Thursday, September 3
Vermillion, SD
3:00 pm MT
Air Force Academy
1-2,0-0Mountain West
1
vs
3
Northern Iowa
2-2,0-0MVC
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Final F |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UNI | 23 | 25 | 25 | 25 | 3 |
| Air Force | 25 | 20 | 17 | 22 | 1 |
Photo by: Jonathan Suni
Falcons Fall to Northern Iowa in Tournament Opener
9/3/2026 7:24:00 PM | Women's Volleyball
VERMILLION, S.D. -- The Air Force volleyball team opened the South Dakota Classic with a 3-1 neutral site loss to Northern Iowa this afternoon (Sept. 3) at the Sanford Coyote Sports Center in Vermillion. After winning the opening set 25-23, the Falcons fell 20-25, 17-25, 22-25 to move to 1-2 on the short season.
Junior Alysa Walker led the Falcons with 15 kills, while senior Annamaria Ramos added nine and junior Grace Fiaseu chipped in six on .429 hitting (6-0-14). Fellow junior Lainie Stapleton, who also accounted for six kills on Thursday, tied for the team lead in blocks (four) with sophomore Sonia Donkeng Okpara (four assisted for Stapleton, one solo/three assisted for Donkeng Okpara). Junior Mia Loyd assisted on 22 of the team's kills, while sophomore Sam Pope added 12 in her season debut. Led by a season-high 19 digs from freshman Ella Vogel, four Falcons reached double digit digs – Ramos (13), Loyd (11), Walker 10).
Walker put down the first point of the match and added two more kills to give Air Force an early 5-3 advantage. Kills from Stapleton and Fiaseu helped push the Falcons' lead to three (8-4), while a solo block from Donkeng Okpara put Air Force in double figures (10-8). The teams traded scores, with Air Force pushing its advantage to three (16-13) off a kill from Stapleton. Northern Iowa scored four straight points to take the lead and added a 4-1 run to take its own three-point lead (21-18). Walker stopped the run with a kill, while Stapleton put down a kill and teamed up with Fiaseu for a block to tie the set at 22. After the Panthers evened the score at 23, Stapleton and Ramos posted kills on back-to-back plays to give the Falcons a 25-23 win in a back-and-forth opening set.
In a repeat of the first frame, the opening point came off a kill from Walker. Vogel served up an ace on the next point to help the Falcons take a 3-0 lead, while another strike from Stapleton maintained a three-point advantage for Air Force at the 6-3 mark. After forcing the Panthers into three attacking errors, Ramos put down a kill and Donkeng Okpara teamed up with freshman Jenness Orcutt for a block, Air Force sent Northern Iowa into a timeout at the 10-6 mark. The Panthers scored six straight points out of the break – and nine of the next 10 – to take their own four-point lead at 15-11. Fiaseu put down a kill and block (with Walker) to bring Air Force within two (16-18) – and added another strike at the 17-21 mark, but Northern Iowa evened the match with a 25-20 victory.
Northern Iowa registered the first two points of the third set, but Walker answered with back-to-back, set-tying kills (2-2). The Falcons benefitted from four errors by the Panthers, while a kill from Donkeng Okpara kept the Falcons within one at the 7-8 mark. Ramos, Stapleton and Fiaseu put the Falcons in double figures (10-12), but Northern Iowa stretched their advantage to six at 18-12. Ramos added two more kills, but the Panthers rolled to a 25-17 victory.
Backed by a kill from Donkeng Okpara and an ace from Loyd, Air Force took a quick 5-1 lead to start the fourth. The Panthers responded with the next six points, but the Falcons answered with four of the next five scores during a run that included kills from Loyd and Donkeng Okpara, as well as a Fiaseu/Stapleton block. Following another short run by UNI, Air Force tied the score at 11 off a kill from Ramos. The teams traded the next several points, with Fiaseu putting down a set-tying kill at 12-all and Walker using back-to-back points to break the back-and-forth action and give Air Force a 14-13 lead. Following a tie at 15-all, the Panthers used a 6-2 run to send Air Force into a timeout (17-21). The Falcons earned kills from Fiaseu (two) and Ramos (one) and pulled within two at 22-24, but Northern Iowa put down the final kill for the 25-22 set win – and the 3-1 match victory.
The Falcons return to the Sanford Coyote Sports Center tomorrow (Sept. 4) night, when they face tournament host South Dakota at 7:00 p.m. (CT).
Junior Alysa Walker led the Falcons with 15 kills, while senior Annamaria Ramos added nine and junior Grace Fiaseu chipped in six on .429 hitting (6-0-14). Fellow junior Lainie Stapleton, who also accounted for six kills on Thursday, tied for the team lead in blocks (four) with sophomore Sonia Donkeng Okpara (four assisted for Stapleton, one solo/three assisted for Donkeng Okpara). Junior Mia Loyd assisted on 22 of the team's kills, while sophomore Sam Pope added 12 in her season debut. Led by a season-high 19 digs from freshman Ella Vogel, four Falcons reached double digit digs – Ramos (13), Loyd (11), Walker 10).
Walker put down the first point of the match and added two more kills to give Air Force an early 5-3 advantage. Kills from Stapleton and Fiaseu helped push the Falcons' lead to three (8-4), while a solo block from Donkeng Okpara put Air Force in double figures (10-8). The teams traded scores, with Air Force pushing its advantage to three (16-13) off a kill from Stapleton. Northern Iowa scored four straight points to take the lead and added a 4-1 run to take its own three-point lead (21-18). Walker stopped the run with a kill, while Stapleton put down a kill and teamed up with Fiaseu for a block to tie the set at 22. After the Panthers evened the score at 23, Stapleton and Ramos posted kills on back-to-back plays to give the Falcons a 25-23 win in a back-and-forth opening set.
In a repeat of the first frame, the opening point came off a kill from Walker. Vogel served up an ace on the next point to help the Falcons take a 3-0 lead, while another strike from Stapleton maintained a three-point advantage for Air Force at the 6-3 mark. After forcing the Panthers into three attacking errors, Ramos put down a kill and Donkeng Okpara teamed up with freshman Jenness Orcutt for a block, Air Force sent Northern Iowa into a timeout at the 10-6 mark. The Panthers scored six straight points out of the break – and nine of the next 10 – to take their own four-point lead at 15-11. Fiaseu put down a kill and block (with Walker) to bring Air Force within two (16-18) – and added another strike at the 17-21 mark, but Northern Iowa evened the match with a 25-20 victory.
Northern Iowa registered the first two points of the third set, but Walker answered with back-to-back, set-tying kills (2-2). The Falcons benefitted from four errors by the Panthers, while a kill from Donkeng Okpara kept the Falcons within one at the 7-8 mark. Ramos, Stapleton and Fiaseu put the Falcons in double figures (10-12), but Northern Iowa stretched their advantage to six at 18-12. Ramos added two more kills, but the Panthers rolled to a 25-17 victory.
Backed by a kill from Donkeng Okpara and an ace from Loyd, Air Force took a quick 5-1 lead to start the fourth. The Panthers responded with the next six points, but the Falcons answered with four of the next five scores during a run that included kills from Loyd and Donkeng Okpara, as well as a Fiaseu/Stapleton block. Following another short run by UNI, Air Force tied the score at 11 off a kill from Ramos. The teams traded the next several points, with Fiaseu putting down a set-tying kill at 12-all and Walker using back-to-back points to break the back-and-forth action and give Air Force a 14-13 lead. Following a tie at 15-all, the Panthers used a 6-2 run to send Air Force into a timeout (17-21). The Falcons earned kills from Fiaseu (two) and Ramos (one) and pulled within two at 22-24, but Northern Iowa put down the final kill for the 25-22 set win – and the 3-1 match victory.
The Falcons return to the Sanford Coyote Sports Center tomorrow (Sept. 4) night, when they face tournament host South Dakota at 7:00 p.m. (CT).
Players Mentioned
MB
/ Women's Volleyball
MB
/ Women's Volleyball
S
/ Women's Volleyball
OH/RS
/ Women's Volleyball
S
/ Women's Volleyball
OH
/ Women's Volleyball
RS
/ Women's Volleyball
L/DS
/ Women's Volleyball
OH
/ Women's VolleyballTeam Stats
UNI
USAFA
Kills
69
44
Errors
23
17
Attempts
182
166
Hitting %
.253
.163
Points
85.0
54.0
Assists
64
41
Aces
4
2
Blocks
12
8
Game Leaders
Kills
15
Aces
0
Blocks
1
Kills
9
Aces
0
Blocks
1
Kills
6
Aces
0
Blocks
4
Kills
6
Aces
0
Blocks
3
Thursday, September 24
Tuesday, September 22
Tuesday, September 15
Saturday, September 12
