University Northern Iowa

DAYTON, Ohio — UNI volleyball challenged Ohio State in consecutive extended sets late, but ultimately fell to the Buckeyes in four sets in its final match of the Dayton Flyer Invitational at the Frericks Center.

Across four highly-competitive sets, the Panther offense went toe-to-toe with their Big Ten challenger, who entered the match receiving votes in the American Volleyball Coaches Association’s (AVCA) top-25 poll. Despite a well balanced offensive and defensive performance at the net, Ohio State’s offense narrowly outperformed the Panthers as UNI looked for its first win over a Big Ten opponent in six years.

HOW IT HAPPENED

The Buckeyes jumped out to an early lead and put together a strong offensive first set with 13 team kills on .250 hitting, putting the Panthers into an early hole. Falling behind 15-8, Northern Iowa slowly chipped away and pulled within one point on a 6-0 run to ultimately cut the OSU lead to one. Ohio State’s service game however in the first frame proved to be a tough challenge for the Panthers, who surrendered three aces to the scarlet and gray who took the first set by a score of 25-20.

In the second stanza, UNI jumped out to its own early lead and never looked back despite an intense push by the Buckeyes late. Using a 5-0 run midway through the set, the Panthers built a nine-point advantage during a frame where they recorded 11 team kills, including three service aces. Ohio State would mount a fierce comeback and cut Northern Iowa’s lead to just one at 22-21, but a pair of Buckeye errors and a termination from Cassidy Hartman would put away the second in UNI’s favor, 25-22.

The hotly contested third set saw 13 ties and five lead changes after UNI jumped out to an early lead. Taking advantage of strong play from Kaitlyn Sellner and Kira Fallert, the Panthers notched 15 kills on .200 hitting to build a 24-21 advantage. The Buckeyes, who played a nearly errorless offense in the third, would close on a 5-0 run to take a 2-1 match lead on a 26-24 set win.

The fourth frame once again saw an intense back-and-forth tug-of-war between the Panthers and Buckeyes with Ohio State leading much of the set with another impressive offensive showing, as well as on defense with four blocks. UNI, which totalled 20 kills in the final stanza on .333 hitting, challenged OSU late by staving off consecutive set points and forcing an extended set. Northern Iowa would have set point in their favor twice, but the Buckeyes would prevail late on a pair of Panther attacking errors, holding on for a 29-27 set win and the four-set victory over UNI.

Hartman and Fallert finished the match with 17 kills each as Fallert notched a double-double with 11 digs, plus three blocks. Olivia Tjernagel tallied a season-high 12 kills, as Erin Powers posted a team-best 16 digs along with a season-high three service aces. Sydney Golden recorded new career-highs in assists (34) and digs (8), while Sellner posted four kills and a career-best four-block match.

ADDITIONAL NOTES

• Saturday’s match was the first all-time meeting between UNI and Ohio State in volleyball. The Panthers last win against a Big Ten opponent came on Sept. 7, 2018 in a four-set victory over Indiana at Ball State’s Active Ankle Challenge.
• Kira Fallert’s 17-kill, 11-dig performance was her second double-double of the year and 22nd of her career, the most by active Panther players.
• Olivia Tjernagel played in her 100th career match on Saturday having not missed a match in her collegiate career. She joins Fallert who reached the same milestone on Friday in the season opener against Florida International.
• Redshirt freshman defensive specialist/libero Taryn Rice made her collegiate debut against Ohio State, appearing late in the fourth set.

UP NEXT

The Panthers return to action next Friday, Sept. 6 as they take on SIU Edwardsville in the opening match of the North Dakota’s UND Classic in Grand Forks. First serve is scheduled for 12 p.m. CT with live coverage of the match can be found exclusively on the Panther Sports Radio Network.

UNI volleyball action can be followed all season long on social media on Facebook (UNI Volleyball), X (@UNIVolleyball) and on Instagram (@univolleyball). The full 2024 schedule and roster, along with the latest Panther news and information can be found online at UNIpanthers.com.