University of Minnesota Athletics
Thursday, October 1
Minneapolis, MN
7:00 PM
University of Minnesota
vs
Northwestern
Photo by: Mac Brown
Gophers Ready to Face Northwestern Thursday at the Pav
9/29/2026 2:25:00 PM | Volleyball
SERIES INFORMATION
Minnesota leads Northwestern, 67-20-0
First Meeting: 1976 (Northwestern)
Last Meeting: 2025 (at Northwestern)
OPENGATE AND NEW BAG POLICY AT MATURI PAVILION
New this year, gate entrance will hold a consistent security clearance in all our Gopher facilities. Please see HERE for prohibited items. New bag policy as well as additional match day information can be found HERE.
GOPHERS SET TO PLAY IN FRONT OF SOLD OUT CROWDS
• The No. 20 University of Minnesota volleyball team hosts a pair of Big Ten opponents Thursday and Sunday this week at Maturi Pavilion. Thursday's match vs. Northwestern is set for a 7 p.m. start, while Sunday's contest against the No. 6 Badgers is slated for a 5 p.m. match. Both games are sold out at Maturi Pavilion. Sunday's match is a Gold Out for the Gophers.
NUMBERS TO KNOW
55 -- The 2026 season marks the 55th year of Gopher volleyball.
20 -- Minnesota Golden Gophers enter the week as No. 20 in the AVCA Sept. 28 Coaches' poll. The Gophers opened the 2026 season as the No. 14 team in the AVCA Preseason poll.
16 -- Minnesota ranks 16th nationally in assists per set this season and fifth in the conference. Stella Swenson is ranked eighth nationally.
12 -- Returners to the Gopher squad from last season, including starting setter Stella Swenson and Kate Thibault, who played in all 119 sets in the 2025 season.
10 -- Jordan Taylor had a season-best 10 blocks vs. Oregon last Saturday. On the season, she leads the team with 1.42 blocks per set and has had 10-plus blocks twice in her career.
6 -- Minnesota ranked 6th in average attendance at 4,488 per match (avg.) in 2025. They ranked 4th overall (80,779 total fans).
4 -- The Gophers welcome four newcomers to this year's roster: freshmen OH Makenna Crosson, DS Madi Kraft and MB Elena Hoecke all joined the Gophers in January 2026. Lucie Blažková joins the Gophers after two seasons at Washington State.
3 -- As a team, the Gophers rank third in the Big Ten in aces per set, averaging 2.06. Mckenna Wucherer leads the league averaging 0.69 this season with her 25 aces this year. Nationally, the Gophers are 19th in aces per set.
2 -- Mckenna Wucherer has received two Big Ten Player of the Week awards in this young 2026 campaign.
2 -- Former Gophers will be inducted into the M Club Hall of Fame this weekend in Lauren Gibbemeyer and Sarah Wilhite.
1 -- Mckenna Wucherer tops the Big Ten in points per set (5.94), kills per set (4.97), attacks per set (11.39) and aces per set (0.69). She ranks second nationally in points per set and third in kps.
SIBLING RIVALRY
• Mckenna Wucherer and her sister, Miranda, will be wearing different colors during Thursday's Gopher/Wildcat contest. Mckenna Wucherer is in her fifth year with the Golden Gophers. Her sister, Miranda, was named an assistant coach with Northwestern in February 2026. Both were members of the Gophers squad in 2022 when Mckenna was a freshman and Miranda was a graduate senior. Miranda then served as a graduate manager in 2023. Before her career at Minnesota, Miranda played in 102 matches at Northern Kentucky, averaging 1.15 kills and 5.77 assists per set. She made the All-Horizon League First Team as a junior and also led the program to its first-ever Division I NCAA Tournament appearance in 2019.
WUCHERER RECEIVES B1G ACCOLADES
• Mckenna Wucherer has been named the Big Ten Player of the Week twice this season, the first honors of her collegiate career. During the SD Lottery Challenge, Wucherer produced back-to-back career-high kill nights when she had 25 in both matches. Wucherer broke her previous best of 21, which she had held three times in her career, two of which came this season. Along with her 25 kills, Wucherer also established a career-best 15 digs. On the weekend, the fifth-year had 50 kills, averaged 6.25 kills per set, hit .415, added four aces, 26 digs and four blocks. She scored 56 points over two days.
• Wucherer had an outstanding weekend as a part of the 2026 Allstate Big Ten/SEC Challenge. In those two matches vs. Florida and Auburn, Wucherer produced back-to-back 21-kill nights, which tied a then-career high. On the week, Wucherer had 42 kills, averaged 5.25 kills per set and hit .350. She also had six aces, 20 digs and five blocks. Against then-No. 17 Florida, Wucherer hit .388 in 49 swings and committed just two errors. In the win over Auburn, Wucherer added another 21-kill night and produced four aces, including two in the fourth and final set.
GOOD TO BE HOME
• For the fourth and fifth time this season, the Gophers are playing at Maturi Pavilion this week. Minnesota went 14-4 last year at Maturi Pavilion and drew an average of 4,488 fans. The Gophers have already claimed a sellout for the Oct. 1 and Oct. 4 matches vs. Northwestern and Wisconsin. In Keegan Cook's tenure, the Gophers have posted 10 or more home wins in each of his seasons here since 2023 and a 34-14 mark at the Pav.
LAST TIME OUT
• Minnesota dropped a pair of four-set decisions to open Big Ten play last week. Minnesota fell to Illinois on Sept. 24 in Champaign, Ill., 22-25, 25-14, 18-25, 22-25. Mckenna Wucherer led all attackers with 18 kills, while Kelly Kinney followed with 15 and Carly Gilk had 11. McKenna Garr was one dig shy of a career high when she had 19 digs and three aces. Stella Swenson had 44 assists.
• Minnesota volleyball team fell to then-No. 20 Oregon in four sets, Saturday also at Maturi Pavilion. The Gophers dropped the first two sets, 20-25, 20-25, won the third, 25-23, and lost the fourth, 25-27. Kelly Kinney had a season-best 16 kills and hit .351, while Mckenna Wucherer had 15. Stella Swenson had a double-double with 34 assists and 13 digs. Jordan Taylor had 10 blocks, while Zeynep Palabiyik had a team-best 16 digs.
MINNESOTA'S HISTORY VS. NORTHWESTERN
• All-time against Northwestern, Minnesota is 67-20, dating back to 1975. The Gophers have won 17 of 18 in the series overall. The Wildcats last won on Sept. 28, 2022, in a five-set thriller at the Pav. Minnesota took down the Wildcats in four sets on Oct. 5, 2025, in the last meeting, 25-18, 25-22, 17-25, 26-24, in Evanston, Ill.
SCOUTING NORTHWESTERN
• Northwestern enters the week with a 7-6 overall record and 0-2 in Big Ten play. The Wildcats opened Big Ten play last weekend with a pair of losses to Southern California (20-25,19-25,16-25) and UCLA (20-25,20-25,20-25) in Evanston, Ill. Northwestern has nine returners from last year's team, which finished with 17 wins, tying for the largest year-over-year improvement in Power Four women's volleyball.
• The Wildcats have three individuals with triple-digit kills this season. Mara Stiglic leads the team with 178 kills, followed by Isabella Bullington with 148 and Campbell Paris with 131. Starting setter Ellie Stiernagle has 488 assists and also has 102 digs. The Wildcats also have three in triple-digit digs: Lauren Dignan averages 4.00 digs per set, while Drew Wright has 111 digs, followed by Stiernagle (102).
• As a team, Northwestern is hitting .261 and averaging 13.04 kills per set. They also average 14.19 digs per set and 1.73 blocks per set. The Wildcats have 681 digs this season, which ranks fifth in the league.
GIBBEMEYER/WILHITE SET FOR M CLUB HALL OF FAME INDUCTION
• Former Gophers Lauren Gibbemeyer-Mendes and Sarah (Wilhite) Parsons will be two of 10 inductees into Minnesota's M Club Hall of Fame on Friday, Oct. 2, in a ceremony at Huntington Bank Stadium. The individuals will be recognized throughout the weekend at various events, including the Oct. 3 Saturday home football game against Michigan.
• Hailing from St. Paul, Minn., Gibbemeyer-Mendes played with the Gopher volleyball team from 2007-10. The former Big Ten Freshman of the Year was a three-time First Team All-Big Ten selection from 2008-10. Gibbemeyer-Mendes was also a two-time First Team All-American and garnered Second Team All-America honors in 2008.
• Hailing from Eden Prairie, Minn., Parsons played for the Gopher volleyball program from 2013-16. As a senior, she was named the AVCA and ESPNW National Player of the Year, an honor awarded to the top athlete in women's Division I volleyball. She is the first and only Gopher to don the honor. The former Big Ten Player of the Year and All-Big Ten selection, Wilhite-Parsons, guided the team to back-to-back NCAA Final Fours in 2015-16 and was named to the NCAA All-Tournament team in 2015.
UP NEXT
• Minnesota hosts No. 6 Wisconsin, Sunday at 5 p.m. The match will be televised on Big Ten Network. It's also a Gold Out for Sunday's contest.
Minnesota leads Northwestern, 67-20-0
First Meeting: 1976 (Northwestern)
Last Meeting: 2025 (at Northwestern)
OPENGATE AND NEW BAG POLICY AT MATURI PAVILION
New this year, gate entrance will hold a consistent security clearance in all our Gopher facilities. Please see HERE for prohibited items. New bag policy as well as additional match day information can be found HERE.
GOPHERS SET TO PLAY IN FRONT OF SOLD OUT CROWDS
• The No. 20 University of Minnesota volleyball team hosts a pair of Big Ten opponents Thursday and Sunday this week at Maturi Pavilion. Thursday's match vs. Northwestern is set for a 7 p.m. start, while Sunday's contest against the No. 6 Badgers is slated for a 5 p.m. match. Both games are sold out at Maturi Pavilion. Sunday's match is a Gold Out for the Gophers.
NUMBERS TO KNOW
55 -- The 2026 season marks the 55th year of Gopher volleyball.
20 -- Minnesota Golden Gophers enter the week as No. 20 in the AVCA Sept. 28 Coaches' poll. The Gophers opened the 2026 season as the No. 14 team in the AVCA Preseason poll.
16 -- Minnesota ranks 16th nationally in assists per set this season and fifth in the conference. Stella Swenson is ranked eighth nationally.
12 -- Returners to the Gopher squad from last season, including starting setter Stella Swenson and Kate Thibault, who played in all 119 sets in the 2025 season.
10 -- Jordan Taylor had a season-best 10 blocks vs. Oregon last Saturday. On the season, she leads the team with 1.42 blocks per set and has had 10-plus blocks twice in her career.
6 -- Minnesota ranked 6th in average attendance at 4,488 per match (avg.) in 2025. They ranked 4th overall (80,779 total fans).
4 -- The Gophers welcome four newcomers to this year's roster: freshmen OH Makenna Crosson, DS Madi Kraft and MB Elena Hoecke all joined the Gophers in January 2026. Lucie Blažková joins the Gophers after two seasons at Washington State.
3 -- As a team, the Gophers rank third in the Big Ten in aces per set, averaging 2.06. Mckenna Wucherer leads the league averaging 0.69 this season with her 25 aces this year. Nationally, the Gophers are 19th in aces per set.
2 -- Mckenna Wucherer has received two Big Ten Player of the Week awards in this young 2026 campaign.
2 -- Former Gophers will be inducted into the M Club Hall of Fame this weekend in Lauren Gibbemeyer and Sarah Wilhite.
1 -- Mckenna Wucherer tops the Big Ten in points per set (5.94), kills per set (4.97), attacks per set (11.39) and aces per set (0.69). She ranks second nationally in points per set and third in kps.
SIBLING RIVALRY
• Mckenna Wucherer and her sister, Miranda, will be wearing different colors during Thursday's Gopher/Wildcat contest. Mckenna Wucherer is in her fifth year with the Golden Gophers. Her sister, Miranda, was named an assistant coach with Northwestern in February 2026. Both were members of the Gophers squad in 2022 when Mckenna was a freshman and Miranda was a graduate senior. Miranda then served as a graduate manager in 2023. Before her career at Minnesota, Miranda played in 102 matches at Northern Kentucky, averaging 1.15 kills and 5.77 assists per set. She made the All-Horizon League First Team as a junior and also led the program to its first-ever Division I NCAA Tournament appearance in 2019.
WUCHERER RECEIVES B1G ACCOLADES
• Mckenna Wucherer has been named the Big Ten Player of the Week twice this season, the first honors of her collegiate career. During the SD Lottery Challenge, Wucherer produced back-to-back career-high kill nights when she had 25 in both matches. Wucherer broke her previous best of 21, which she had held three times in her career, two of which came this season. Along with her 25 kills, Wucherer also established a career-best 15 digs. On the weekend, the fifth-year had 50 kills, averaged 6.25 kills per set, hit .415, added four aces, 26 digs and four blocks. She scored 56 points over two days.
• Wucherer had an outstanding weekend as a part of the 2026 Allstate Big Ten/SEC Challenge. In those two matches vs. Florida and Auburn, Wucherer produced back-to-back 21-kill nights, which tied a then-career high. On the week, Wucherer had 42 kills, averaged 5.25 kills per set and hit .350. She also had six aces, 20 digs and five blocks. Against then-No. 17 Florida, Wucherer hit .388 in 49 swings and committed just two errors. In the win over Auburn, Wucherer added another 21-kill night and produced four aces, including two in the fourth and final set.
GOOD TO BE HOME
• For the fourth and fifth time this season, the Gophers are playing at Maturi Pavilion this week. Minnesota went 14-4 last year at Maturi Pavilion and drew an average of 4,488 fans. The Gophers have already claimed a sellout for the Oct. 1 and Oct. 4 matches vs. Northwestern and Wisconsin. In Keegan Cook's tenure, the Gophers have posted 10 or more home wins in each of his seasons here since 2023 and a 34-14 mark at the Pav.
LAST TIME OUT
• Minnesota dropped a pair of four-set decisions to open Big Ten play last week. Minnesota fell to Illinois on Sept. 24 in Champaign, Ill., 22-25, 25-14, 18-25, 22-25. Mckenna Wucherer led all attackers with 18 kills, while Kelly Kinney followed with 15 and Carly Gilk had 11. McKenna Garr was one dig shy of a career high when she had 19 digs and three aces. Stella Swenson had 44 assists.
• Minnesota volleyball team fell to then-No. 20 Oregon in four sets, Saturday also at Maturi Pavilion. The Gophers dropped the first two sets, 20-25, 20-25, won the third, 25-23, and lost the fourth, 25-27. Kelly Kinney had a season-best 16 kills and hit .351, while Mckenna Wucherer had 15. Stella Swenson had a double-double with 34 assists and 13 digs. Jordan Taylor had 10 blocks, while Zeynep Palabiyik had a team-best 16 digs.
MINNESOTA'S HISTORY VS. NORTHWESTERN
• All-time against Northwestern, Minnesota is 67-20, dating back to 1975. The Gophers have won 17 of 18 in the series overall. The Wildcats last won on Sept. 28, 2022, in a five-set thriller at the Pav. Minnesota took down the Wildcats in four sets on Oct. 5, 2025, in the last meeting, 25-18, 25-22, 17-25, 26-24, in Evanston, Ill.
SCOUTING NORTHWESTERN
• Northwestern enters the week with a 7-6 overall record and 0-2 in Big Ten play. The Wildcats opened Big Ten play last weekend with a pair of losses to Southern California (20-25,19-25,16-25) and UCLA (20-25,20-25,20-25) in Evanston, Ill. Northwestern has nine returners from last year's team, which finished with 17 wins, tying for the largest year-over-year improvement in Power Four women's volleyball.
• The Wildcats have three individuals with triple-digit kills this season. Mara Stiglic leads the team with 178 kills, followed by Isabella Bullington with 148 and Campbell Paris with 131. Starting setter Ellie Stiernagle has 488 assists and also has 102 digs. The Wildcats also have three in triple-digit digs: Lauren Dignan averages 4.00 digs per set, while Drew Wright has 111 digs, followed by Stiernagle (102).
• As a team, Northwestern is hitting .261 and averaging 13.04 kills per set. They also average 14.19 digs per set and 1.73 blocks per set. The Wildcats have 681 digs this season, which ranks fifth in the league.
GIBBEMEYER/WILHITE SET FOR M CLUB HALL OF FAME INDUCTION
• Former Gophers Lauren Gibbemeyer-Mendes and Sarah (Wilhite) Parsons will be two of 10 inductees into Minnesota's M Club Hall of Fame on Friday, Oct. 2, in a ceremony at Huntington Bank Stadium. The individuals will be recognized throughout the weekend at various events, including the Oct. 3 Saturday home football game against Michigan.
• Hailing from St. Paul, Minn., Gibbemeyer-Mendes played with the Gopher volleyball team from 2007-10. The former Big Ten Freshman of the Year was a three-time First Team All-Big Ten selection from 2008-10. Gibbemeyer-Mendes was also a two-time First Team All-American and garnered Second Team All-America honors in 2008.
• Hailing from Eden Prairie, Minn., Parsons played for the Gopher volleyball program from 2013-16. As a senior, she was named the AVCA and ESPNW National Player of the Year, an honor awarded to the top athlete in women's Division I volleyball. She is the first and only Gopher to don the honor. The former Big Ten Player of the Year and All-Big Ten selection, Wilhite-Parsons, guided the team to back-to-back NCAA Final Fours in 2015-16 and was named to the NCAA All-Tournament team in 2015.
UP NEXT
• Minnesota hosts No. 6 Wisconsin, Sunday at 5 p.m. The match will be televised on Big Ten Network. It's also a Gold Out for Sunday's contest.
Players Mentioned
Outside
/ Volleyball
Libero/DS
/ Volleyball
Opposite
/ Volleyball
Middle Blocker
/ Volleyball
Outside
/ Volleyball
Libero/DS
/ Volleyball
Libero/DS
/ Volleyball
Setter
/ Volleyball
Middle Blocker
/ Volleyball
Libero/DS
/ Volleyball
Outside
/ VolleyballSaturday, September 26
Thursday, September 24
Wednesday, September 16
Sunday, September 13