The independent newspaper of the University of Iowa community since 1868

The Daily Iowan

The independent newspaper of the University of Iowa community since 1868

The Daily Iowan

The independent newspaper of the University of Iowa community since 1868

The Daily Iowan

Volleyball drops heartbreaker

Iowa+Womens+Volleyball+team+comes+together+to+cheer+during+the+match+against+Nebraska+team+at+Carver+Arena+on+Wednesday%2C+Sept.+23%2C+2015.+The+Hawkeyes+lost+to+the+Cornhuskers%2C+who+are+ranked+number+4+in+the+nation.+%28The+Daily+Iowan%2FLexi+Brunk%29
The Daily Iowan
Iowa Women’s Volleyball team comes together to cheer during the match against Nebraska team at Carver Arena on Wednesday, Sept. 23, 2015. The Hawkeyes lost to the Cornhuskers, who are ranked number 4 in the nation. (The Daily Iowan/Lexi Brunk)

Iowa won the first two sets, then dropped the final three.

By Kyle Mann
[email protected]

The Wednesday night matchup between the Iowa volleyball team and No. 24 Michigan was truly a tale of two halves.

First, the Hawkeyes could do no wrong and appeared to be en route to a convincing upset. Then the proverbial wheels fell off.

Iowa claimed the match’s first point on a kill by Reagan Davey, which was a common occurrence in the early going. Davey has played well all season, and the night began by looking as if it would be a full-blown coming-out party for the freshman.

The first kill was one of her 5 in the opening set, and she played a large hand in helping the Hawkeyes hold on to the lead for the entire set. The Wolverines evened the score at 21, but after a Jess Janota block re-claimed the lead, Davey made an incredible diving dig to scrape the ball right off the floor. The Hawkeyes got the point instead and finished off a 25-23 victory.

Davey continued her dominance in the second set, accumulating 6 kills on nine swings and coming up with 5 digs.

With the Hawkeyes leading, 10-7, Davey came flying to the left side to save yet another point and get the ball over the net. Iowa got that point as well, followed by two-consecutive kills by Davey to go up 13-8.

“We have really amazing pin hitters, so with Loxley [Keala] setting them and with her amazing tempo on the outside sets, it allows me to get some one-on-one opportunities,” Davey said.

The Wolverines took a time-out and Iowa used a 9-3 run out of the huddle to finish an impressive set, 25-13.

Then Michigan made an adjustment. After hitting .000 (yes, zero) in the second-set loss, the Wolverines switched up the offense, and the Hawkeyes struggled to respond.

“This is what happens in the Big Ten; teams make adjustments,” Shymansky said. “They made a significant adjustment going to their 5-1 offense, and we didn’t exploit it.”

The modification paid immediate dividends. Michigan jumped out to a lead early, and although the Hawkeyes fought back and even took a lead on two occasions at 12-9 and 16-12, the Wolverines had obviously figured things out. Down in the match by two sets, they not only had a functioning offense, they had intensity.

Michigan launched a 5-0 run to take a 17-16 lead, and the teams wrestled through 1-point leads for the remainder of the set. Michigan, however, had the momentum and outlasted the Hawkeyes, 28-26.

The fourth set was similarly heartbreaking. Michigan jumped out to a 7-3 lead, but Iowa came back to tie at 9. The teams went back-and-forth from there, and Iowa once led, 18-15, before Michigan a 10-3 Michigan run sealed the set, 25-21.

Once again, Iowa remained within 1 or 2 until the end, and even led, 8-7, when the teams switched sides of the floor. However, with the match having developed the way it had, the Hawkeyes were clearly deflated and not quite right.

There were bright spots in the final set, but a bevy of errors prevented the Hawks from putting together a run of any sort. Iowa dropped the set and the match, 15-13.

“We get to the fifth set, and we handed them most of their points,” Shymansky said. “Service errors, ball control errors, passing, whatever it is, you can err your way out of a match. That was an astounding number of errors. We gave them 11 errors.”

It was about as devastating of a loss as anybody could ask for. The team will need to find a way to regroup before another match on Saturday versus Michigan State.

“It was a really important game for us to win,” Keala said. “But now that we’ve lost it, we need to take this opportunity to really learn from what we did wrong.”

Follow @KyleFMann for Iowa volleyball news, updates, and analysis.

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