The No. 12 Gophers volleyball team swept Northwestern 25-20, 25-10, 25-14 on Wednesday night in a Big Ten match at Maturi Pavilion, giving coach Hugh McCutcheon a victory on his 52nd birthday.
Airi Miyabe had 11 kills for Minnesota (10-5, 4-1 Big Ten) while Stephanie Samedy had 10 kills, 12 digs and four blocks.
"Our distribution was good tonight," said McCutcheon on the Big Ten Network. "That's something we have been working on. … Everybody had a crack at it."
U soccer hosts Illini
The Gophers women's soccer team (6-4-3, 2-4 Big Ten) will play Illinois (5-7-1, 1-4-1) at 8 p.m. Thursday at Elizabeth Lyle Robbie Stadium, needing a strong finish to make the conference tournament.
Minnesota, with four matches left, sits in a tie for 10th place. The top eight teams advance.
Etc.
• North Dakota volleyball coach Jeremiah Tiffin was placed on paid administrative leave effective immediately "upon learning of some potential issues within the program," according to a statement by Fighting Hawks athletic director Bill Chaves.
• Northwestern (St. Paul) senior setter Sydney Schwitters was named the Sports Imports/American Volleyball Coaches Association's NCAA Division III national player of the week. She had 48 assists and 17 digs and eclipsed 4,000 career assists last week in a five-set loss to No. 7 Wartburg.
• Don Berry, of Edinburgh USA, carded three late birdies to pull away from Dale Jones, of Mendakota Country Club, for a 3 and 1 victory on Tuesday in the Minnesota PGA Senior Match Play Championship at the White Bear Yacht Club. It was his fourth title in this tournament.
• St. Benedict's announced that it will start a women's lacrosse program. The Bennies play their first games in the spring of 2023.
