Michigan
13-7, 3-6Big Ten
Iowa
9-8, 5-4Big Ten
Michigan Cannot Hold Two-Game Lead, Falls to Iowa in Five
10/20/2000 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
Site:Â Ann Arbor, Mich. (Cliff Keen Arena)
Result:Â Iowa 3, Michigan 2 (10-15, 12-15, 15-6, 16-14, 15-13)
Records:Â U-M (13-7, 3-6 Big Ten), Iowa (9-8, 5-4 Big Ten)
Next U-M Match:Â Saturday, Oct. 21 -- vs. Minnesota (Cliff Keen Arena), 7 p.m.
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- The University of Michigan volleyball team let a two-game lead and a chance to move into a tie for sixth place in the Big Ten Conference slip away with a 3-2 (10-15, 12-15, 15-6, 16-14, 15-13) loss to Iowa tonight (Friday, Oct. 20) at Cliff Keen Arena. Despite the loss, freshman outside hitter Chantel Reedus (Woodridge, Ill./Downers Grove South HS) continued to impress with a career-best 19 kills, a hitting percentage of .375 (19-4-40) and 13 digs for the match.
Michigan struggled out of the gate in game one and fell behind 7-1 before three straight kills from senior Joanna Fielder (Costa Mesa, Calif./Newport HS) cut into the Iowa lead. Fielder would finish game one with a hitting percentage of .500 (5-0-10). After Iowa pushed its lead back to four (8-4), Michigan ran off five straight points, including one of senior Alija Pittenger's (Virginia Beach, Va./First Colonial HS) two game-one aces, to take its first lead. Iowa tied the contest at 9-9, but Michigan's strong attacking, which included a first-game hitting rate of .386 (21-4-44), allowed the Wolverines to go on a 6-1 run to close out game one 15-10. Michigan's rally late in game one was led by Reedus, who delivered two of her five game-one kills during the stretch and hit .714 (5-0-7) for the game.
Unlike game one, it was Michigan that jumped out early in game two with leads of 3-0 and 6-3. Michigan continued its torrid hitting, swinging at a rate of .373 (26-4-59) for the game. Michigan's first three points of game two came off the serve of Reedus, who also remained hot with a game-two hitting mark of .429 (7-1-14). Despite Michigan's efficient attacking, Iowa kept the pressure on and eventually tied the game at 6-6. Michigan senior Sarah Behnke (Baroda, Mich./Lakeshore HS), who hit .417 (6-1-12) for game two, responded to that challenge with a pair of kills to help Michigan regain a three-point advantage (9-6). Iowa closed the gap to one (9-8), but Pittenger, who hit .833 (5-0-6) for the game, responded with two of her five game-two kills and Michigan lengthened its lead to 14-10. Michigan's final point of the game came on block assists from Behnke and sophomore Katrina Lehman (Bloomfield Hills, Mich./Marian HS) for a 15-12 win.
Michigan, which had hit .379 (47-8-103) through the first two games, cooled off in game three, hitting -.143 (6-10-28). Iowa took advantage of the Wolverine struggles and raced to a 12-1 lead. A kill from Fielder, who was the only Wolverine to record two kills in game three, helped Michigan cut the lead to eight (13-5), but that was as close as the Maize and Blue would get, eventually succumbing 15-6 and forcing a fourth game.
Iowa maintained the momentum early in game four and led 6-3 before a 7-0 Michigan run allowed the Wolverines to seemingly take control of the game. Michigan's run was again paced by Reedus, who drilled five kills during the rally and hit .357 (6-1-14) for the game. The Wolverines maintained a three-point lead at 12-9 until Iowa, which outblocked Michigan 5-2 in the game and 15-8 for the match, ran off four straight points to lead 13-12. However, junior Shannon Melka (Wheaton, Ill./St. Francis HS) had an answer for the Maize and Blue with back-to-back aces to put Michigan at match point. After a Wolverine error, Iowa was able to serve out the final three points for a 16-14 game-four win and push the match to a deciding fifth game.
Like the rest of the match, game five was a back-and-forth contest, with the lead changing hands on four occasions and neither team leading by more than two at any time. Three game-five kills from Behnke helped the Maize and Blue enjoy one-point leads at 5-4, 10-9 and 11-10. After a kill from Pittenger, Michigan enjoyed a 12-11 lead, but that was its last lead of the night as Iowa rattled off a 4-1 run, completing the comeback with an ace on the final point for a 15-13 game-five win and a 3-2 match victory.
Michigan continues Big Ten Conference action against No. 7-ranked Minnesota on Saturday (Oct. 21) at 7 p.m. in Cliff Keen Arena.
MATCH BESTS
Kills: U-M 79 (Chantel Reedus, Sarah Behnke 19); Iowa 76 (Sara Meyerman 25)
Assists: U-M 75 (Shannon Melka 66); Iowa 71 (Fabiana De Abreu 33)
Service Aces: U-M 10 (Alija Pittenger 4); Iowa 12 (Evelena Ornelas 4)
Digs: U-M 77 (Pittenger 21); Iowa 83 (De Abreu 20)
Blocks: U-M 8 (Katrina Lehman 6); Iowa 83 (Katie Panhorst 9)
NOTES
• Michigan is now 3-3 in five-game matches this season and 2-3 in five-game matches in the Big Ten. In fact, the Wolverines have gone to five games in four of their last five matches, going 2-2 in those matches.
• Michigan's 10 service aces matched a season best, while its 12 service aces allowed is a season high.
QUOTES
Michigan Head Coach Mark Rosen
On the match in general ... "I was really impressed with the way we attacked in the first two games because we put up some pretty gaudy numbers against a good team. But, for whatever reason, we could not sustain that level of play. I did not think Iowa came out in games three through five and did a whole lot different in terms of adjustment; we just lost our execution in game three and never really got it back."
