Western Kentucky (28-7) controlled most of the third set late when it scored seven consecutive points to keep from getting swept.
Around the same time Thursday, Loyola Chicago upset No. 5 BYU in a sweep in West Lafayette, Ind., which was the first tournament shocker. There were early signs the Gophers were in for a fight early as well.
Trailing 19-16 in the first set, the Gophers used Calissa Minatee’s only two kills of the set and her block to spark a 9-3 run for the opening win to regain momentum in the match.
In the second set, Minnesota broke away from a 5-5 tie with eight of nine points, including the first two kills from Mckenna Wucherer, who finished with nine in the match. Cook called a timeout when Western Kentucky pulled within 24-20, but Grote finished off the set by slamming down her seventh kill of the night.
After playing one of the strongest schedules in the country, the Gophers were more battle-tested entering Thursday, having 10 matches against top-25 teams this season. They were one of only nine teams nationally with at least two top-10 victories (beating Texas and Wisconsin).
“That’s the good thing about our team is we have a lot of people who can come in and out and play pretty well,” Shaffmaster said. “I think it got a lot more scary in four, but we got it kind of figured out and it saved us.”