a team ................................................................................................................... .322 at Missouri State, 11/20/10Hit negative as a team ..................................................................................................................... -.046 at Illinois State, 10/7/05Held an opponent to .001-.100 hitting .......................................................................................... .094 at Missouri State, 11/20/10Held an opponent to .000 or less hitting ........................................................................................ .000 at Indiana State, 11/10/06Had a player with 75 or more assists .............................................................................................. 75, Jill Arganbright at Creighton, 10/27/00Had a player with 70-74 assists ...................................................................................................... 71, Kristin Belzung at Illinois State, 10/6/07Had a player with 60-69 assists ...................................................................................................... 61, Bre Payton vs. Evansville, 10/01/10Had a player with 40 or more kills .................................................................................................. 40, Bobbi Becker vs. Illinois State, 11/11/89Had a player with 30 or more kills .................................................................................................. 31, Kate Galer vs. Creighton, 10/12/96Had a player with 20 or more kills .................................................................................................. 21, Michelle Burow vs. Drake, 9/24/10Had a player with 15 or more blocks .............................................................................................. 15, Trista Humpal at Creighton, 9/17/05Had a player with 10-14 blocks ...................................................................................................... 12, Ashten Stelken vs. Illinois State, 10/25/08Had a player with 7 or more service aces........................................................................................ 7, Alex Auker vs. Minnesota, 9/15/99Had a player with 40 or more digs .................................................................................................. 45, Patricia Dietz at Iowa, 9/27/05Had a player with 30-39 digs .......................................................................................................... 37, Ellie Blankenship vs. Creighton, 11/27/10Had a player with 26-29 digs .......................................................................................................... 27, Ellie Blankenshhip at Kansas, 9/10/10Had a player with 20-25 digs .......................................................................................................... 21, Ellie Blankenship at Wichita State, 11/19/10Had a player with a triple double .................................................................................................... 12k, 45a, 18d -- Bre Payton vs. Creighton, 11/27/10Had a player with 20 kills and 20 digs ............................................................................................ 23k, 23d -- Laura Rowen vs. Clemson, 8/26/06Had two players with 20 or more kills ........................................................................................................................ Shannon Aschoff (20) and Michelle Burow (20), vs. Creighton, 11/20/09Had two players with 10 or more blocks ........................................................................................ Ashten Stelken (13) and Shannon Aschoff (12) vs. Creighton, 11/23/07Had three players with 10 or more blocks ...................................................................................... Trista Humpal (15), Danielle Brazda (13) & Stephanie Germann (10) at Creighton, 9/17/05


UNI PLAYER CAREER HIGHS#1 -- Ellie Blankenship,Sr., DSCareer Highs Kills: 1,severaltimes Aces: 4,twice Blocks: -- Digs: 38,vs.IllinoisState(10/25/08) Assists: 9,twice,lastvs.Baylor(9/04/10) Points: 4.0,severaltimes

#2 -- Bre Payton, Jr., SCareer Highs Kills: 17,vs.Drake(11/21/09) Aces: 5,vs.RobertMorris(9/11/09) Blocks: 8.0,vs.IllinoisState(10/25/08) Digs: 21,atCreighton(9/19/09) Assists: 63,vs.WichitaState(10/16/09) Points: 18.0,vs.Drake(11/21/09)

#3 -- Molly Turk, RFr., SCareer Highs Kills: 1,vs.Arkansas-LittleRock(9/10/10) Aces: -- Blocks: -- Digs: 4,vs.Arkansas-LittleRock(9/10/10) Assists: 17,vs.Arkansas-LittleRock(9/10/10) Points: 1.5vs.SouthernIllinois(10/02/10)

#4 -- Jenny Wilms, RFr., DSCareer Highs Kills: -- Aces: 1,vs.Bradley(10/8/10) Blocks: -- Digs: 4,vs.Arkansas-LittleRock(9/10/10) Assists: -- Points: 1.0vs.Bradley(10/8/10)

#8 -- Megan Lehman, So., OHCareer Highs Kills: 8,vs.Arkansas-LittleRock(9/10/10) Aces: -- Blocks: 6,vs.Winthrop(9/11/10) Digs: 3,atPurdue(8/28/10) Assists: 2,atPurdue(8/28/10) Points: 10.5,vs.Winthrop(9/11/10)

#10 -- Amy Braun, So., OHCareer Highs Kills: 17,vs.Evansville(10/01/10) Aces: 3,twice,lastvs.Kansas(9/10/10) Blocks: 3,twice,last,atPurdue(8/28/10) Digs: 24,vs.#20Dayton(9/03/10) Assists: 8,vs.Drake(11/21/09) Points: 18.0vs.Evansville(10/01/10)

#11-- Macy Ubben, RFr.,MBCareer Highs Kills: 2,vs.Bradley(10/8/10) Aces: -- Blocks: -- Digs: 1,vs.IndianaState(10/15/10) Assists: -- Points: 2.0vs.Bradley(10/8/10)

#13 -- Chelsea Saunders, Sr., DSCareer Highs Kills: 2,vs.WichitaState(9/18/10) Aces: 5,vs.Bethune-Cookman(8/30/08) Blocks: -- Digs: 22,at#14WichitaState(10/17/08) Assists: 6,atDrake(11/20/08) Points: 5.0,twice

#15 -- Shelby Kintzel, R-Fr., MBCareer Highs Kills: 15,vs.Evansville(10/01/10) Aces: -- Blocks: 5,multipletimes,lastatEvansville(10/30/10) Digs: 3,multipletimes Assists: 3,vs.IllinoisState(11/13/10) Points: 17.5vs.Evansville(10/01/10)

#16 -- Michelle Burow, Jr., MBCareer Highs Kills: 23,at#8Minnesota(9/04/10) Aces: 2,vs.NorthernIllinois(9/4/09) Blocks: 11,vs.Kansas(9/10/10) Digs: 8,vs.Baylor(9/04/10) Assists: 3,twice Points: 24.5,at#8Minnesota(9/04/10)

#17 -- Beth Discher, Sr., OHCareer Highs Kills: 17,atCreighton(9/24/10) Aces: -- Blocks: 6.0,twice Digs: 7,vs.Creighton(9/20/08) Assists: 5,atFloridaAtlantic(8/30/08) Points: 19.5,atCreighton(9/24/10)

#18 -- Krista DeGeest, S0., MBCareer Highs Kills: 13,twice,last,vsDrake(10/22/10) Aces: 1,vs.IndianaState(10/15/10) Blocks: 9,vs.Purdue(8/28/10) Digs: 6,atWichitaState(11/14/09) Assists: 2,twice,lastvs.CentralMichigan(8/27/10) Points: 17.5,atPurdue(8/28/10)

#19 -- Candice Burke, S0., DSCareer Highs Kills: 1,atIndianaState(10/9/09) Aces: 4,vs.Bradley(10/31/09) Blocks: -- Digs: 20,twice,lastatCreighton(9/24/10) Assists: 6,twice,lastvs.Creighton(11/27/10) Points: 4.0,vs.Bra

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Women's Volleyball National Ranking Summary Thru Games 11/27/2010

Back to team selectionsMissouri Valley - All Teams

Category Rank Actual National Leader ActualAces Per Set (328 ranked) 185 1.16 Md.-East. Shore 2.08 Assists Per Set (328 ranked) 5 14.1 Stanford 14.41 Blocks Per Set (328 ranked) 115 2.11 Ohio 3.09 Digs Per Set (328 ranked) 8 18.6 Yale 19.34 Hitting Percentage (328 ranked) 24 0.26 Stanford 0.32 Kills Per Set (328 ranked) 1 15.26 UNI 15.26 Match W-L Pctg. (328 ranked) 2 0.938 Florida 0.964

Category Player Rank Actual National Leader ActualAces Per Set (250 ranked) Zoe Bowens, UMES 0.67 Assists Per Set (250 ranked) Bre Payton 27 11.16 Jordan Clampitt, Tulsa 13.18 Blocks Per Set (250 ranked) Krista DeGeest 95 1.08 Brittany Hewitt, Hawaii 1.67 Digs Per Set (250 ranked) Ellie Blankenship

Amy Braun15

230 5.473.69

Taylor Root, Valpo 5.94

Hitting Percentage (250 ranked) Michelle BurowKrista DeGeest

4859

0.3530.347

Rachael Adams, Texas 0.436

Kills Per Set (250 ranked) Michelle Burow 201 3.16 Tyler Henderson, Tulsa 6.23 Points Per Set (250 ranked) Michelle Burow 227 3.6 Tyler Henderson, Tulsa 6.69

Page 1 of 1NCAA® Ranking Summary

11/28/2010http://web1.ncaa.org/stats/StatsSrv/ranksummary11 • UNI VOLLEYBALL


2010 UNI VolleyballUNI Combined Team Statistics (as of Nov 28, 2010)

All matches

RECORD: OVERALL HOME AWAY NEUTRALALL GAMES 30-2 12-0 13-1 5-1CONFERENCE 18-0 9-0 9-0 0-0NON-CONFERENCE 12-2 3-0 4-1 5-1

Attack Set Serve Dig Blocking## Player sp k k/s e ta pct a a/s sa se sa/s re dig dig/s bs ba total blk/s be bhe points16 Burow, Michelle 114 360 3.16 81 790 . 3 5 3 14 0.12 11 8 0.10 0 74 0.65 7 65 72 0.63 2 2 410.517 Discher, Beth 103 301 2.92 89 865 . 2 4 5 14 0.14 0 1 0.00 0 58 0.56 6 34 40 0.39 1 1 324.018 DeGeest, Krista 114 288 2.53 80 599 . 3 4 7 12 0.11 1 0 0.01 2 26 0.23 14 109 123 1.08 5 0 357.510 Braun, Amy 114 283 2.48 132 935 . 1 6 1 47 0.41 17 10 0.15 17 421 3.69 8 30 38 0.33 5 2 323.015 Kintzel, Shelby 105 224 2.13 78 573 . 2 5 5 33 0.31 0 0 0.00 1 43 0.41 15 70 85 0.81 4 5 274.02 Payton, Bre 113 221 1.96 77 537 . 2 6 8 1261 11.16 26 47 0.23 1 313 2.77 8 37 45 0.40 13 13 273.58 Lehman, Megan 30 45 1.50 35 128 . 0 7 8 10 0.33 0 0 0.00 0 11 0.37 3 14 17 0.57 0 0 55.013 Saunders, Chelsea 113 7 0.06 2 13 . 3 8 5 22 0.19 26 38 0.23 18 235 2.08 0 0 0 0.00 0 0 33.01 Blankenship, Ellie 114 7 0.06 2 19 . 2 6 3 90 0.79 31 44 0.27 15 624 5.47 0 0 0 0.00 0 0 38.011 Ubben, Macy 6 3 0.50 1 8 . 2 5 0 0 0.00 0 0 0.00 0 1 0.17 0 0 0 0.00 0 0 3.03 Turk, Molly 7 1 0.14 0 3 . 3 3 3 25 3.57 1 1 0.14 0 7 1.00 0 1 1 0.14 0 0 2.54 Willms, Jenny 7 0 0.00 0 1 . 0 0 0 0 0.00 1 0 0.14 0 8 1.14 0 0 0 0.00 0 0 1.019 Burke, Candice 112 0 0.00 0 3 . 0 0 0 79 0.71 18 37 0.16 8 298 2.66 0 0 0 0.00 0 3 18.0

Team - - - - - - - - - - - 5 - - - - - - - - -UNI 114 1740 15.26 577 4474 . 2 6 0 1607 14.10 132 186 1.16 67 2120 18.60 61 360 241.0 2.11 30 26 2113.0Opponents 114 1330 11.67 605 4365 . 1 6 6 1254 11.00 68 170 0.60 132 1871 16.41 58 264 190.0 1.67 50 30 1588.0

Team Statistics UNI OPPATTACK K i l l s 1740 1330 E r r o r s 577 605 Total Attacks 4474 4365 Attack Pct . 2 6 0 . 1 6 6 K i l l s / S e t 15.3 11.7SET A s s i s t s 1607 1254 A t t e m p t s 4323 4313 Assist Pct . 3 7 2 . 2 9 1 A s s i s t s / S e t 14.1 11.0SERVE A c e s 132 68 E r r o r s 186 170 A c e s / S e t 1.2 0.6SERVE RECEPTIONS E r r o r s 67 132 E r r o r s / S e t 0.6 1.2DEFENSE D i g s 2120 1871 D i g s / S e t 18.6 16.4BLOCKING Block Solo 61 58 Block Assist 360 264 Total Blocks 241.0 190.0 B l o c k s / S e t 2.1 1.7 Block Errors 30 50Ball handling errors 26 30ATTENDANCE T o t a l 24785 19993 Dates/Avg Per Date 12/2065 14/1428 Neutral site #/Avg 6/1578 Current win streak 25 - Home win streak 12 -

Date Opponent Score Score by set Att.Aug 27 vs Central Michigan W 3-0 25-21,25-23,25-14 2124Aug 28 vs Western Kentucky W 3-0 25-23,25-18,25-19 1642Aug 28 at Purdue W 3-2 18-25,25-21,22-25,25-23,19-17 2027Sep 03 vs #20 Dayton L 2-3 26-24,21-25,25-23,20-25,13-15 3418Sep 04 at #8 Minnesota W 3-2 25-16,16-25,17-25,25-23,18-16 4535Sep 04 vs Baylor W 3-2 25-16,20-25,25-22,23-25,15-6 1000Sep 8 at #11 Iowa State L 0-3 16-25,20-25,22-25 2000Sep 10 vs Arkansas Little Rock W 3-0 25-17,25-17,25-21 630Sep 10 at Kansas W 3-2 25-16,25-20,23-25,20-25,15-11 832Sep 11 vs Winthrop W 3-0 25-19,25-19,25-12 653

*Sep 17 MISSOURI STATE W 3-0 25-21,25-19,25-17 2118*Sep 18 WICHITA STATE W 3-0 25-23,25-18,25-23 2082*Sep 24 at Creighton W 3-1 25-16,25-21,24-26,25-20 1250*Sep 25 at Drake W 3-1 25-22,22-25,25-21,25-21 1843*Oct 01 EVANSVILLE W 3-1 26-28,25-22,25-22,25-20 1717*Oct 02 SOUTHERN ILLINOIS W 3-0 25-23,25-18,25-13 2102Oct 06 SOUTH DAKOTA STATE W 3-0 25-13,25-20,25-17 1410

*Oct 08 BRADLEY W 3-0 25-18,25-9,25-10 1874*Oct 14 at Illinois State W 3-0 25-19,25-22,25-11 820*Oct 15 at Indiana State W 3-1 25-12,25-8,23-25,25-14 53*Oct 22 DRAKE W 3-1 25-20,16-25,25-21,25-13 2591*Oct 23 CREIGHTON W 3-0 27-25,27-25,25-19 2649*Oct 29 at Southern Illinois W 3-0 25-12,25-20,25-12 386*Oct 30 at Evansville W 3-0 25-13,25-17,25-17 260*Nov 5 at Bradley W 3-0 25-16,25-14,25-21 413Nov 07 at Notre Dame W 3-0 27-25,27-25,29-27 1460

*Nov 12 INDIANA STATE W 3-0 25-17,25-9,25-16 1707*Nov 13 ILLINOIS STATE W 3-1 19-25,25-17,25-23,25-14 1997*Nov 19 at Wichita State W 3-1 20-25,25-23,25-20,25-18 3017*Nov 20 at Missouri State W 3-0 31-29,25-11,25-13 1097Nov 26 ILLINOIS STATE W 3-0 25-17,25-16,25-21 2415Nov 27 CREIGHTON W 3-1 25-18,25-19,20-25,25-20 2123

Record in 3-set matches: 18-1Record in 4-set matches: 8-0Record in 5-set matches: 4-1


2010 UNI VolleyballUNI Combined Team Statistics (as of Nov 23, 2010)

Conference matches

RECORD: OVERALL HOME AWAY NEUTRALALL GAMES 18-0 9-0 9-0 0-0CONFERENCE 18-0 9-0 9-0 0-0NON-CONFERENCE 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0

Attack Set Serve Dig Blocking## Player sp k k/s e ta pct a a/s sa se sa/s re dig dig/s bs ba total blk/s be bhe points17 Discher, Beth 60 203 3.38 51 537 . 2 8 3 9 0.15 0 1 0.00 0 36 0.60 5 15 20 0.33 0 0 215.516 Burow, Michelle 61 192 3.15 39 431 . 3 5 5 6 0.10 5 6 0.08 0 39 0.64 3 28 31 0.51 0 1 214.010 Braun, Amy 61 161 2.64 63 497 . 1 9 7 23 0.38 11 4 0.18 9 245 4.02 5 15 20 0.33 2 1 184.518 DeGeest, Krista 61 158 2.59 37 313 . 3 8 7 4 0.07 1 0 0.02 1 16 0.26 5 59 64 1.05 2 0 193.515 Kintzel, Shelby 59 122 2.07 45 307 . 2 5 1 19 0.32 0 0 0.00 0 28 0.47 7 43 50 0.85 2 1 150.52 Payton, Bre 61 104 1.70 39 257 . 2 5 3 718 11.77 18 27 0.30 0 179 2.93 4 14 18 0.30 5 3 133.08 Lehman, Megan 10 11 1.10 11 33 . 0 0 0 5 0.50 0 0 0.00 0 2 0.20 0 3 3 0.30 0 0 12.51 Blankenship, Ellie 61 5 0.08 1 13 . 3 0 8 39 0.64 18 24 0.30 8 335 5.49 0 0 0 0.00 0 0 23.013 Saunders, Chelsea 61 4 0.07 0 7 . 5 7 1 5 0.08 14 22 0.23 9 131 2.15 0 0 0 0.00 0 0 18.011 Ubben, Macy 5 3 0.60 1 6 . 3 3 3 0 0.00 0 0 0.00 0 1 0.20 0 0 0 0.00 0 0 3.04 Willms, Jenny 4 0 0.00 0 0 . 0 0 0 0 0.00 1 0 0.25 0 2 0.50 0 0 0 0.00 0 0 1.03 Turk, Molly 5 0 0.00 0 0 . 0 0 0 7 1.40 1 0 0.20 0 3 0.60 0 1 1 0.20 0 0 1.519 Burke, Candice 61 0 0.00 0 0 . 0 0 0 45 0.74 14 22 0.23 7 167 2.74 0 0 0 0.00 0 3 14.0

Team - - - - - - - - - - - 1 - - - - - - - - -UNI 61 963 15.79 287 2401 . 2 8 2 880 14.43 83 106 1.36 35 1185 19.43 29 178 118.0 1.93 11 9 1164.0Opponents 61 678 11.11 326 2361 . 1 4 9 638 10.46 36 86 0.59 83 996 16.33 30 116 88.0 1.44 27 15 802.0

Team Statistics UNI OPPATTACK K i l l s 963 678 E r r o r s 287 326 Total Attacks 2401 2361 Attack Pct . 2 8 2 . 1 4 9 K i l l s / S e t 15.8 11.1SET A s s i s t s 880 638 A s s i s t s / S e t 14.4 10.5SERVE A c e s 83 36 E r r o r s 106 86 A c e s / S e t 1.4 0.6SERVE RECEPTIONS E r r o r s 35 83 E r r o r s / S e t 0.6 1.4DEFENSE D i g s 1185 996 D i g s / S e t 19.4 16.3BLOCKING Block Solo 29 30 Block Assist 178 116 Total Blocks 118.0 88.0 B l o c k s / S e t 1.9 1.4 Block Errors 11 27Ball handling errors 9 15ATTENDANCE T o t a l 18837 9139 Dates/Avg Per Date 9/2093 9/1015 Neutral site #/Avg 0/0 Current win streak 18 - Home win streak 9 -

Date Opponent Score Score by set Att.*Sep 17 MISSOURI STATE W 3-0 25-21,25-19,25-17 2118*Sep 18 WICHITA STATE W 3-0 25-23,25-18,25-23 2082*Sep 24 at Creighton W 3-1 25-16,25-21,24-26,25-20 1250*Sep 25 at Drake W 3-1 25-22,22-25,25-21,25-21 1843*Oct 01 EVANSVILLE W 3-1 26-28,25-22,25-22,25-20 1717*Oct 02 SOUTHERN ILLINOIS W 3-0 25-23,25-18,25-13 2102*Oct 08 BRADLEY W 3-0 25-18,25-9,25-10 1874*Oct 14 at Illinois State W 3-0 25-19,25-22,25-11 820*Oct 15 at Indiana State W 3-1 25-12,25-8,23-25,25-14 53*Oct 22 DRAKE W 3-1 25-20,16-25,25-21,25-13 2591*Oct 23 CREIGHTON W 3-0 27-25,27-25,25-19 2649*Oct 29 at Southern Illinois W 3-0 25-12,25-20,25-12 386*Oct 30 at Evansville W 3-0 25-13,25-17,25-17 260*Nov 5 at Bradley W 3-0 25-16,25-14,25-21 413*Nov 12 INDIANA STATE W 3-0 25-17,25-9,25-16 1707*Nov 13 ILLINOIS STATE W 3-1 19-25,25-17,25-23,25-14 1997*Nov 19 at Wichita State W 3-1 20-25,25-23,25-20,25-18 3017*Nov 20 at Missouri State W 3-0 31-29,25-11,25-13 1097

Record in 3-set matches: 11-0Record in 4-set matches: 7-0Record in 5-set matches: 0-0


Volleyball Box Score#24 UNI vs Central Michigan (Aug 27, 2010 at West Lafayette, Ind.)

Attack Serve Block## UNI S K E TA Pct Ast SA SE RE Dig BS BA BE BHE Pts2 Payton, Bre 3 8 2 14 . 4 2 9 29 1 2 1 5 1 1 0 0 10.58 Lehman, Megan 3 6 5 18 . 0 5 6 1 0 0 0 1 1 2 0 0 8.010 Braun, Amy 3 5 3 18 . 1 1 1 3 0 0 0 8 0 0 0 0 5.016 Burow, Michelle 3 7 0 11 . 6 3 6 1 0 1 0 2 0 2 0 0 8.017 Discher, Beth 3 4 1 13 . 2 3 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 4.518 DeGeest, Krista 3 9 4 16 . 3 1 2 2 0 0 0 1 0 2 0 0 10.01 Blankenship, Ellie 3 0 0 0 . 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 11 0 0 0 0 0.013 Saunders, Chelsea 3 1 0 1 1.000 1 2 2 0 5 0 0 0 0 3.015 Kintzel, Shelby 1 3 1 6 . 3 3 3 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 3.019 Burke, Candice 3 0 0 1 . 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 8 0 0 0 0 0.0

Team 1Totals 3 43 16 98 . 2 7 6 38 3 5 4 42 2 8 0 0 52.0

Team Attack By SetSet K E TA Pct Sideout Pct1 16 5 34 . 3 2 4 1 3 - 2 2 59%2 13 7 31 . 1 9 4 1 5 - 2 3 65%3 14 4 33 . 3 0 3 1 1 - 1 4 78%

3 9 - 5 9 66%

TOTAL TEAM BLOCKS: 6.0

SET SCORES 1 2 3UNI (3) 25 25 25Central Michigan (0) 21 23 14

Attack Serve Block## Central Michigan S K E TA Pct Ast SA SE RE Dig BS BA BE BHE Pts1 JOHNSON, Lisa 3 0 0 1 . 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 6 0 0 0 0 0.04 SCHULTZ, Kaitlyn 3 6 2 12 . 3 3 3 1 2 3 0 2 0 1 0 0 8.58 DULUDE, Lindsey 3 4 3 13 . 0 7 7 0 0 1 1 3 0 0 0 0 4.09 LUDWIG, Catherine 3 1 0 4 . 2 5 0 28 2 2 0 3 0 3 0 0 4.510 VerVELDE, Jocelyn 3 10 2 22 . 3 6 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 4 0 1 12.013 KRUPSKY, Lauren 3 8 4 34 . 1 1 8 0 0 1 0 0 0 2 1 0 9.02 COATES, Jenna 3 1 0 1 1.000 0 0 1 0 10 0 0 0 0 1.05 DETWEILER, Kelsey 3 0 0 0 . 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 0 0 0 0 0.07 SCHUETTE, Katie 3 2 4 10 - . 2 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 0 1 0 1 2.512 DeWEERD, Val 2 0 2 4 - . 5 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0.017 BRAWLEY, Sam 1 0 0 0 . 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 0 0 0.5

Totals 3 32 17 102 . 1 4 7 29 4 9 3 29 0 12 2 2 42.0


3 8 - 7 4 51%


Site: West Lafayette, Ind. (Holloway Gymnasium)Date: Aug 27, 2010 Attend: Time:Referees: Jim Kuziela, Larry Dolvig

1 2 3 TotalTie scores 0 10 3 13Lead changes 0 1 2 3

Volleyball Box ScoreWestern Kentucky vs #24 UNI (Aug 28, 2010 at West Lafayette, Ind.)

Attack Serve Block## Western Kentucky S K E TA Pct Ast SA SE RE Dig BS BA BE BHE Pts2 Ashley Potts 3 0 0 1 . 0 0 0 3 0 1 0 4 0 0 0 0 0.07 Tiffany Elmore 3 8 2 21 . 2 8 6 0 0 0 1 0 1 1 0 0 9.59 Paige Wessel 3 8 2 17 . 3 5 3 1 0 2 0 2 0 0 0 0 8.010 Lindsay Williams 2 2 2 8 . 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 2.514 Melanie Stutsman 3 4 2 10 . 2 0 0 28 2 1 0 8 0 0 0 0 6.031 Emily Teegarden 3 7 6 20 . 0 5 0 0 0 0 1 1 1 1 1 0 8.51 Sarah Rogers 3 0 0 0 . 0 0 0 1 2 2 2 7 0 0 0 0 2.04 Kelly Potts 3 0 0 0 . 0 0 0 2 0 0 2 5 0 0 0 0 0.05 Lindsay Spears 3 5 1 11 . 3 6 4 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 6.523 Janee' Diggins 1 2 0 2 1.000 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2.0

Totals 3 36 15 90 . 2 3 3 35 4 6 6 27 3 4 1 0 45.0


4 1 - 7 4 55%


SET SCORES 1 2 3Western Kentucky (0) 23 18 19UNI (3) 25 25 25

Team Records:0-22-0

Attack Serve Block## UNI S K E TA Pct Ast SA SE RE Dig BS BA BE BHE Pts2 Payton, Bre 3 8 2 14 . 4 2 9 28 2 2 0 5 0 1 0 0 10.58 Lehman, Megan 3 6 4 17 . 1 1 8 1 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 7.010 Braun, Amy 3 6 0 14 . 4 2 9 4 0 1 1 5 0 2 0 0 7.015 Kintzel, Shelby 3 8 1 13 . 5 3 8 1 0 0 0 1 1 2 0 0 10.016 Burow, Michelle 3 11 3 21 . 3 8 1 2 1 0 0 0 1 2 0 0 14.018 DeGeest, Krista 3 9 1 14 . 5 7 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 3 0 0 10.51 Blankenship, Ellie 3 0 0 0 . 0 0 0 1 3 2 1 6 0 0 0 0 3.013 Saunders, Chelsea 3 0 0 0 . 0 0 0 2 0 3 2 4 0 0 0 0 0.019 Burke, Candice 3 0 0 0 . 0 0 0 2 0 1 0 6 0 0 0 0 0.0

Totals 3 48 11 93 . 3 9 8 42 6 9 4 28 3 10 0 0 62.0


4 2 - 6 1 68%


Site: West Lafayette, Ind. (Holloway Gymnasium)Date: Aug 28, 2010 Attend: 1642 Time: 1:10Referees: Larry Dolvig, Kim Juziela


Volleyball Box Score#24 UNI vs Purdue (Aug 28, 2010 at West Lafayette, Ind.)

Attack Serve Block## UNI S K E TA Pct Ast SA SE RE Dig BS BA BE BHE Pts2 Payton, Bre 5 14 4 26 . 3 8 5 41 1 3 0 12 0 2 0 0 16.08 Lehman, Megan 5 3 7 21 - . 1 9 0 2 0 0 0 3 0 3 0 0 4.510 Braun, Amy 5 15 9 41 . 1 4 6 3 0 2 1 14 2 1 0 0 17.515 Kintzel, Shelby 5 9 4 26 . 1 9 2 2 0 0 0 1 2 3 1 0 12.516 Burow, Michelle 5 10 2 26 . 3 0 8 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 10.518 DeGeest, Krista 5 12 5 31 . 2 2 6 0 0 0 0 1 2 7 0 0 17.51 Blankenship, Ellie 5 0 1 1 -1.000 6 2 3 1 21 0 0 0 0 2.013 Saunders, Chelsea 5 0 1 1 -1.000 0 0 2 1 15 0 0 0 0 0.019 Burke, Candice 5 0 0 0 . 0 0 0 3 0 2 0 9 0 0 0 0 0.0

Totals 5 63 33 173 . 1 7 3 57 3 12 3 76 6 17 1 0 80.5

Team Attack By SetSet K E TA Pct Sideout Pct1 9 9 30 . 0 0 0 1 3 - 2 4 54%2 16 6 45 . 2 2 2 1 5 - 2 2 68%3 11 8 35 . 0 8 6 1 4 - 2 4 58%4 17 6 36 . 3 0 6 1 5 - 2 4 62%5 10 4 27 . 2 2 2 1 0 - 1 8 55%

6 7 - 1 1 2 59%


SET SCORES 1 2 3 4 5UNI (3) 18 25 22 25 19Purdue (2) 25 21 25 23 17

Team Records:3-02-1

Attack Serve Block## Purdue S K E TA Pct Ast SA SE RE Dig BS BA BE BHE Pts5 Hart, Jaclyn 5 5 0 12 . 4 1 7 48 0 1 0 6 0 3 0 0 6.56 Ehlers, Emily 5 0 0 1 . 0 0 0 1 1 1 1 15 0 0 0 0 1.08 Turner, Ariel 5 13 8 57 . 0 8 8 1 0 4 0 8 1 3 0 0 15.516 Arthurs, Kristen 5 10 6 24 . 1 6 7 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 10.518 Fisher, Tiffany 5 17 6 39 . 2 8 2 0 0 3 0 2 0 4 1 0 19.020 Drewry, Anna 5 10 7 30 . 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 5 1 0 13.510 Griffin, Katie 5 6 1 15 . 3 3 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 7.011 Cramer, Carly 5 0 0 0 . 0 0 0 2 0 1 1 9 0 0 0 0 0.014 Bashen, Blair 5 0 0 0 . 0 0 0 3 2 3 1 25 0 0 0 0 2.0

Totals 5 61 28 178 . 1 8 5 56 3 13 3 65 2 18 2 0 75.0

Team Attack By SetSet K E TA Pct Sideout Pct1 9 4 27 . 1 8 5 1 4 - 1 9 73%2 13 6 47 . 1 4 9 1 4 - 2 4 58%3 15 9 40 . 1 5 0 1 5 - 2 3 65%4 14 4 38 . 2 6 3 1 4 - 2 4 58%5 10 5 26 . 1 9 2 9 - 1 8 50%

6 6 - 1 0 8 61%


Site: West Lafayette, Ind. (Holloway Gymnasium)Date: Aug 28, 2010 Attend: 2027 Time: 2:15Referees: Jim Kuzeila, Don Goodwin

1 2 3 4 5 TotalTie scores 0 14 12 6 6 38Lead changes 0 6 4 4 3 17

UNI Volleyball 2010 Box Scores


Volleyball Box Score#18 UNI vs Arkansas Little Rock (Sep 10, 2010 at Lawrence, Kan.)

Attack Serve Block## UNI S K E TA Pct Ast SA SE RE Dig BS BA BE BHE Pts2 Payton, Bre 2 2 1 5 . 2 0 0 23 0 0 0 7 0 2 1 1 3.010 Braun, Amy 3 8 4 32 . 1 2 5 0 0 0 2 5 0 1 1 0 8.515 Kintzel, Shelby 3 12 3 21 . 4 2 9 2 0 0 0 0 0 4 0 1 14.016 Burow, Michelle 3 7 1 15 . 4 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 8.017 Discher, Beth 1 2 0 3 . 6 6 7 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2.018 DeGeest, Krista 3 9 2 17 . 4 1 2 1 0 0 0 0 0 6 0 0 12.01 Blankenship, Ellie 3 0 0 0 . 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 13 0 0 0 0 1.03 Turk, Molly 1 1 0 3 . 3 3 3 17 0 1 0 4 0 0 0 0 1.04 Willms, Jenny 2 0 0 1 . 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 4 0 0 0 0 0.08 Lehman, Megan 2 8 4 15 . 2 6 7 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 8.013 Saunders, Chelsea 2 0 0 0 . 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 6 0 0 0 0 2.019 Burke, Candice 2 0 0 0 . 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 4 0 0 0 0 1.0

Team 1Totals 3 49 15 112 . 3 0 4 44 5 2 3 44 0 13 3 2 60.5


3 9 - 5 7 68%


SET SCORES 1 2 3UNI (3) 25 25 25Arkansas Little Rock (0) 17 17 21

Team Records:6-21-7

Attack Serve Block## Arkansas Little Rock S K E TA Pct Ast SA SE RE Dig BS BA BE BHE Pts1 Elbert, Jennifer 3 1 2 8 - . 1 2 5 28 0 0 0 5 0 0 0 0 1.02 Aisena, Rinata 3 3 2 10 . 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 0 0 1 0 3.03 Gantar, Paige 3 15 5 37 . 2 7 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 15.04 Souza Moura, Daniele 3 1 2 5 - . 2 0 0 1 0 1 2 15 1 0 0 0 2.08 Lindberg, Ty 3 5 2 18 . 1 6 7 1 3 0 1 3 0 0 1 0 8.011 Xie, Eva 3 9 4 21 . 2 3 8 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 0 0 9.55 Pepperman, Emily 3 0 0 0 . 0 0 0 1 0 1 2 17 0 0 0 0 0.010 Erz, Jordan 2 0 1 4 - . 2 5 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0.5

Totals 3 34 18 103 . 1 5 5 32 3 2 5 44 1 2 3 0 39.0


3 8 - 7 4 51%


Site: Lawrence, Kan. (Horejsi Center)Date: Sep 10, 2010 Attend: Time: 1:03Referees: Jose Jones, Ted Lopez





Volleyball Box Score2010 UNI Volleyball

Indiana State vs #12 UNI (Nov 12, 2010 at Cedar Falls, Iowa)

Attack Serve Block## Indiana State S K E TA Pct Ast SA SE RE Dig BS BA BE BHE Pts1 Fouty, Shelbi 3 1 1 2 . 0 0 0 22 0 0 1 11 0 2 0 0 2.07 Charun, Ana Maira 3 9 2 31 . 2 2 6 0 0 0 0 5 0 0 0 0 9.010 Morris,Monique 3 1 0 2 . 5 0 0 1 0 0 1 12 0 0 0 0 1.011 Armstrong, Auriel 3 2 2 9 . 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 2 0 0 0 0 3.015 Qualizza, Stacy 3 3 3 17 . 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 0 0 4.525 Dall, Morgan 3 5 12 36 - . 1 9 4 0 0 2 1 5 0 0 0 0 5.04 James,Kiya 3 0 0 0 . 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 13 0 0 0 0 0.013 Doran,Shea 3 3 3 17 . 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 0 0 3.5

Totals 3 24 23 114 . 0 0 9 23 1 3 4 49 0 6 0 0 28.0

Team Attack By SetSet K E TA Pct Sideout Pct1 9 9 42 . 0 0 0 1 1 - 2 4 45%2 6 7 36 - . 0 2 8 6 - 2 5 23%3 9 7 36 . 0 5 6 1 1 - 2 4 45%

2 8 - 7 3 38%


SET SCORES 1 2 3Indiana State (0) 17 9 16UNI (3) 25 25 25

Team Records:11-18 (3-13 MVC)25-2 (15-0 MVC)

Attack Serve Block## UNI S K E TA Pct Ast SA SE RE Dig BS BA BE BHE Pts2 Payton, Bre 3 5 2 11 . 2 7 3 31 1 0 0 7 0 0 0 0 6.010 Braun, Amy 3 5 3 18 . 1 1 1 0 1 0 1 10 0 1 0 0 6.515 Kintzel, Shelby 3 5 2 13 . 2 3 1 1 0 0 0 1 1 2 0 0 7.016 Burow, Michelle 3 11 0 24 . 4 5 8 0 0 1 0 0 0 2 0 0 12.017 Discher, Beth 3 14 4 33 . 3 0 3 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 0 0 14.518 DeGeest, Krista 3 4 1 10 . 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 5.01 Blankenship, Ellie 3 0 0 0 . 0 0 0 1 1 1 0 21 0 0 0 0 1.03 Turk, Molly 1 0 0 0 . 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0.08 Lehman, Megan 1 0 0 0 . 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.013 Saunders, Chelsea 3 0 0 0 . 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 5 0 0 0 0 1.019 Burke, Candice 3 0 0 0 . 0 0 0 5 0 2 0 13 0 0 0 0 0.0

Totals 3 44 12 109 . 2 9 4 41 4 4 1 59 1 8 0 0 53.0

Team Attack By SetSet K E TA Pct Sideout Pct1 15 4 42 . 2 6 2 1 2 - 1 8 66%2 13 3 31 . 3 2 3 6 - 9 66%3 16 5 36 . 3 0 6 1 2 - 1 7 70%

3 0 - 4 4 68%


Site: Cedar Falls, Iowa (McLeod Center)Date: Nov 12, 2010 Attend: 1707 Time: 1:09Referees: Michael Hamilton, Craig Werner



Illinois State vs #12 UNI (Nov 13, 2010 at Cedar Falls, Iowa)

Attack Serve Block## Illinois State S K E TA Pct Ast SA SE RE Dig BS BA BE BHE Pts1 McGlaughlin, Shannon 4 14 4 37 . 2 7 0 0 0 0 1 13 0 3 0 0 15.53 Visk, Tabitha 4 5 5 20 . 0 0 0 2 0 1 0 2 0 1 1 0 5.515 Stauter, Kristin 4 1 0 8 . 1 2 5 36 0 0 0 19 0 0 1 0 1.025 Hranka, LeighAnn 4 7 2 29 . 1 7 2 1 0 0 0 2 0 1 0 0 7.529 Leggett, Mallory 4 16 7 48 . 1 8 8 0 1 3 0 10 0 0 0 0 17.031 Kelley, Hailey 4 4 0 15 . 2 6 7 0 0 0 0 1 1 3 0 0 6.57 Wakefield, Laura 4 0 0 0 . 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 6 0 0 0 0 0.09 Culbertson, Katie 3 0 1 5 - . 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 1.014 Fetter, Sarah 1 0 0 0 . 0 0 0 3 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0.017 Menendez, Jenny 4 0 0 1 . 0 0 0 1 2 0 3 14 0 0 0 1 2.0

Totals 4 47 19 163 . 1 7 2 44 3 4 4 70 2 8 2 1 56.0

Team Attack By SetSet K E TA Pct Sideout Pct1 13 4 44 . 2 0 5 1 2 - 2 0 60%2 13 6 43 . 1 6 3 1 1 - 2 4 45%3 13 7 47 . 1 2 8 1 2 - 2 5 47%4 8 2 29 . 2 0 7 1 1 - 2 4 45%

4 6 - 9 3 49%


SET SCORES 1 2 3 4Illinois State (1) 25 17 23 14UNI (3) 19 25 25 25


Attack Serve Block## UNI S K E TA Pct Ast SA SE RE Dig BS BA BE BHE Pts2 Payton, Bre 4 11 3 23 . 3 4 8 41 1 1 0 12 1 1 2 0 13.510 Braun, Amy 4 11 3 28 . 2 8 6 3 0 0 2 15 0 0 0 0 11.015 Kintzel, Shelby 4 7 3 16 . 2 5 0 3 0 0 0 6 0 3 0 0 8.516 Burow, Michelle 4 12 4 33 . 2 4 2 1 1 0 0 4 0 1 0 0 13.517 Discher, Beth 4 12 7 41 . 1 2 2 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 12.018 DeGeest, Krista 4 10 2 22 . 3 6 4 2 0 0 0 1 0 3 1 0 11.51 Blankenship, Ellie 4 0 0 0 . 0 0 0 4 1 5 0 23 0 0 0 0 1.013 Saunders, Chelsea 4 0 0 0 . 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 10 0 0 0 0 1.019 Burke, Candice 4 0 0 0 . 0 0 0 5 0 1 1 11 0 0 0 0 0.0

Totals 4 63 22 163 . 2 5 2 59 4 7 3 84 1 8 3 0 72.0


4 7 - 8 0 58%


Site: Cedar Falls, Iowa (McLeod Center)Date: Nov 13, 2010 Attend: 1997 Time: 1:51Referees: Craig Werner, Michael Hamilton

1 2 3 4 TotalTie scores 3 1 5 4 13Lead changes 3 0 3 4 10




Creighton vs #11 UNI (Nov 27, 2010 at Cedar Falls, Iowa)

Attack Serve Block## Creighton S K E TA Pct Ast SA SE RE Dig BS BA BE BHE Pts2 Sanford,Laurel 4 5 2 19 . 1 5 8 0 0 0 0 1 1 2 1 0 7.04 Thorson,Heather 4 8 2 27 . 2 2 2 1 0 0 0 2 1 3 1 0 10.55 Oelke,Allie 4 9 3 48 . 1 2 5 0 0 0 1 15 0 2 1 0 10.07 Bober,Megan 4 3 2 17 . 0 5 9 41 0 2 0 8 0 2 2 1 4.012 Runge,Alicia 4 17 11 51 . 1 1 8 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 17.014 Boggs,Brooke 4 0 0 0 . 0 0 0 1 0 1 1 14 0 0 0 0 0.01 Benitez,Nayka 4 0 0 0 . 0 0 0 2 2 0 1 28 0 0 0 0 2.016 Almgren,Karisa 4 10 1 33 . 2 7 3 0 0 0 0 2 0 1 0 0 10.517 Mandolfo,Julianne 4 0 0 2 . 0 0 0 3 2 1 0 23 0 0 0 0 2.0

Totals 4 52 21 197 . 1 5 7 48 4 4 3 94 2 10 5 1 63.0


5 1 - 9 4 54%


SET SCORES 1 2 3 4Creighton (1) 18 19 25 20UNI (3) 25 25 20 25


Attack Serve Block## UNI S K E TA Pct Ast SA SE RE Dig BS BA BE BHE Pts2 Payton, Bre 4 12 1 26 . 4 2 3 45 0 1 0 18 0 0 0 0 12.010 Braun, Amy 4 8 5 34 . 0 8 8 1 0 0 0 15 1 1 0 0 9.515 Kintzel, Shelby 4 12 3 31 . 2 9 0 1 0 0 0 4 1 3 0 0 14.516 Burow, Michelle 4 14 5 38 . 2 3 7 0 0 0 0 5 0 4 0 0 16.017 Discher, Beth 4 7 3 38 . 1 0 5 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 7.018 DeGeest, Krista 4 11 1 20 . 5 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 2 0 11.01 Blankenship, Ellie 4 0 0 0 . 0 0 0 3 3 1 0 37 0 0 0 0 3.013 Saunders, Chelsea 4 0 0 0 . 0 0 0 3 0 0 2 6 0 0 0 0 0.019 Burke, Candice 4 0 0 0 . 0 0 0 6 0 1 0 16 0 0 0 0 0.0

Team 1Totals 4 64 18 187 . 2 4 6 60 3 3 4 103 2 8 2 0 73.0


5 2 - 8 3 62%


Site: Cedar Falls, Iowa (McLeod Center)Date: Nov 27, 2010 Attend: 2123 Time: 1:57Referees: Martin Prochko, William Stanley

1 2 3 4 TotalTie scores 1 11 0 1 13Lead changes 0 6 0 0 6


ByJerryTrickieonOctober6,20109:49AMNorthernIowashouldbethankfultheBlankenshipsdonotholdagrudge.AtleastEllieBlankenship,thePanther’srecord-settingseniorlibero,letgoofthepastprettyeasily.Forhersister,Carrie,ontheotherhand,itmayhavetakenalittlewhilelonger.

Carriewasafour-yearletterwinneronthevolleyballteamatNorthernIllinois.Duringherseniorseason,shehelpedtheHuskiestotheNCAAtournamentforthefirsttimeinthreeyears.Thepostseasonrundidn’tlastlongasNIUwassweptinthefirstround.

Theopponent?Youguessedit.NorthernIowawastheteamthatendedCarrieBlankenship’scollegecareer.

Thatwas2001.Fastforwardto2006.

ElliewasasenioratKennedyHighSchoolinCedarFalls,Iowa,tryingtodecidewhereshewantedtoplaycollegevolleyball.Obviouslyhersisterhadthoughtsonwhatschoolstopossiblyattend(ornotattend).Butshewasn’ttheonlyfamilymembertoplayacollegesportasmom,Lois,wasontheIowawomen’sbasketballteamandbrother,Troy,playedfootballatIowaState.Everyonehadopinions.

Whenitcamedowntoit,ElliehadafeelforthePantherprogram.SheunderstoodtheplaceUNIvolleyballheldinthecommunity,sawthewaycoachBobbiPetersenhandledhersquadandtheywayshegotthemtoplaytogetherasateam,notasindividualsonthecourtatthesametime.

“Bobbialwayshadareallygoodprogramandgrowingup,youwouldhearaboutNorthernIowaandthebigupsetsandthefollowerstheyhad,”Elliesaid.“It’sdefi-nitelyawholecommunitything,wherealotofotherplaces,it’snotreallyabigdeal.”

Withthebigwinsandbigcrowds,itwasaperfectfitforEllie.AndwhenCarriesignedoff,thatmadeeverythingfallintoplace.“ShewasalittlehesitantwhenIfirstdecidedtogohere,butluckilyweplayinadifferentplacenow,soit’snotashard(forCarrie)tocometomygames,”Elliesaidwithalaugh.

Theresthasbeenhistory.Literally.

Sinceherfirstyearonthesquad,EllieBlankenshiphasre-writtenthePantherhistorybooks.ShesettheUNI

recordfordigsthreeconsecutiveyears,raisingthebarto624asafreshmanbeforeposting676asasophomore.Thecurrentrecordcamelastyearwhensheposted698digs.

“She’saverygiftedathlete,butIalsothinkthatshe’sakidwhoisultra-competitive,”Petersensaid.“She’snotrealloudandvocalinthatsense,butyoulookinhereyesandyouknowshe’snotgoingtolettheballhitthefloor.”

Withhalfaseasonlefttoplay,BlankenshiphasalreadysettheMissouriValleyConferencerecordwith2,313digsenteringtonight’snon-leaguematchupagainstSouthDakotaState.Justthe20thplayerinDivisionIhistorytorecordmorethan2,300digsinacareer,Blankenship’scurrentpace(5.16digspersetwhichrank35thnationally)hasherontracktochallengeforaspotinthesport’sall-timetop10.

Wantsomemoreperspective?Trythis:onlysixDivisionIplayershaveeverrecordedmorethan2,500digs.

That’sprettyelitecompanyshehasachancetojoin.Butit’sjustgreatreadingforthefans.Itdoesn’tmeanmuchrightnowtoBlankenship,whoisgenuinelyhumblewhenshetalksaboutherrecord-settingperformances.

“Itreallyhasn’thitme.Ithasn’tsunkin,likealotofthingshaven’tandprobablywon’tuntilI’mfinished,”Blankenshipsaid.“It’sreallycool,butmorethananythingIwanttomakeourprogramlookgood.I’mhappyaboutthatbecausemysuccessisnotareflectionofmyself,butareflectionoftheteammateswhohavepushedmeandthecoacheswhohavemademebetter.I’mhappytobeabletorepresentthemandmyschoolatahighlevel.”

Blankenship’shighlevelofplayhastakenthePantherstoa78-23recordoverthepastthreeseasonsandthreeconsecutiveNCAAappearances.Lastyear’ssquadwent31-3andwasundefeatedin18conferencematches.TheyalsowontheMVCtournamentforgoodmeasurebeforereachingtheNCAAsecondround.

Thisyear,thePanthersarerankedNo.14inthecountrywitha14-2recordandhaveextendedtheirregular-sea-sonleaguewinstreakto24matches.Outofconference,theyownwinsoversolidteamslikeWesternKentucky,PurdueandBaylorandearnedamajorboostofconfidencecomingbackfromtwosetsdowntodefeatthen-eighth-rankedMinnesotaonitshomecourt.

DespitethestrongstartthathasboostedUNItothe

No.4spotinthefirstofficialRPIreleasedthisweek,PetersenknowsthePanthersstillhavealongwaytogo.Thingscanbefinelytunedonoffenseandshefeelsthedefensewillcontinuetomature.ThePanthershaven’treachedtheirpotentialandthat’sagoodthinginhermind.

Onethingthatwillnotchangeanytimesoonisthebal-ancedmakeupofthesquad.UNIistheonlyteamintheMissouriValleywithfiveplayersaveragingatleast2.0killsperset.SixPanthershaveatleast100killsthroughtheopening16matches.

“Wedon’thavethatbiggunorstudthat’sgoingtosaveusalotoftimes,soitdefinitelyhastobeafullteameffortwhenwecompete,”Petersensaid.“AndIthinkagainstMinnesotaittookeverybodyand(ithelped)everybodyunderstandtheirroleandpurposethattheyareimportanttowherewearegoingtogothisyear.”

Fivedifferentplayersalsoaverageatleast2.0digsperset,makingitdifficultforopponentstokeyonanyoneposition,althoughitisprettyeasytoseewhowillmostlikelykeepaballalive.

“Everyonefeedsoff(Blankenship)whetherit’sotherpeopleinthebackcourtortheoffensestealingalotofconfidenceknowingtheballisgoingtobeupandyoubettergetintransitionbecausetheballisgoingtobealive,”Petersensaid.“ShejustbringsthattoourteamandIalwayssaythatifourdefenseisstruggling,itseemsouroffensegoesrightwithit.Soit’sthemeatofourteamandshe’sobviouslyakidwholeadsthewaywiththat,notjustbyherabilitiesbuthertotalattitudeingeneral.”

It’sanunselfishattitude.Onethatluckilydoesn’tholdagrudgeeither.

Blankenship Digs Panthers’ SuccessFrom NCAA.comhttp://www.ncaa.com/blog/womens-volleyball/2010/10/blankenship-digs-panthers-succ.html

UNIVERSITY OF NORTHERN IOWA ATHLETIC COMMUNICATIONS UNI PANTHERS

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