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With the 6-foot-7 Delaney McSweeney in the middle of it all, Iowa’s presence at the net dominated Syracuse in a 3-0 victory. Syracuse’s offense commonly resulted in either a rally-ending block or a blocked ball that would force SU into a discombobulated attack. Iowa forced Syracuse to try redirecting its attacks around the blockade, leading to an inability to keep momentum on its side.

“I’m not sure they blocked everything,” SU head coach Bakeer Ganesharatnam said. “I think our 5-foot-5 outside hitter, Greta (Schlichter), would argue differently.”

SU made 24 attacking errors throughout its 3-0 loss to Iowa. Many of the errors were due to an inability to caress possession after a quick hit at the net by an Iowa player. McSweeney was the key piece, but Nataly Moravec and Caitlan Buettner also excelled in this task. Iowa didn’t need to score big, it actually registered fewer kills than Syracuse.

Even with the drastic number of attack errors, Ganesharatnam left thinking highly of his attack.

“I think our hitters actually did a good job attacking the block,” Ganesharatnam said.

Iowa tallied nine blocks in the matchup. With the Orange leading the second set 9-7 and on a 6-2 run, Zharia Harris-Waddy rose up to attack the Iowa block, but Buettner and Anna Davis were equal to the task. After Buettner killed the next point, Iowa had tied the set, and Syracuse wouldn’t hold another lead at any point for the rest of the night.

When Syracuse came storming back to tie the second set at 18 with six straight points, McSweeney was set up by Bailey Ortega and registered one of her six kills on the night. Her offensive efficiency at the net, along with that of Davis, allowed Iowa to control the game offensively, becoming a dangerous force whenever it was set.

While McSweeney is an effective player, she’s also a big target, and the smaller Schlichter enjoyed trying to pick her apart.

“It’s like the greatest thing to play against such players who probably don’t take me seriously,” Schlichter said. “Then I can go there and just compete.”

Schlichter was SU’s top performer tonight, registering nine kills along with 11 digs and two aces.

The German’s spark plug performance couldn’t hold off the Hawkeyes tonight, though. Iowa opened up the third set with a block by Moravec and McSweeney, and continued to wear down an exhausted Syracuse team. Ariana Joubert, who’d been dangerous and efficient throughout the first two sets, started to wilt, committing a handful of errors that allowed Iowa to build its lead. One of those errors was a powerful attack that she had to divert around an Iowa block, but she overcompensated and missed the court entirely.

“If we stick together and if we stay disciplined, then we have even a chance against a Big Ten team,” Ganesharatnam said.

Published on September 16, 2023 at 12:53 am

Contact Sam: sefederm@syr.edu