Michigan
22-7, 10-7Big Ten
Minnesota
23-6, 13-4Big Ten
Wolverines Falter at No. 12 Minnesota
11/21/2008 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
Result: #12 Minnesota 3, #20 Michigan 1 (25-16, 20-25, 25-14, 25-20)
Records: U-M (22-7, 10-7 Big Ten), Minnesota (23-6, 13-4 Big Ten)
Next U-M Event: Saturday, Nov. 22 -- at Iowa (Iowa City, Iowa), 7 p.m. CST
Boxscore
MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. -- The No. 20-ranked University of Michigan volleyball team fell at No. 12-ranked Minnesota in four sets (25-16, 20-25, 25-14, 25-20) on Friday night (Nov. 21) at the Sports Pavilion. Michigan, which hit just .149 as a team, was led by junior Juliana Paz(Porto Alegre, Brazil, Iowa Western CC), who paced U-M in defeat with 11 kills.
In the opening set, Michigan fell behind early and was never able to recover, falling 25-16. Miscommunication and unforced errors by the Wolverines aided in the Minnesota win as U-M committed nine attacking errors and hit -.027 in the frame.
In set two, the Wolverines jumped out to an early lead thanks to the attacking of Paz and senior Beth Karpiak(LaGrange, Ill./Lyons Township) as Michigan built a 10-6 lead and forced Minnesota into a timeout. The Wolverines continued to click offensively, holding a six-point lead, 17-11, behind the hot hand of freshman/sophomore Karlee Bruck(Elyria, Ohio/Elyria), who posted a pair of quick terminations to force the Golden Gophers into another stoppage. Minnesota pushed back within four at 20-16 only to see Michigan get kills from freshman Alex Hunt(Granger, Ind./South Bend St. Joseph) and sophomore Lexi Zimmerman (Barrington, Ill./Barrington) down the stretch for a 25-20 win. Zimmerman had 12 assists in the set to go with a pair of kills as the Wolverines hit a much-improved .317 in the frame.
After the intermission, Minnesota raced out to a 6-1 lead to force Michigan to call its first timeout just three minutes into the set. Out of the break it was the Gophers who continued their hot play, pushing the advantage to seven points, 10-3, and forcing another Wolverine stoppage. Michigan got back within six, 16-10, causing Minnesota to call a timeout only to see the Gophers reel off seven of the next eight points on its way to a 25-14 win. Michigan's offensive woes from set one returned in the set-three defeat, hitting just .116 as a team compared to Minnesota's .368 effort.
In set four, the Wolverines jumped out to an early advantage only to see it slowly disappear as Minnesota forced the first tie of the set midway through, 15-all, and eventually took a 16-15 lead. The Gophers used a 6-1 run to push the lead to 20-15, but Michigan used a 4-1 run of its own, including a pair of kills from junior Megan Bower(Indianapolis, Ind./Cathedral) to get back within two, 21-19. From there it was Minnesota who took control, reeling off four of the final five points for a 25-20 win to take the match 3-1.
Michigan had three players reach double-digit kills in the loss. Paz led Michigan with 11 terminations, while Karpiak and Bower each chipped in with 10. Zimmerman added 38 assists in a losing cause.
The Wolverines wrap up their final regular-season road trip Saturday night (Nov. 22) when they head to Iowa City, Iowa, to face the Iowa Hawkeyes at 7 p.m. CST.
Contact: Matt Fancett (734) 763-4423
