Michigan
10-3, 1-2Big Ten
Illinois
9-5, 0-3Big Ten
No. 25 Michigan Notches Conference Win at Illinois
9/29/2000 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
Site:Â Champaign, Ill. (Huff Hall)
Result:Â #25 Michigan 3, Illinois 0 (15-8, 15-10, 15-10)
Records:Â U-M (10-3, 1-2 Big Ten), Illinois (9-5, 0-3 Big Ten)
Next U-M Match:Â Saturday, Oct. 1 -- at Purdue (West Lafayette, Ind.), 7 p.m. CDT
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. -- The 25th-ranked University of Michigan volleyball team notched its first Big Ten Conference win in three tries as the Wolverines dominated Illinois for a 3-0 (15-8, 15-10, 15-10) victory on Friday (Sept. 29) in front of 1,392 fans at Huff Hall.
The Wolverines' attacking was the difference in the victory as Michigan hit .336 (63-20-128) for the match and registered 63 kills to just 39 for the Fighting Illini. Katrina Lehman (West Bloomfield, Mich./Marian HS) paced the Michigan attack with a hitting percentage of .476 (13-3-21) to go along with a match-best four aces.
Michigan setter Shannon Melka (Wheaton, Ill./St. Francis HS) connected with Lehman in the middle for the match's first point as the Wolverines jumped out to a 3-0 lead in game one. After Illinois cut the lead to one (3-2), Michigan went on a 7-2 run, scoring points on kills from seniors Sarah Behnke (Baroda, Mich./Lakeshore HS) and Joanna Fielder (Costa Mesa, Calif./Newport Harbor HS).
After an Illinois point cut the deficit to 10-5, Michigan scored four straight points off the serve of Lehman, including a pair of aces to push the lead to 14-5. Illinois recorded the next three points, but the Wolverines, who held Illinois to a hitting mark of just .067 (8-6-30), shut down the rally right there for a 15-8 game-one win.
Game two was a back-and-forth affair as the lead changed hands on six occasions and both teams hit at least .300 for the game. Following five lead changes, Michigan came back to knot the score at 7-7 on one of Fielder's 11 kills. Michigan, which hit .364 (24-8-44) for the game, continued to its torrid hitting on a 5-2 run from there and led 12-9 after junior outside hitter Nicole Kacor (Chicago, Ill./Mother McAuley HS) drilled one of her 12 kills on the evening.
Illinois cut the lead to 12-10, but Michigan had another answer as the Maize and Blue scored two points off Kacor's serve and another on a kill from freshman Nicole Poquette (Grand Haven, Mich./Grand Haven HS) to win game two 15-10 and lead the match 2-0 heading into intermission.
Much like game two, the third set was back and forth until a 7-0 Michigan run turned a 4-3 deficit into a 10-4 lead. The Wolverines maintained solid play at the net, with a hitting percentage of .391 (22-4-46) for game three. Michigan also controlled Illinois middle blocker Betsy Spicer, who is third in the Big Ten in hitting percentage (.427, 195-44-354), and held her to a hitting mark of just .150 (7-4-20) for the match. The Wolverines' 7-0 run was highlighted by four consecutive points off the serve of senior outside hitter Alija Pittenger (Virginia Beach, Va./First Colonial HS).
Illinois did make a run, going on a 4-0 rally following a timeout and trimmed its deficit to 10-8, forcing a Michigan timeout. The Wolverines settled down after the timeout as Fielder produced a kill and Behnke notched a block to help Michigan push its lead to 13-8. Kacor, who hit .375 (12-3-24) for the match, notched her 12th and final kill of the match to give Michigan a 15-10 game-three win and a 3-0 match victory over Illinois.
Michigan returns to Big Ten action against Purdue on Saturday (Sept. 30, 7 p.m. CDT) at the Intercollegiate Athletics Facility in West Lafayette, Ind.
MATCH BESTS
Kills: U-M 63 (Sarah Behnke 15); Illinois 39 (Shadia Haddad 11)
Assists: U-M 55 (Shannon Melka 46); Illinois 27 (Heather Wilson 23)
Service Aces: U-M 7 (Katrina Lehman 4); Illinois 3 (Three players with 1)
Digs: U-M 45 (Nicole Kacor 10); Illinois 37 (Haddad, Betsy Spicer 7)
Blocks: U-M 5 (Lehman, Joanna Fielder 2); Illinois 10 (Lisa Argabright 5)
NOTES
• Michigan's win at Illinois is its first since Oct. 11, 1997, when the Wolverines won 3-0.
• Michigan's hitting percentage of .336 (63-20-128) is its fourth best of the season and best against a Big Ten opponent.
• Michigan is now 9-1 in three-game matches.
QUOTES
Michigan Head Coach Mark Rosen
On the match in general ... "I thought we played well overall and you have to play well if you are going to win on the road in this league. We had excellent balance offensively tonight, with four different players getting double digits in kills, and we are at our best when we have a balanced attack."
On the play of Katrina Lehman ... "Katrina just keeps getting better with each week that passes. She has done a nice job for us all season in terms of her blocking and now her hitting is becoming a force as well. When her and Joanna [Fielder] are on in the middle, it opens up our entire offense."
