Northwestern University Athletics
Northwestern
Minnesota
Wildcat Team Falls to No. 7 Minnesota, 3-0
11/8/2002 12:00:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
Nov. 8, 2002
MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. - Minnesota proved why it's the seventh-ranked team in the nation Friday night, handing the Northwestern volleyball team a 3-0 loss. The Golden Gophers (25-3, 12-1 Big Ten) hit .330 in posting a 30-22, 30-18, 30-23 sweep of the Wildcats (13-12, 6-7) in front of 2,746 fans at the Minnesota Sports Pavilion.
Trisha Bradford was the only player with double-figure kills for either team, leading the Gophers with 11. Sarah Ballog (Coto de Caza, Calif./Santa Margarita) and Iwona Lodzik (Tarnobrzeg, Poland/Tarnobrzeg) led NU with eight kills apiece. Lodzik added a team-high 11 digs.
Minnesota recorded nine service aces, compared to two for Northwestern. The hosts also held a 9-5 advantage in blocks. The Wildcats hit just .097, their third consecutive match hitting under .125.
The 'Cats dug themselves an early hole in the opening game, falling behind 11-4. A 4-1 spurt got Northwestern back to within 12-8. However, Minnesota answered with a 4-1 run of their own to take a 16-9 lead, forcing an NU timeout.
The 'Cats were unable to get closer than six the rest of the way, as the Golden Gophers cruised to the victory. Minnesota hit .433 in the game, putting down 17 kills with only four errors.
Northwestern trailed 6-5 in Game 2 when the Gophers reeled off seven of the next eight points for a 13-6 lead, resulting in a Wildcat timeout. The lead grew to 20-10 before the Wildcats scored three straight to get to within 20-13.
But Minnesota answered with four consecutive points as their lead grew to 11. The Gophers were never threatened as NU hit -.083 in the set with only seven kills and 10 errors.
Northwestern got out to an early 10-8 lead before Minnesota scored four straight points to take a 12-10 advantage. With the score tied 16-16, the Gophers scored four straight for a 20-16 lead.
The Wildcats would only rally to within three points the remainder of the game as Minnesota completed the sweep.
Northwestern returns to action at 7 p.m. Saturday when it travels to Iowa.
