Starting on a high, ending on a low

It was a weekend that began with victory and ended in defeat. The volleyball team experienced a win against Iowa Friday that boosted confidence high for Saturday's game against Minnesota, where IU nearly pulled off an upset.\nThe Hawkeyes gave the Hoosiers a scare in the first game, winning 30-24. IU rebounded in games two (30-28), three (30-20) and four (30-27), where they claimed their second victory against Iowa this season.\n"Tonight we played a really good team and what we talked about is, it was a very well-coached team," coach Katie Weismiller said. "They did a lot of things to take their opponents out." \nA fan was overheard in the stands Friday night saying, "Who are these girls and where have they been all year?" \nFreshman Katie Pollom had an answer for him.\n"We're coming together and gaining confidence. It was nice to come into this match with a win against Purdue," she said. "It really feels like we're turning the season around, and we look forward to the second half of Big Ten play. We're working really hard on dedication and teamwork." \nLeading the Hoosiers Friday was sophomore Melissa Brewer, who recorded 17 kills and five blocks. Freshman Christina Archibald added 11 kills and 11 digs. \nMinnesota, who dropped a match on the road against Illinois Friday, came into Bloomington looking to salvage the weekend. The Golden Gophers defeated the Hoosiers in a five-game match.\nThe Hoosiers gave the Gophers a scare, winning the first game 30-27, where it looked as though the Hoosiers would come out of the night with a victory. In game two, the Gophers came out on top 32-30. Game three ended in Minnesota's favor as well as they flew by the Hoosiers 30-22. \nGame four was a quick and exciting one for the Hoosiers as they got their confidence back after losing the previous two games. Early in the game, the Hoosiers had the lead 9-3. With a lot of extra help from Brewer, freshman Karla Crose and Archibald, the Hoosiers showed they weren't going down without a fight and won the game 30-19.\nThe Hoosiers couldn't finish Minnesota in the fifth game and fell 15-10.\nWeismiller described it as the most frustrating match of the season because it was so close.\n"Minnesota did a nice job in terms of blocking. Twenty-one blocks kind of sums up what happened," she said. "We struggled in two outside hitting positions, and I think that was difficult for us to terminate." \nBrewer, who had 19 kills, said communication is an area where the team has improved.\n"It's an area of the game where we've stepped up a lot. It's apparent on the floor and at the beginning of the season, that just wasn't there," Brewer said. "We've finally found people that communicate well with each other and I think that's an area we've stepped up."\nIt was an emotional night for the Hoosiers, but Weismiller said they are ready to go back into the gym and keep fighting in next weekend's games.\n"We're going to get back in there in the gym during practice and be aggressive in terms of scrimmaging and playing," Weismiller said. "I think for us we've got to keep pressure on our players. When the pressure's off we're pretty good, but when it's tight is when we're struggling a little. The unforced errors have been a real thing for us this season and I think if we can understand and limit those, that will be the difference between winning and losing"