Weekly Release #12
11/13/2001 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
Upcoming Games
Friday, Nov. 16 -- at Penn State (State College, Pa.), 7 p.m.
Saturday, Nov. 17 -- at Ohio State (Columbus, Ohio), 7 p.m.
Friday, Nov. 23 -- vs. Indiana (Cliff Keen Arena), 7 p.m.
Saturday, Nov. 24 -- vs. Illinois (Cliff Keen Arena), 7 p.m.
Wolverines Prepare for Final Road Trip of Regular Season
The University of Michigan volleyball team (12-11, 8-8 Big Ten) travels to No. 14 Penn State and No. 9 Ohio State, two locations at which the program has never won a match, in its final road trip of the regular season. In addition to the first road win, the Wolverines are looking for the program's first season sweep of the Nittany Lions when they face off at 7 p.m. on Friday (Nov. 16) at the historic Rec Hall in State College, Pa. Michigan defeated then-No. 11 Penn State 3-2 on Oct. 20 at Cliff Keen Arena in the first meeting this season. On Saturday (Nov. 17), Michigan visits Ohio State for a 7 p.m. match at St. John Arena in Columbus, Ohio. The Wolverines, after last weekend's near-win over No. 6 Wisconsin (Nov. 9) and victory over Northwestern (Nov. 10), need two wins in the four remaining matches to put themselves in position for an unprecedented third consecutive trip to the NCAA Tournament.
Penn State Time Change
The starting time for Friday's match (Nov. 16) at No. 14 Penn State is 7 p.m. This is a change from the Michigan schedule which was originally announced.
On No. 14 Penn State
Michigan and Penn State are meeting for the 24th time. Penn State leads the series 21-2. The Wolverines earned their second win in the series history with a 3-0 sweep (30-18, 30-28, 30-27) of the then-No. 11 Nittany Lions on Oct. 20 at Cliff Keen Arena. The 14th-ranked Nittany Lions (18-6, 11-5 Big Ten) were 14-3 before dropping three of the last seven matches, including the loss to the Wolverines. Senior Katie Schumacher is the center of PSU's offense and has received nearly one-third of the team's sets this season. Schumacher is fifth in the Big Ten Conference with an overall average of 4.47 kills per game. Middle blocker Cara Smith is a two-way threat at the net with an attack percentage of .353 and an average of 1.45 blocks per game. Sophomore setter Jess Hayden leads the team with 9.81 assists per game. Head coach Russ Rose is in his 23rd season as a collegiate head coach, all at Penn State, and has a record of 739-133. Penn State on the Web: www.goPSUsports.com.
On No. 9 Ohio State
Michigan and Ohio State are meeting for the 46th time. Ohio State leads the series 38-7. In the first meeting this season (Oct. 19), Ohio State hit .342 (59-19-117) and won 3-0 (30-27, 30-26, 30-23) at Cliff Keen Arena. The Buckeyes' (22-2, 14-2 Big Ten) only two losses this season have been to the Wisconsin Badgers. Ohio State is the best hitting and serving team in the conference, with a team hitting percentage of .333 and an average of 2.53 service aces per game in Big Ten action. Freshman Stacey Gordon leads the team and is third in the Big Ten with an overall average of 4.61 kills per game. She is also third in conference play with an average of 5.07 kills per game. Junior setter Katie Virtue leads the conference in assists with an overall average of 13.90 assists per game and an average of 14.28 assists per game in conference play. Jim Stone, in his 20th year at Ohio State, has a record of 444-190 at the school and is 494-232 in 23 seasons as a collegiate head coach. Ohio State on the Web: www.ohiostatebuckeyes.com.
For Those of You Heading to Ohio State
Please be aware that Ohio State hosts Illinois in football at noon on Saturday (Nov. 17). With limited parking around Ohio State's athletic campus, volleyball fans should attempt to park in the lots directly to the south of St. John Arena. Traffic levels should be near normal after 6 p.m.
Leisa Rosen Part of Ceremony at Ohio State
Prior to the match at No. 9 Ohio State on Saturday (Nov. 17), the Buckeyes' 1991 team will be recognized. Michigan associate head coach Leisa Rosen was a senior on that squad, the first OSU volleyball team to capture a Big Ten title and advance to the NCAA Tournament semifinals.
U-M Defeats Northwestern, Nearly Upset No. 6 Wisconsin
Michigan became the first Big Ten team to beat Wisconsin in the first game of a match and then became the first Big Ten team to take a 2-0 lead on the Badgers this season before UW rallied to defeat the Wolverines 3-2 (28-30, 30-32, 30-21, 30-26, 16-14) Friday night (Nov. 9) in front of a season-high crowd of 1,229 at Cliff Keen Arena. Jennifer Gandolph (Greenwood, Ind./Center Grove HS), with a career-high 22 kills, was one of four Wolverines to reach double-digit kills against the Badgers. Michigan bounced back from the loss with a 3-0 sweep (30-17, 30-20, 30-21) of Northwestern on Saturday (Nov. 10). The Wildcats hit into 26 errors, while Michigan killed 52 attacks and hit .381 (52-12-105) in the match. Freshman Carrie Ritchie (Mansfield, Ohio/Madison Comprehensive HS) played both back and front row the entire match for the first time this season and posted a career-high nine kills.
Point-After-Point-After-Point
Michigan's match with Wisconsin on Friday (Nov. 9) was close in each game and went into extra points in game two (32-30, Michigan) and game five (16-14, Wisconsin). The teams combined to score 257 points, establishing a Big Ten record for total points in a conference match. The score ties the Big Ten mark for the most points in a match, set by Minnesota and San Diego (31-29, 30-28, 30-32, 19-30, 15-13) on Sept. 8.
Looking for a Pair of Wins
Michigan, with a 12-11 record, must win two of the remaining four matches to keep its winning percentage above .500, the minimum to be eligible for a bid to the NCAA Tournament. With the tragedies of Sept. 11, four matches were cancelled and not rescheduled. Without those four matches, every match in the Big Ten season meant even more toward earning a postseason berth. As a result, Michigan's final home series of the year -- vs. Indiana (Nov. 23) and vs. No. 21 Illinois (Nov. 24) -- could determine the fate of the Wolverines.
Getting in Position for the Postseason
The Big Ten has received at least five NCAA Tournament bids in each of the last eight seasons (since 1993). In each of the last four seasons, the conference has received at least six tournament bids, including a record eight bids in 1999. Michigan is seventh, just one game behind fifth-place Minnesota and Michigan State.
No Backing Down
While a winning percentage above .500 is a minimum requirement to be eligible for the NCAA Tournament, two of the most important factors are a team's won-lost record and its strength of schedule. Michigan will have a record near .500, but it has played one of the nation's toughest schedules. On the docket this season were 14 matches against nine teams that have been ranked in the top 25 for at least one week during the season. The Wolverines were also scheduled for 14 matches against eight teams that earned bids to the 2000 NCAA Tournament.
Other Factors in the Mix
In addition to the factors listed above, the NCAA selection committee will also consider head-to-head competition, results against common opponents, results of the ratings percentage index and significant wins and losses. Secondary factors in the process are late-season performance, site of match, results against teams already receiving at-large bids to the championship, and eligibility and availability of student-athletes.
Looking for a Couple of Firsts
Michigan is a combined 0-31 in matches played at Penn State and at Ohio State. The Wolverines have failed to win in 20 matches in Columbus, Ohio, and have posted a record of 0-11 in State College, Pa.
Sharing the Workload
Michigan has had four or more players reach double-digit kills in seven of 21 matches this year, including two matches with five players in double figures.
Short and Long
In three-game sweeps and five-game battles, Michigan has a combined record of 10-5, including 4-2 when matches go the distance. However, when a match takes four games to decide, the Wolverines are 2-6.
Every Other Game
Michigan has found success in every other game this year. The team has a record of 34-18 in the odd numbered games (one, three and five) while posting a combined mark of 12-25 in games two and four.
Break Out the Ballots I
It's about time for the coaches to select the annual All-Big Ten teams. In 20 years as a Big Ten sport, Michigan has had just three athletes on the All-Big Ten first or second team. This season alone, the Wolverines have three All-Big Ten candidates in senior Shannon Melka (Wheaton, Ill./St. Francis HS) and sophomores Erin Moore (Tiffin, Ohio/Columbian HS) and Katrina Lehman (Bloomfield Hills, Mich./Marian HS). Melka is third in Big Ten play with an average of 12.74 assists per game, while Lehman is fifth overall in the conference with an average of 1.24 blocks per game. Moore leads Michigan with 3.30 kills per game and has hit .275 (294-118-641) this season, while providing 2.29 digs per game and 0.81 blocks per game on defense.
Break Out the Ballots II
Freshmen Jennifer Gandolph has found much success in her first trip around the conference and is a Big Ten Freshman of the Year candidate. Gandolph is second in the Big Ten and leads the team in digs with an average of 2.98 digs per game. She is also second on U-M with 3.24 kills per game. She has recorded double-digit digs in 17 of the last 20 matches and has posted a kill-dig double-double in 15 matches this season, including a string of eight consecutive matches from Sept. 22 (at then-No. 9 Wisconsin) to Oct. 13 (at Indiana). Despite entering the season with a foot injury, she has played in every match this year, starting all but the season opener against then-No. 7 UCLA in Hawaii.
On the List
Senior Nicole Kacor (Chicago, Ill./Mother McAuley HS) has moved into seventh on the U-M all-time digs list with 918. She needs 20 more digs to catch Karen Marshall (1986-89), who is sixth on the list with 938 career digs. Senior setter Shannon Melka, with 880 career digs, is tied with Aimee Smith (1991-94) for 10th on the Wolverines' all-time list. JoAnna Collias (1990-93) is the all-time leader at Michigan with 1,131 career digs.
At the Net
Junior Katrina Lehman has moved into fifth on the U-M career block assists list with 264. She needs just four more to catch Fiona Davidson (1990-93), who is fourth on the list with 268. With 108 total blocks this year, Lehman is closing in on U-M's single-season record of 132 (Linsey Ebert, 1997). She has 294 career blocks; the U-M record is 375 (Julia Sturm, 1987-90).
Movin' on Up
Freshman Carrie Ritchie played all the way around for the first time this season against Northwestern (Nov. 10) and set a career highs in kills with nine. It marked the third consecutive match in which she increased her career high in kills.
Still Digging Away
Jennifer Gandolph has recorded double-digit digs in 17 of the last 20 matches. She posted a career-high 18 digs against Purdue (Oct. 27) and leads the Wolverines with 256 digs and an average of 2.98 digs per game in 23 matches. In conference play, she has dug 192 attacks in 65 games for an average of 2.95 digs per game. She is second in the Big Ten in overall digs per game and third in conference digs per game. She is one of just two freshmen among the top five in each category.
Senior Setter Near the Top of the Stats
Senior setter Shannon Melka added 105 assists last weekend and increased her assist total to 803 this season. Melka is third in the Big Ten with an average of 12.74 assists per game in league play. She has 4,369 career assists, good for second on the U-M all-time career assist list. Linnea Mendoza (1994-97) holds the U-M career record with 5,072 assists.
Rosen Nearing Another Milestone
Head coach Mark Rosen, with a record of 47-38 at Michigan, is just three wins away from his 50th victory as a Wolverine. He will be the fourth of Michigan volleyball's six head coaches to reach the mark. Currently, Rosen's winning percentage of .553 gives him the highest winning percentage of any volleyball head coach at Michigan and makes him one of just two coaches to have winning record at the school (Sandy Vong, 177-151-7, .539).
NCAA Tournament Selection Show
The NCAA Division I Volleyball Tournament Selection Show is scheduled for Monday, Nov. 26, at 3 p.m. EST. The show will be live on Fox Sports South, Fox Sports West 2, Fox Sports Arizona and Empire Sports. The show is also available with the use of a C-Band satellite dish. The coordinates are Telstar 5, Transponder 23.
Ask the Coach
Log on to MGoBlue.com to submit your questions to head coach Mark Rosen. Coach Rosen's responses to selected questions will be posted on Wednesdays throughout the season.
Co-Captains
The 2001 Michigan volleyball team has co-captains leading the squad, seniors Annie Maxwell (Santa Barbara, Calif./Santa Barbara HS) and Shannon Melka. Melka was a captain in 2000 as a junior as well.
Big Ten Standings (through 11/10/01)
BIG TEN OVERALL Teams W-L Pct. W-L Pct. 1. Wisconsin 15-1 .938 21-3 .875 2. Ohio State 14-2 .875 22-2 .917 3. Penn State 11-5 .688 18-6 .750 4. Illinois 10-6 .625 17-7 .708 5. Michigan State 9-7 .563 16-7 .696 Minnesota 9-7 .563 16-9 .640 7. MICHIGAN 8-8 .500 12-11 .522 8. Northwestern 4-12 .250 8-15 .348 Indiana 4-12 .250 7-17 .292 10. Iowa 3-13 .188 5-14 .263 11. Purdue 1-15 .063 4-21 .160
USA Today/AVCA Top 25 (11/12/01)
Rank, School (1st-place) Points Record Prev 1. Long Beach State (63) 1623 21-0 1 2. Nebraska (1) 1558 22-1 2 3. Stanford (1) 1491 23-2 3 4. Arizona 1423 18-3 4 5. Southern Cal 1330 18-3 5 6. Wisconsin 1296 21-3 6 7. Florida 1230 20-1 7 8. Colorado State 1162 23-1 8 9. Ohio State 1117 22-2 9 10. Pepperdine 1030 19-3 10 11. Hawaii 950 23-4 12 12. UCLA 941 15-7 11 13. Texas A&M 806 19-4 15 14. Penn State 735 18-6 13 15. Pacific 723 22-7 17 16. Utah 613 19-5 14 17. Northern Iowa 600 24-1 18 18. Brigham Young 452 18-6 16 19. Santa Clara 402 18-8 19 20. South Carolina 386 18-4 20 21. Illinois 316 17-7 24 22. Kansas State 229 16-7 25 23. Cal-Santa Barbara 228 15-11 22 24. Notre Dame 185 18-5 23 25. Colorado 163 16-8 21
Contact: Jason Gerdom (734) 763-4423
