CEDAR FALLS - At the evening's outset Saturday, many McLeod Center patrons seemed more concerned with Saturday's Northern Iowa athletics matinee than the soon-to-be-played volleyball match. Several fans, for example, craned their neck toward monitors which broadcasted the Panthers' football clash.

Bobbi Petersen's women eventually turned heads, however, winning the back end of UNI's sporting double-feature, 27-30, 30-16, 30-27, 30-16 over Evansville to earn a season-high three-match winning streak.

"We talked about being the ones that get to end a great weekend," said Petersen, whose club improved to 12-9 overall, and 6-3 in Missouri Valley Conference action. "We talked about this being a match where we showed what being a Panther is all about."

In what served as the official end to Northern Iowa's homecoming ceremonies, the Panther volleyball players had to wrestle the attention of their fans away from the school's football tilt, but no doubt produced an effort of their own that, at times, seemed worthy of the big screen.

Amy Sampson was the star of the show, producing a career-high 20 kills. Fellow junior Ashten Stelken contributed 19 kills, while fellow front-row performers Laura Rowen looked like her old, all-conference self, registering 15 kills, and freshman libero Ellie Blankenship's 31 digs were the most ever by a UNI player in a four-game match.

"We had a lot of expectations coming into this weekend," noted Sampson, a 5-foot-11 junior outside hitter. "We just had to not let the hype of Homecoming make our emotions too high."

At night's end, the Panthers' main emotions were jubilation - and relief.

The hosts had never lost to Evansville in 27 all-time meetings entering the evening. Thus, virtually everyone in attendance Saturday expected the Aces to fold without event.

It wasn't quite in the cards. The visitors came to play.

Game 1 featured multiple long rallies. The Aces (10-10, 3-6) seemed to win them all. That, plus erratic, .179 hitting from the hosts, handed Evansville a win.

Lady Luck seemed to switch benches in the second game, and the Panthers sprang to life.

Rowen and Ashten Stelken unleashed malicious spikes. Kristin Belzung, who ended with 59 assists, passed with precision. And Sampson trampolined off the floor and hammered kills virtually directly downward. As a result, the Panthers sprinted out to a 19-6 lead and soon sewed up a Game 2 triumph, then won a see-saw battle in Game 3.

"We came out pretty flat," Petersen acknowledged afterward. "I told them, you've got to find the energy to end this match the right way. We definitely (did)."

Finally, in Game 4, UNI used a late, 18-6 run to wrap up its sixth home win in nine matches at the McLeod Center.

After some confounding fits and starts earlier this season, UNI finally looks like it's beginning to steer away from any prolonged skids.

"I think this weekend we played pretty well," said Sampson, whose Panthers venture to Drake on Friday for the first of three straight road matches. "And I think we can take that (momentum) with us for the rest of the conference (schedule)."

Contact Kelly Beaton at (319) 291-1456 or kelly.beaton@wcfcourier.com