Michigan
15-11,8-9Big Ten
Purdue
21-5,13-4Big Ten
Michigan Downed By No. 6 Purdue in Four Sets
11/19/2021 11:14:00 PM | Volleyball
» Hannah Grant set a new career-high with 27 digs.
» Paige Jones led the offense with 14 kills.
» Michigan was outblocked 15-5 in the match.
» The Wolverines return to action against Michigan State on Sunday (Nov. 21).
Site: West Lafayette, Ind. (Halloway Gymnasium)
Score: #6 Purdue 3, Michigan 1 (17-25, 18-25, 25-16, 15-25)
Records: U-M (15-11, 8-9 B1G), Purdue (21-5, 11-4 B1G)
Next U-M Event: Sunday, Nov. 21-- at Michigan State (Jenison Field House), 1 p.m.
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. -- The University of Michigan volleyball team put up a tremendous fight with No. 6 Purdue Friday night (Nov. 19), but ultimately fell in four (17-25, 18-25, 25-16, 15-25 ) in front of a sold out crowd at Holloway Gymnasium.
In a match where defense reigned supreme, redshirt sophomore Hannah Grant put up a career-high 27 digs to lead the Wolverines while sophomore Kendall Murray added 11. Senior Paige Jones led the offense with 14 kills, while sophomore Jess Mruzik trailed just behind her with 13. Junior May Pertofsky finished with nine kills and sophomore setter Scottee Johnson put up 37 assists.
The first set belonged to Purdue from the jump as the Boilermakers took the lead to start the match and never looked back. The home team won eight of the first 10 points, and by the time Michigan recovered it was too late. U-M hit just .158 in the set thanks to four blocks from Purdue, while the Boilermakers put together an impressive .458 attack percentage on the way to a 25-17 victory.
Michigan settled in during the second set and outhit Purdue .229 to .200, but a 13-3 run wiped away a slim Wolverines' lead and gave the Boilermakers at 25-18 victory. Jones registered five of her kills during the set to lead the Maize and Blue offense, but it was not enough to stop the Purdue momentum.
The third set flipped the script of the match momentarily, as the Wolverines jumped ahead early and cruised to a 25-16 victory. Michigan held Purdue to just .098 hitting in the set while putting up a .209 mark. Pertofsky led a balanced attack for U-M, finishing with five kills on 10 swings without an error.
Purdue bounced back in the fourth set and put the match away with a 25-15 win. Mruzik tried to keep Michigan close, registering six of her kills in the fourth set alone, but the Boilermakers proved too much in the end.
Michigan hit .142 in the match while Purdue registered a .218 attack percentage. The biggest difference came in the blocks column, as the Boilermakers tallied 15 and the Wolverines had just five. U-M also committed twice as many service errors as Purdue (10-5). Michigan also trailed the Boilermakers in aces (5-3), assists (45-43) and digs (79-68) in the match.
Michigan looks to retain the Michigan Pride Trophy when it takes on Michigan State on Sunday (Nov. 21) at 1 p.m. at Jenison Field House.
