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CEDAR FALLS | It was a big weekend for the University of Northern Iowa volleyball team as they swept the competition and gained sole rights to second place in the Missouri Valley Conference.

With just eight games remaining on the schedule heading into the home stand, the Panthers (10-2, 16-8) used a little home cooking to brew up a 25-20, 22-25, 25-23, 25-22 victory over Wichita State at the McCleod Center Saturday night.

The Panthers defeated Missouri State Friday, pushing both the Bears and the Shockers two games behind them in the standings.

"Tonight it was a good match for both teams," Panthers coach Bobbi Peteresen said. "Wichita State is a difficult team to defend against and we had a few more times where we strung things together, and we just had to not get frustrated when things didn't go our way."

Things were not going the Panthers' way during the first set as the Shockers (9-4, 15-8) matched them point for point with three lead changes and four ties. The last tie came at 18 points when Waverly-Shell Rock native, Kinsey Caldwell, saves a sure point on a dive, then delivers the kill after coming off the floor, knotting the set.