No. 19 Gophers volleyball sweeps St. Thomas in home opener

Led by 10 kills each from Julia Hanson and Lydia Grote, the No. 18 Minnesota Golden Gophers volleyball team (2-3, 0-0) swept the University of St. Thomas Tommies (3-4, 0-0) 3-0 on Tuesday night in their home opener at Maturi Pavilion.

It's the first time the Gophers haven't played a five-set match this year as they earn their second win in the young season.

The win against the Tommies comes after two tough losses to TCU and Baylor and an upset of No. 1 Texas last week.

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A total of 14 Gophers played Tuesday night, a season-high and eight Gophers tallied kills against the Tommies.

"We've developed a lot of players on our roster and that was what tonight was about. We wanted to see some new faces and see what they could do," head coach Keegan Cook said in a statement.

"It's the learning moments that they have to have and you're not going to develop if you don't get opportunities."

Zeynep Palabiyik and Melani Shaffmaster paced the Gophers defensively, as Palabiyik had 20 digs and Shaffmaster had 10. Calissa Minatee and Lydia Grote each had a career-high eight blocks in the match.

Minnesota had complete control in the first set, leading by as many as 11 points at 21-10. The Tommies battled back but the Gophers held on for the 25-20 victory.

The Gophers never trailed in the second set after taking a 2-1 lead and winning 25-16.

Minnesota finished off the sweep in the third set by leading after scoring the first point of the set and never trailing afterwards, winning 25-21.

The Gophers will host Long Island University at Maturi Pavilion next on Thursday at 7 p.m. to open the Diet Coke Classic.