Michigan
13-9,6-7Big Ten
Penn State
16-7,9-4Big Ten
Michigan Stumbles at No. 15 Penn State
11/5/2021 10:39:00 PM | Volleyball
» Paige Jones led the Wolverines with 19 kills.
» Kendall Murray had a double-double with career highs in kills (14) and digs (14).
» Jess Mruzik recorded a double-double of 15 kills and 16 digs.
» Michigan looks to bounce back Sunday (Nov. 7) at Maryland.
Site: State College, Pa. (Rec Hall)
Score: #15 Penn State 3, Michigan 1 (25-22, 22-25, 22-25, 23-25)
Records: U-M (13-9, 6-7 B1G), PSU (16-7, 9-4 B1G)
Next U-M Event: Sunday, Nov. 7 -- at Maryland (College Park, Md.), 1 p.m.
STATE COLLEGE, Pa. -- The University of Michigan volleyball team jumped out to a first-set victory over No. 15 Penn State on Friday night (Nov. 5), but could never recapture that winning recipe, falling in four sets (25-22, 22-25, 22-25, 23-25) to the Nittany Lions at Rec Hall.
Senior Paige Jones led the Wolverines' offense with 19 kills and added eight digs, three blocks (one solo block, two block assists) and an ace to her tally. Sophomore Jess Mruzik aided the attack with 15 kills and registered a double-double thanks to 16 digs. Fellow sophomore Kendall Murray had a career night, setting new highs for kills with 14 and digs with 14.
Michigan came out firing in the first set, hitting .302 as a team behind outstanding performances from the sophomore duo of Mruzik and Murray. Mruzik led the Wolverines with five kills in the set, while Murray added four kills on five attacks with no errors. U-M held PSU to just .204 from the floor in the opener and went on to win 25-22.
Though the Wolverines came out and hit .300 in the second set, the Nittany Lions bounced back to hit .314 and won the second set 25-22. Murray continued her hot start to the match, picking up four more kills on five swings and no errors.
Set three looked like Penn State would walk away with an easy win, but Michigan battled back from down 23-18 to cut the Nittany Lions' lead to just one at 23-22. However, the Maize and Blue could not get any closer and PSU finished the set with a 25-22 win to move ahead in the match 2-1.
The battle continued in the fourth set with Michigan having to play from behind once again. Trailing 20-16, the Wolverines battled back and knotted the game at 21. The two teams traded points to 23-23, but then the Nittany Lions pulled out the victory 25-23.
The Wolverines hit a strong .293 on the evening, but Penn State outpaced Michigan with a .298 mark. U-M and PSU were even in blocks (8-8), but the Nittany Lions held the advantage in digs (71-70), assists (61-55), and service aces (4-2).
Sophomore setter Scottee Johnson had 46 assists on the night and had the offense clicking at a .293 clip. Redshirt sophomore Hannah Grant led the Wolverines with 18 digs.
Michigan wraps its two-match road swing with a 1 p.m. showdown against Maryland on Sunday (Nov. 7) at the XFINITY Center Pavilion. The match will be streamed live on B1G+.
