Michigan
5-0
Oregon
3-3
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | Final F |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oregon | 22 | 22 | 21 | 0 |
| Michigan | 25 | 25 | 25 | 3 |
Beaver State Sweep: U-M Ousts No. 12 Ducks in Three
9/7/2013 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
Site: Ann Arbor, Mich. (Cliff Keen Arena)
Event: Big Ten/Pac-12 Challenge
Score: #7 Michigan 3, #12 Oregon 0 (25-22, 25-22, 25-21)
Records: U-M (5-0), UO (3-3)
Attendance: 1,345
Next U-M Event: Friday, Sept. 13 -- vs. Siena - Texas A&M Invitational (College Station, Texas), 11 a.m. CDT
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- The No. 7-ranked University of Michigan volleyball team completed a sweep of the Big Ten/Pac-12 Challenge with a straight-set win over No. 12 Oregon Saturday afternoon (Sept. 7) inside Cliff Keen Arena. Set scores were 25-22, 25-22 and 25-21 as the Maize and Blue stayed undefeated on the season.
Ally Sabol
Senior Molly Toon (Middleton, Wis./Middleton) had 11 kills on a .321 hitting percentage while adding seven digs, two blocks and three services aces. Freshman Abby Cole (Grand Haven, Mich./Grand Haven) led the team with 12 kills, while senior Lexi Erwin (Spring, Texas/Woodlands College Park) added 10. Junior Lexi Dannemiller (West Chester, Ohio/Lakota West) had 34 assists and six digs, and sophomore Tiffany Morales (Redondo Beach, Calif./Redondo Union) and senior Ally Sabol (Los Angeles, Calif./Marymount) had 17 and 12 digs, respectively.
Michigan pulled away from the Ducks late in a 25-22 set-one victory. The Wolverines went up 6-4 on an Oregon error and took a 9-6 lead on a Toon service ace. A Sabol ace put the Maize and Blue up 13-8, and a Cole kill at 16-11 forced the Ducks to call timeout. Another timeout followed an Oregon attack error at 19-13. Oregon chipped away at Michigan's lead, eventually tying the set at 20 on back-to-back kills from Ariana Williams. Oregon took a 21-20 lead, but four straight points -- off an Erwin kill, a Duck bad set and two blocks assists from senior Jennifer Cross (Scarborough, Ontario/Birchmount Park Collegiate) -- gave U-M set point. Oregon staved off one set point, but a Dannemiller kill put the Wolverines up 1-0.
Set two saw 14 ties and nine lead changes. Michigan was up early 5-3 on a Duck error and 7-5 on a Toon termination. Oregon took the lead at 9-8 on a U-M error, but three straight Michigan points were capped by an Erwin kill. A Toon kill put the Wolverines up 13-11, but Oregon answered with three straight points, taking a 14-13 advantage. Oregon was up 16-15 after a Martenne Bettendorf kill, but Toon's service ace put the Wolverines on up 17-16. Michigan called time after Oregon went up 19-17 on a Canace Finley block, but the Maize and Blue rallied, going up 20-19 after Cross' kill. The set was tied as late as 21-all, but an Erwin kill and bad set from UO put Michigan two points away from taking the set. Toon's kill set up a block from Cole and Toon, and Michigan headed to the locker room up 2-0.
Oregon scored the first three points of the third set, but Michigan answered with a 6-0 run. An Oregon error put U-M up 8-4, but the Ducks never got closer than 10-9, as Erwin's kill made it 14-11, and a Cross kill put Michigan up 16-12. Oregon called time after an Erwin kill at 18-14; but Cole had three kills late, including one at 23-18. Michigan then clinched the match on an Oregon service error and improved to 5-0 on the year.
Michigan hit .296 for the match, compared to .191 for the Ducks. The Maize and Blue had a 51-45 dig advantage, while both teams had six blocks.
U-M travels to College Station, Texas, for three matches at the Texas A&M Invitational Sept. 13-14. The Wolverines open the tournament with Siena on Friday, Sept. 13, at 11 a.m. CDT.
NOTES
• Michigan and Oregon were two of the four teams in the 2012 national semifinals in Louisville, Ky. Penn State and Texas, the other two Final Four participants, played this afternoon in Austin, Texas.
• Before today's match, the Maize and Blue unveiled its 2012 national semifinalist banner. Claire McElheny, co-captain and fifth-year senior on last year's squad, did the honor of revealing the banner.
• Michigan is now 1-1 all-time against Oregon. The Maize and Blue lost to the Ducks in the 1990 season.
• Freshman Abby Cole led the Maize and Blue in kills for the second straight match. She had 12 kills and a .500 hitting percentage.
• Senior Jennifer Cross moved into third place on Michigan's career blocks list at 431. She is closing in on the school record of 473, held by Lyndsey Miller (2004-07).
• Senior Molly Toon set a career high with three service aces. Her previous career high was two against Virginia Tech on Aug. 25, 2012.
• Sophomore Tiffany Morales led U-M with 17 digs. She had led the team in digs 35 times in her career and now has 14 consecutive double-digit dig performances dating back to last season.
