Michigan
13-9, 3-8Big Ten
Penn State
19-4, 8-3Big Ten
Michigan Falls in Three Games at No. 11 Penn State
10/27/2000 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
Site:Â State College, Pa. (Rec Hall)
Result:Â #11 Penn State 3, Michigan 0 (15-6, 15-10, 15-10)
Records:Â U-M (13-9, 3-8 Big Ten), PSU (19-4, 8-3 Big Ten)
Next U-M Match:Â Saturday, Oct. 28 -- at Indiana (Bloomington, Ind.), 7 p.m. CDT
STATE COLLEGE, Pa. -- The University of Michigan volleyball team dropped its fourth straight Big Ten Conference match tonight (Friday, Oct. 27), falling 3-0 to No. 11 Penn State (15-6, 15-10, 15-10) at Rec Hall. The Wolverines, who are now 13-9 overall and 3-8 in the Big Ten, were led by sophomore Katrina Lehman (Bloomfield Hills, Mich./Marian HS) as she had a team-high six blocks to go along with eight kills.
The Wolverines struggled out of the gate in game one as they hit just -.029 (10-11-35) in the opener. With the Wolverines trailing early, freshman middle blocker Erin Moore (Tiffin, Ohio/Tiffin HS) came off the bench to spark the Wolverines. Moore would collect six kills and hit at a rate of .111 (6-4-18) for the match. However, Michigan could not overcome the Nittany Lions, who had only two more kills (12) than the Wolverines in game one, but only five errors compared to 11 for Michigan. Penn State eventually pulled out a 15-6 game-one win.
Michigan answered the Penn State challenge in game two as the Wolverines hit their highest percentage of the match with a mark of .127 (18-11-55). Michigan, which actually out-killed Penn State 18-17 in game two, could not overcome a 8-5 deficit. Despite contributions from senior Sarah Behnke (Baroda, Mich./Lakeshore HS), who led Michigan with nine kills, 12 digs and two aces for the match, the Nittany Lions closed out game two with a 15-10 win and headed into intermission with a 2-0 lead.
Much like game two, the Wolverines stayed with 11th-ranked Penn State for much of game three. Freshman Chantel Reedus (Woodridge, Ill./Downers Grove South HS) maintained steady attacking in game three en route to eight kills and a hitting mark of .167 (8-5-18) for the match. Michigan held Penn State, which came into the match hitting .270 on the season, to a mark of just .245 (46-20-106) for the match, but was unable to get over the hump against the defending national champions. Penn State out-blocked the Wolverines 14-8 for the match and held Michigan to a hitting percentage of only .070 (41-32-128). The Lions kept the pressure on at the net in game three and completed the three-game sweep with a 15-10 game-three win.
Michigan stays on the road in Big Ten action with a match at Indiana on Saturday (Oct. 28) at 7 p.m. CDT.
MATCH BESTS
Kills: U-M 41 (Sarah Behnke 9); PSU 46 (Katie Schumacher 13)
Assists: U-M 39 (Shannon Melka 35); PSU 44 (Shannon Bortner 36)
Service Aces: U-M 5 (Behnke 2); PSU 4 (four player with 1)
Digs: U-M 38 (Behnke 12); PSU 43 (Schumacher 9)
Blocks: U-M 8 (Katrina Lehman 6); PSU 14 (Robyn Goukas 7)
NOTES
• Michigan's 16 block assists are the most the Wolverines have recorded in a three-game match vs. a Big Ten opponent this season.
• Senior defensive specialist Shawna Olson (Wheaton, Ill./St. Francis HS) made the first start of her career tonight.
• Senior Alija Pittenger (Virginia Beach, Va./First Colonial HS), who leads the Big Ten in digs (3.78 dpg), recorded 11 digs tonight, which gives her double-digit dig totals in eight of Michigan's last nine matches.
QUOTES
Michigan Head Coach Mark Rosen
On the match in general ... "I thought we did some nice things up front actually. We were going up against one of the better front lines in the country and acquitted ourselves quite well. Obviously, they have a little too much firepower for us right now, but we fielded a very young team tonight and I am proud of the way they played."
