Minnesota took the initial lead against IU in the first set by scoring the first kill of the night. IU’s defensive play along with its strong block defense allowed it to catch up to Minnesota during the middle of the set, tying it up 10-10.
The Hoosiers fell behind in the initial set by a seven-point deficit. A service error committed by junior outside hitter Taylor Lebo allowed Minnesota to earn the set point at 24-17 which turned into a set win for Minnesota, 25-17.
IU began the second set trailing Minnesota by just a single point, 2-1.
Freshman middle blocker Elizabeth Asdell made her fifth kill of the night to tie the teams up in the first few minutes of the set, 3-3.
With multiple errors committed on the Hoosiers’ side the Golden Gophers began to pull away.
In the second set’s final minutes IU closed a five-point gap to a two-point gap, 23-21.
A missed connection between the ball and senior middle blocker Awele Nwaeze gave the set point to Minnesota, who then quickly closed out the second set with the final point, 25-21.
IU committed 17 errors in the first two sets to give Minnesota a 2-0 lead.
The Hoosiers opened the third set of the match with a service error committed by Lebo, giving the first point to the Golden Gophers. The Golden Gophers moved quickly past the Hoosiers with a 10-point gap in the middle of the third set.
Although IU picked up its momentum in the final moments with a service ace and two kills, it fell to Minnesota, 25-16, to lose the matchup, 0-3.
IU will travel next to Madison, Wisconsin, this weekend to play Wisconsin on Sunday.
Courtney Robb
