By hawkeyesports.com

CORALVILLE, Iowa – University of Iowa volleyball took down Incarnate Word on Friday night, 3-1 (21-25, 25-23, 25-15, 25-15), inside Xtream Arena. Iowa improved to 6-2.

Peyton Young, in her season debut, led Iowa with a career-high 13 kills on 25 swings. It was Young’s first start of her career. A trio of Iowa pins reached double-figures, including Ksenija Tomic who tallied 12. She also had 19 digs to earn a double-double. Carmel Vares and Rosa Vesty each added 10 apiece. Hannah Whittingstall finished with nine kills.

Setter Jenna Meitzler led the team with 38 assists, while also contributing four kills and three aces. First-year Nikolija Bulatovic made her debut and had five assists and a kill.

Defensively, Iowa’s block was a force. The team tallied 13 in the win and was led by Vesty, Whittingstall and Young, who each had six. First-year libero Henlee Moszkowicz upped her career high with 19 digs. Tomic joined her for the team lead. Defensive specialist Jaimie Marquardt notched 13 digs and Marichka Hoshylyk added 12.

Iowa shook off the slow start and finished hitting .244, while the Cardinals were held to a .103 percentage. The Hawkeyes set season highs in digs (79) and blocks (13). Iowa served seven aces to Incarnate Word’s two.

HEAR FROM COACH BARNES
“We got off to a slow start. We adjusted a block and started playing harder. Our opponent played hard right out of the gate and that woke us up. It was great to see us block like we can and have Peyton come in and give us some relief.”

MATCH SUMMARY
SET ONE (UIW 25-21)
Incarnate Word struck first through the first series of points, getting out to a 5-3 lead. Iowa responded behind the play of Peyton Young, who delivered consecutive kills to surge the Hawkeyes ahead, 6-5. The Cardinals immediately leveled the score and then took control through the middle of the set, holding a 15-12 lead at the technical timeout. Setter Jenna Meitzler delivered back-to-back kills to keep Iowa within striking distance, but Incarnate Word forced an Iowa timeout at 20-16. A long rally ending in a UIW error brought the Hawkeyes within two at 21-19, but the Cardinals responded with a decisive run. Iowa fought off two set points to close the gap to 24-21, but UIW secured the set victory.

SET TWO (IOWA 25-23)
The Cardinals carried momentum into set two and seized control of the earlygoing behind a pair of 3-0 runs, prompting an early Iowa timeout at 9-3. The Cardinals extended their cushion to 12-4. Iowa began chipping away behind a tip and a service ace from Meitzler, paired with two kills from Young, that delivered a 4-0 run and pulled the team within four. UIW answered and took a 15-9 lead into the media timeout. A block by Vesty and Young got the Hawkeyes started out of the break, followed by consecutive blocks by Whittingstall, Vares and Meitzler to keep Iowa within striking distance at 18-14. Vares capped a long rally with a momentum-shifting kill, sparking a 3-0 Hawkeye run. After a Cardinal timeout, Vesty and Young teamed up for a block to give Iowa its first lead at 23-22. Vesty finished off the comeback with a powerful kill to complete the 25-23 win.

SET THREE (IOWA 25-15)
The Hawkeyes established momentum immediately in the third set. Tomic opened the scoring with a kill, sparking a clean 4-0 opening run that was anchored by a pair of kills from Vesty. Iowa’s block ballooned the lead to 9-2 and forced an early Incarnate Word timeout. Iowa continued carrying its command into the timeout, holding a 15-6 cushion. Out of the stoppage, a Tomic kill built Iowa’s first double-digit lead of the set at 18-8. Freshman setter Nikolija Bulatovic entered and picked up her first career assist before dumping a tip over the net on the next play for her first collegiate kill. UIW attempted a late run, but the Hawkeyes quickly halted the momentum, successfully winning a challenge to bring up set point at 24-15. The Hawkeyes wrapped up the victory on the next rally.

SET FOUR (IOWA 25-15) 
Iowa kept its foot on the gas in the fourth set, utilizing balanced attacking and strong defense to power past the Cardinals 25-15 and secure the match victory. After Incarnate Word scored the opening point on a tip, Iowa quickly took control. Consecutive kills from Meitzler and Tomic built the Iowa margin before a powerful swing by Young sparked a 3-0 surge. Iowa maintained the pressure out of the stoppage as a Marichka Hoshylyk service ace and a blistering kill from Tomic pushed the lead to 15-9 heading into the media timeout. The Hawkeyes continued to build separation, extending the lead to eight points at 19-11 and forcing Incarnate Word’s final timeout. A block by Vares and Young, followed immediately by a Vares kill, gave Iowa its largest lead of the set at 21-11. A UIW error brought up match point at 24-15, and Young sealed the set and the match on the next play by tapping a tip over the net.

NOTABLES

• Iowa is 2-0 all-time against Incarnate Word.
• Peyton Young made her season debut and started the match.
• First-year Nikolija Bulatovic made her Hawkeye debut.
• Ksenija Tomic finished with a 19-dig, 12-kill double-double.
• Iowa had team season highs in digs (79) and blocks (13).

Up Next: Iowa (6-2) goes for the Hawkeye Invitational title on Saturday at 1 p.m. against Missouri State. Fans can present their Iowa-Iowa State football game ticket to attend Saturday’s match for free.

HAWKEYE INVITATIONAL RESULTS
September 10 | Day 1
Match 1: Missouri State, 3-1, over Incarnate Word
Match 2: Iowa, 3-1, over Southern Illinois

September 11 | Day 2
Match 3: Incarnate Word, 3-0, over Southern Illinois
Match 4: Missouri State, 3-0, over Southern Illinois
Match 5: Iowa, 3-1, over Incarnate Word