The No. 15 Minnesota Golden Gophers (14-6, 7-3 B1G) hit the road once again this weekend to take on Michigan State (8-13, 1-9 B1G) and Michigan (16-6, 6-5 B1G). The match against Michigan State is set for 6 p.m. ET/5 p.m. CT on Friday night while the Michigan contest will be on Sunday at 2 p.m. ET/1 p.m. CT. Both will be streamed on B1G+.
The Gophers have won five of their last six heading into this weekend and currently sit in a tie for fifth place in the conference heading into the second half of their 20-game conference slate.
MICHIGAN STATE GAME INFORMATION
No. 15 Minnesota at Michigan State
Friday, Nov. 1
6 p.m. ET/ 5 p.m. CT
Breslin Center
East Lansing, Mich.
MICHIGAN GAME INFORMATION
No. 15 Minnesota at Michigan
Sunday, Nov. 3
2 p.m. ET/1 p.m. CT
Cliff Keen Arena
Ann Arbor, Mich.
NOTES TO KNOW
Minnesota leads Michigan State, 62-19 and Michigan, 63-16
First Meeting: 1976 (Michigan State) and 1975 (Michigan)
Last Meeting: 2023 (Michigan State and Michigan)
HEADING INTO THE MATCH
583 — Phoebe Awoleye reached 500 career blocks Sept. 13 vs. Auburn. She is one of four active Division I players in the nation to reach the 500-block mark. She currently holds 583 and was named Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week after totaling 24 combined in six sets vs. Indiana (Oct. 11) and Maryland (Oct. 12).
52 — Melani Shaffmaster and Julia Hanson were named to the AVCA Top-52 Player of the Year Watch List. Shaffmaster was named to the original 36 list while Hanson was added as one of 16 additions on Oct. 18.
31 — The ‘U’ comes in at No. 31 in the country, holding opponents to just .162 hitting for the year. Only six of Minnesota’s opponents have hit over .200 this season. Four have been below .100.
29 — Shaffmaster is one of 29 players in the country to register a triple-double in ‘24. She had a career-high 10 kills with 47 assists and 21 digs on Sept. 7. She’s the first Gopher to register a triple-double since Sarah Wilhite in Sept. of 2014.
13 — The Gophers rank 13th nationally and fifth in the Big Ten with 2.79 blocks per set.
12 — Times this season Minnesota has posted 10+ blocks as a team, including five of the last six matches.
8 — Phoebe Awoleye ranks 8th among active DI players with 1.29 bps; ranks 3rd with 583 total blocks.
8 — Minnesota matches have gone five sets (4-4 record), 11 have been sweeps (10-1) and one has been in four sets (0-1).
5 — The Gophers are in the midst of five straight matches against unranked teams. They won’t play another ranked opponent until Saturday, Nov. 9 against No. 10 Oregon.
4 — Melani Shaffmaster ranks eighth in Gophers history and fourth among active DI players with 4,649 career assists. She’s one of four athletes in the country that has totaled 4,000 assists and 1,000 digs in her career.
2 — Minnesota ranks second in the Big Ten and 19th nationally with 215.0 total blocks in 2024.
2 — The Gophers were just 2-11 against ranked opponents in 2023, taking wins over No. 15 Baylor and No. 6 Oregon. Minnesota is 2-5 this year with wins over No. 1 Texas and No. 7 Wisconsin. Their losses came against No. 3 Penn State, No. 5 Stanford, No. 10 Purdue, No. 21 USC and No. 23 Baylor.
2 — Phoebe Awoleye ranks second in the Big Ten and sixth in the country with 1.56 blocks per set.
2 — Minnesota ranks second in the Big Ten (83rd in the NCAA) with 15.33 digs per set. Opposing teams are hitting just .162 against the Gophers (Third in the B1G).
1 — Melani Shaffmaster became the first Gopher ever to record 4,000 assists, 1,000 digs, 300 kills and 300 blocks in her career with her fourth block of the match Oct. 4 vs. UCLA.
1 — Phoebe Awoleye set the new NCAA high for blocks in a three-set match with 14 on Oct. 12 vs. Maryland. Her 14 blocks also tied a program record for stuffs in a single match.
1 — In Big Ten play (10 matches), Phoebe Awoleye leads the Big Ten with 1.87 bps and 73 blocks.
1 — The Gophers tied an NCAA season-best for a three set match with 19.0 blocks vs. Maryland on Oct. 12.
LAST TIME OUT
• The No. 15 Minnesota volleyball team came back from two sets down to beat Ohio State in a reverse sweep on Sunday in Columbus. Julia Hanson led the ‘U’ with 21 kills while Melani Shaffmaster posted a season-best 49 assists to go along with eight digs. Phoebe Awoleye (seven blocks) and Zeynep Palabiyik (15 digs) paced the defense. The Gophers improved to 4-4 on the season in five-set matches with the win.
GOPHERS IN THE RANKINGS
• The Gophers entered the 2024 season with a No. 18 overall ranking in the Preseason AVCA poll.
• 18th was Minnesota’s lowest preseason ranking since coming in at No. 22 in 2006.
• They came in at 15 in the AVCA Poll on Oct. 28, staying at the same spot as the Oct. 21 rankings. Minnesota has been ranked as high as 12 this year (Sept. 30) and as low as 19 (Sept. 9).
• Minnesota comes in at 30 in the RPI rankings and were No. 16 in the NCAA DI Committee’s Top-16 rankings.
JULIA HANSON NAMED BIG TEN PLAYER OF THE WEEK
• Minnesota junior outside Julia Hanson was named Big Ten Player of the Week, the conference announced on Monday. The Savage, Minn., native posted 19 kills on .529 hitting with four digs and a block in a sweep over Northwestern Wednesday night. Hanson then led the ‘U’ with 21 kills (second-ever 20+ kill match), seven digs, two blocks and an ace in a comeback five-set win at Ohio State on Sunday.
• Hanson posted averages of 5.31 points, 5.00 kills, 1.38 digs and 0.38 blocks per set in the two matches. For the season, she leads the team and ranks top-10 in the Big Ten with 3.56 kills per set.
SCOUTING MICHIGAN STATE
• Michigan State (8-13, 1-9 B1G) is led by third-year head coach Leah Johnson, who spent her previous five years at Illinois State, leading the Redbirds to four NCAA Tournament appearances.
• The Spartans went 7-4 in non-conference play, tallying notable wins over Colorado State, Western Kentucky and Duke. They won their first B1G match at No. 16 USC on Oct. 24 in a reverse sweep.
• MSU is led by Akasha Anderson (3.26 kps) and Nalani Iosia (4.26 dps). Iosia is 2nd in the B1G in digs per set.
SCOUTING MICHIGAN
• Michigan (16-6, 6-5 B1G) is led by second-year head coach Erin Virtue, who was announced as the seventh head coach in Michigan volleyball history on Jan. 17, 2023. She returned to Ann Arbor after spending five seasons (2011-15) with the Maize and Blue as an assistant. In year one, UM went 7-22 (5-15 B1G) in 2023.
• The Wolverines are having a bounceback 2024 season and began with a strong non-conference performance, going 10-1. The only loss came to now No. 25 UNC in a 3-2 defeat. UM is 0-4 vs. ranked teams.
• Allison Jacobs paces the Wolverines with 4.09 kps (6th in B1G) while Morgan Burke holds 10.02 aps.
MINNESOTA’S HISTORY VS. MICHIGAN STATE AND MICHIGAN
• Minnesota is 62-19 all-time against Michigan State. They’ve won nine straight and 10 of the last 11 in the series, including one four set win last season. On the road, the Gophers are 28-11 all-time at MSU. They’ve won four straight and six of seven in East Lansing, with the last loss coming in 2016.
• All-time against Michigan, Minnesota is 63-16. The Gophers have won 12 of the last 13 in the series versus the Wolverines. The lone loss came in 2021, a five set defeat in Ann Arbor. Minnesota swept Michigan twice last season. Minnesota has swept Michigan four straight times, winning 12 straight sets in the series.
STREAKS TO WATCH
• Phoebe Awoleye has talled multiple blocks in 10 straight matches. She’s posted seven-or-more blocks in seven of the last eight matches, including 51 total blocks in the last six contests.
• Calissa Minatee has earned five-or-more kills in 14 matches this season. Minnesota is 11-3 when she has 5+ kills.
• Julia Hanson has totaled 10+ kills in 15 of 20 matches this year, including six times in Big Ten play.
• Melani Shaffmaster has tallied double-doubles in three of the last six matches. She’s got 10 on the season.
HANSON’S PATIENCE PAYING OFF
• A junior out of Savage, Minn., Julia Hanson has been patiently waiting for her chance to shine on the outside for Minnesota. She played situationally as a freshman in 2022, appearing in 10 matches (1.38 kills per set) and all 30 matches in 2023, but notching just 0.64 kills and 1.08 digs per set.
• She’s stepped up multiple times in big games when her team has needed her most. On Nov. 12, 2023 at Indiana, she tallied a career-high 19 kills with six digs and an ace. She came off the bench to play front row and led the team in kills in a crucial win in Bloomington.
• As a freshman in 2021, her best match came at then top-ranked Texas where she went for 14 kills (.375) and two blocks in her third ever match.
• She’s shined as a full-time starter in 2024, leading the team in kills against No. 5 Stanford (14) and No. 1 Texas (19) to begin the season. She recorded 19 kills and 13 digs for her first ever double-double in an upset win over UT on Sept. 2.
• So far in 2024, Hanson has tallied double digit kills in 15 of 20 matches, aces in 12 matches. She has three double-doubles. She was named to the Big Ten/Big 12 Challenge All-Tournament team in addition to winning MVP of the Capital Credit Union Classic. She earned Big Ten Player of the Week on Oct. 28 after posting 5.00 kills per set in wins over Northwestern and Ohio State. It was her first career B1G award.
• Julia leads the team and ranks 11th in the Big Ten with 3.56 kills per set in 2024. She was added to the AVCA Player of the Year Watch List on Oct. 18 and is one of 52 players being considered for the award.
AWOLEYE ANCHORING THE FRONT LINE
• A redshirt senior from Marietta, Ga., Phoebe Awoleye has been a revelation in the middle for Minnesota. She came last year after playing two years at Georgia and one year at Loyola Marymount. She picked up right where she left off in 2023 with a couple big matches against No. 5 Stanford (six blocks) and No. 1 Texas (seven blocks).
• Awoleye ranks 3rd among active DI players with 583 blocks. She ranks 8th with 1.28 blocks per set.
• In 2024, Awoleye has tallied 3+ blocks in 14 matches and 5+ blocks 12 times. She was named Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week on Oct. 14 after tallying 24 blocks in just six sets on Oct. 11 and 12.
• In her last five matches, Awoleye has totaled 47 blocks. She ranks second in the Big Ten with 1.56 blocks per set in 2024. In Big Ten play, Awoleye leads the league with 1.87 blocks per set.
MINNESOTA MILESTONES
• Phoebe Awoleye passed 500 career blocks on Sept. 13 vs. Auburn. She ranks No. 3 among all active Division I players with 583 in her collegiate career.
• Melani Shaffmaster passed 4,000 assists during the first match of the season, becoming the eighth Gopher ever to hit the mark. She also became the first Gopher to hit 4,000 assists, 1,000 digs, 300 blocks and 300 kills on Oct. 4 at UCLA. She ranks fourth among all active Division I players in assists.
• Shaffmaster clinched her fourth straight season with 20+ service aces this past weekend. She can also become the first Gophers setter to reach 400 kills with five more this weekend (stands at 395).
• Lydia Grote (199) is one kill away from reaching the 200-kill mark for the fourth time in her career.
• Julia Hanson clinched her first career 200+ kill season on Oct. 12 vs. Maryland. She also hit 20 service aces for the first time in her career.
UNDER .200, 10+ BLOCKS CLUB
• The Minnesota defense has held 14 of its 20 opponents this year under .200 hitting. Teams are hitting just .159 against the Gophers on the year (T-1st in B1G).
• The Gophers have totaled 10+ blocks 12 times this season (high of 19 on Oct. 12). Out of Big Ten teams, only USC has totaled as many 10+ block matches this season as Minnesota.
(info and stock photo courtesy of Gopher Sports)
