University of Minnesota Athletics
Monday, August 25
Sioux Falls, SD (Sanford Pentagon)
7:30 PM
University of Minnesota
0-1,0-0Big Ten
1
vs
3
Texas A&M
1-0,0-0SEC
1
2
3
4
F
Texas A&M
25
21
25
25
3
Minnesota
23
25
21
21
1
Team Stats
AM
MINN
Kills
64
48
Errors
23
18
Attempts
135
124
Hitting %
.304
.242
Points
77.0
59.0
Assists
61
43
Aces
1
4
Blocks
12
7
Game Leaders
Kills-Aces-Blocks
Kills
16
Aces
0
Blocks
1
Kills
11
Aces
0
Blocks
0
Kills
10
Aces
0
Blocks
1
Kills
5
Aces
1
Blocks
4
Players Mentioned
Outside
/ Volleyball
Outside
/ Volleyball
Middle Blocker
/ Volleyball
Libero/DS
/ Volleyball
Setter
/ Volleyball
Outside
/ Volleyball
No. 11 'U' Falls to No. 9 Aggies in Season Opener
8/25/2025 8:54:00 PM | Volleyball
Minnesota dropped its opener in four sets
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. -- The No. 11 Minnesota volleyball team fell in four sets to the No. 9 Texas A&M Aggies in their season opener Monday night, 3-1. The Aggies took home the victory 23-25, 25-21, 21-25, 21-25.
"First and foremost we'd like to thank the AVCA and the city of Sioux Falls for putting on a great event," head coach Keegan Cook said. "This is the type of team we want to be playing in late December. I thought it was very competitive volleyball, both teams had a hard time pulling away from one another."
Julia Hanson led Minnesota with 16 kills on .256 while Stella Swenson went for 39 assists, five blocks and four digs. Calissa Minatee had 10 kills and one block while Zeynep Palabiyik had 15 digs.
The Gophers (0-1, 0-0 Big Ten) were outhit by the Aggies (1-0, 0-0 SEC), .304 to .242, outblocked, 12.0 to 7.0 and outdug, 53 to 38. Minnesota had four aces compared to one for A&M.
Logan Lednicky paced the Aggies with 22 kills and 12 digs while Maddie Waak had 51 assists. Kyndal Stowers went for nine kills and 14 digs.
How It Happened
SET 1 | The Gophers led much of the first set, but couldn't finish the job as the Aggies took it, 25-23. Hanson had five kills while Swenson had 11 assists to lead the 'U', who hit .250 and had 13 kills. Calissa Minatee and Alex Acevedo totaled three kills each while the Gophers had four team blocks. The 'U' led by as many as three at 22-19, but a 6-1 run to finish the set by A&M gave the visitors the set one victory.
SET 2 | Minnesota trailed much of the early going before taking a 10-9 lead at the first media break, capped off by a solo block from Myers. The two teams exchanged points up to 18-18, with neither leading by more than two. Minnesota took a 20-18 lead at the second media break following an Aggies hitting error. A Myers kill put Minnesota up 21-18, leading to an A&M timeout. The Gophers would lead by as many as five at 24-19 before closing out set two, 25-21. After two sets, the Aggies were leading the hitting battle, .230 to .215.
SET 3 | The third set was as close as can be in the early goings, with neither club leading by more than two. A&M took a 10-9 lead into the first media break. The Aggies kept up their momentum, taking a set-high five point lead at 20-15 into the second media timeout. The Gophers cut the lead to as few as three at 23-20, but would get no closer as A&M took the third set, 25-21, to go up two to one.
SET 4 | The Aggies started off strong again in set four, taking an early 8-3 lead. A pair of Hanson kills helped Minnesota cut the lead to 9-6 before a hitting error gave A&M a 10-6 lead at the first media break. The Gophers chipped away, eventually getting the lead down to one at 16-15 following an ace from Palabiyik. A&M would take a 20-17 lead into the second media break. An Alex Acevedo kill cut the lead to 20-18, but two straight points from the Aggies made it 22-18, forcing a Minnesota timeout. A&M would finish out the match, winning 25-21.
Game Notes
» The 'U' is now 2-7 all-time against Texas A&M and 42-12 in season-openers.
» Alex Acevedo went for 11 kills, her career-high was 12 last year at home vs. Wisconsin. It was her second career 10+ kill match.
» Calissa Minatee went for 10 kills and one block.
» Lourdes Myers went for five kills and four blocks in her Minnesota debut.
» Julia Hanson had 16 kills to lead Minnesota. She's had 10-or-more kills in 16 consecutive matches dating back to last season.
» Zeynep Palabiyik posted a team-high 15 digs for her 11th consecutive match (dating back to last season), with 10+ digs.
» Mckenna Wucherer did not play due to a lingering back injury.
Up Next
Minnesota hosts the Golden Gopher Invitational next Friday, Aug. 29-Sunday, Aug. 31.
"First and foremost we'd like to thank the AVCA and the city of Sioux Falls for putting on a great event," head coach Keegan Cook said. "This is the type of team we want to be playing in late December. I thought it was very competitive volleyball, both teams had a hard time pulling away from one another."
Julia Hanson led Minnesota with 16 kills on .256 while Stella Swenson went for 39 assists, five blocks and four digs. Calissa Minatee had 10 kills and one block while Zeynep Palabiyik had 15 digs.
The Gophers (0-1, 0-0 Big Ten) were outhit by the Aggies (1-0, 0-0 SEC), .304 to .242, outblocked, 12.0 to 7.0 and outdug, 53 to 38. Minnesota had four aces compared to one for A&M.
Logan Lednicky paced the Aggies with 22 kills and 12 digs while Maddie Waak had 51 assists. Kyndal Stowers went for nine kills and 14 digs.
How It Happened
SET 1 | The Gophers led much of the first set, but couldn't finish the job as the Aggies took it, 25-23. Hanson had five kills while Swenson had 11 assists to lead the 'U', who hit .250 and had 13 kills. Calissa Minatee and Alex Acevedo totaled three kills each while the Gophers had four team blocks. The 'U' led by as many as three at 22-19, but a 6-1 run to finish the set by A&M gave the visitors the set one victory.
SET 2 | Minnesota trailed much of the early going before taking a 10-9 lead at the first media break, capped off by a solo block from Myers. The two teams exchanged points up to 18-18, with neither leading by more than two. Minnesota took a 20-18 lead at the second media break following an Aggies hitting error. A Myers kill put Minnesota up 21-18, leading to an A&M timeout. The Gophers would lead by as many as five at 24-19 before closing out set two, 25-21. After two sets, the Aggies were leading the hitting battle, .230 to .215.
SET 3 | The third set was as close as can be in the early goings, with neither club leading by more than two. A&M took a 10-9 lead into the first media break. The Aggies kept up their momentum, taking a set-high five point lead at 20-15 into the second media timeout. The Gophers cut the lead to as few as three at 23-20, but would get no closer as A&M took the third set, 25-21, to go up two to one.
SET 4 | The Aggies started off strong again in set four, taking an early 8-3 lead. A pair of Hanson kills helped Minnesota cut the lead to 9-6 before a hitting error gave A&M a 10-6 lead at the first media break. The Gophers chipped away, eventually getting the lead down to one at 16-15 following an ace from Palabiyik. A&M would take a 20-17 lead into the second media break. An Alex Acevedo kill cut the lead to 20-18, but two straight points from the Aggies made it 22-18, forcing a Minnesota timeout. A&M would finish out the match, winning 25-21.
Game Notes
» The 'U' is now 2-7 all-time against Texas A&M and 42-12 in season-openers.
» Alex Acevedo went for 11 kills, her career-high was 12 last year at home vs. Wisconsin. It was her second career 10+ kill match.
» Calissa Minatee went for 10 kills and one block.
» Lourdes Myers went for five kills and four blocks in her Minnesota debut.
» Julia Hanson had 16 kills to lead Minnesota. She's had 10-or-more kills in 16 consecutive matches dating back to last season.
» Zeynep Palabiyik posted a team-high 15 digs for her 11th consecutive match (dating back to last season), with 10+ digs.
» Mckenna Wucherer did not play due to a lingering back injury.
Up Next
Minnesota hosts the Golden Gopher Invitational next Friday, Aug. 29-Sunday, Aug. 31.
Highlights: Gophers 3, Dayton 0
Saturday, September 13
Highlights: Gophers 3, South Florida 0
Friday, September 12
Cinematic Recap: A Sweep in Nashville
Friday, September 12
Cinematic Recap: Golden Gopher Invitational
Monday, September 08