Michigan
Eastern Michigan
U-M to Close Non-Conference Slate Hosting Michigan Invitational
9/15/2021 2:22:00 PM | Volleyball
» Michigan hosts Eastern Michigan, Boston College and Dayton this weekend at the Michigan Invitational.
» The four teams at the event have combined for 22 wins on the season.
» All of Michigan's matches will be streamed on B1G+.
THIS WEEK
Fri-Sat., Sept. 18 -- host Michigan Invitational (Cliff Keen Arena)
Tournament Central
Friday, Sept. 17 -- vs. Eastern Michigan, Noon
TV: B1G+ | Live Stats | Live Video
Friday, Sept. 17 -- vs. Boston College, 7 p.m.
TV: B1G+ | Live Stats | Live Video
Saturday, Sept. 18 -- vs. Dayton, 4 p.m.
TV: B1G+ | Live Stats | Live Video
• Complete Game Notes (PDF) | Rosen Report
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ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- The University of Michigan volleyball team (4-2) returns home for the final weekend of non-conference play hosting the Michigan Invitational on Friday and Saturday (Sept. 17-18) at Cliff Keen Arena. U-M will battle Eastern Michigan (4-4) and Boston College (10-1) on Friday (Sept. 17) at noon and 7 p.m., respectively, before taking on Dayton (4-4) on Sunday (Sept. 18) at 4 p.m. All three matches will be streamed live on B1G+.
Wolverine Bites
• U-M took on two unbeaten teams in this year's edition of the ACC/Big Ten Challenge, taking down previously unbeaten Duke in dramatic fashion Friday, while falling to North Carolina in five sets on Sunday.
• Sophomore Jess Mruzik turned in a career night against Duke, finishing with a personal-best 31 kills while hitting an astonishing .509. The outside hitter also added 15 digs, two blocks and an ace to help the Wolverines overcome a 2-0 deficit to win in five sets.
• Sophomore Kendall Murray came off the bench and provided crucial play from the pin, finishing with a season-high four kills while adding career-highs in blocks (four) and aces (three), and tying a career best with nine digs.
• Sophomore Scottee Johnson orchestrated the offense all weekend, posting back-to-back matches with 45-plus assists for the first time in her career. The Dayton, Ohio, native also had a double-double against Duke thanks to 12 digs, and set a new career high with five total blocks against UNC.
• Junior May Pertofsky set a new career high in aces on Sunday against North Carolina, finishing with seven on the afternoon.
• Freshman Jacque Boney had one of the more well-rounded matches of her career against North Carolina, finishing with seven total blocks and tying her career high in kills with seven.
• After falling short of double-digit kills for the first time this season against Duke, senior captain Paige Jones rebounded to post 17 kills on Sunday against North Carolina.
• The four teams in this year's Michigan Invitational have combined for 22 wins on the season.
Opponent Preview
Eastern Michigan
Michigan leads the all-time series 34-15
Michigan has a long history with cross-county foe Easter Michigan, with Friday's meeting being the 50th all-time match between the two. The Eagles have started the season 4-4 and come into the weekend riding a two-match winning streak. EMU serves as co-host for the Michigan Invitational, welcoming Boston College to the Convocation Center in Ypsilanti, Mich., on Saturday.
Redshirt-sophomore middle Raeven Chase provides a strong presence on net, standing at 6-foot-3 and averaging 1.07 blocks per set. The Toronto native leads the team with 3.27 points per set. Freshman Annie Lockett leads the team with 73 kills on the campaign, while sophomore Samantha Basham leads the Eagles with a 2.73 kills-per-set average.
The Wolverines hold 34-15 series advantage over the Eagles and have been especially dominant in the series of late. Over the last 13 appearances dating back to 1995, Michigan has dropped just one set to EMU.
Boston College
First meeting
Boston College is the fourth ACC team that the Wolverines have played this fall, having gone 2-1 thus far this season. The Eagles have gone 10-1 to start the season, with the lone blemish coming as a five-set loss to St. John's.
Graduate student Clare Naughton has led BC from the outside this season, leading the team with a 3.59 kills-per-set average and having the second-most digs per set at 2.41. Fellow grad student and middle blocker Amaka Chukwujekwu has had an impressive start to her season as well, leading the team with 45 blocks (1.05 per set) while averaging 2.19 kills per set at a .448 clip.
Dayton
Michigan leads the all-time series, 3-1
The Wolverines will be looking for revenge against the Flyers in the final match of the Michigan Invitational on Saturday, as Dayton topped Michigan in a five-set thriller the last time the two teams in 2019. That match at the Dayton Invitational, played in front of a record-breaking Frericks Center crowd, was the first loss for the Maize and Blue against UD in four tries.
Redshirt-senior Jamie Peterson leads the Flyers with 3.79 kills per set and is hitting .249 on the campaign. The West Liberty, Ohio, native has earned AVCA All-America status in each of the last two seasons. Also averaging more than three kills per set is redshirt-freshman Lexi Almodovar, who is second on the team in both kills per set (3.07) and digs per set (2.34).
Though sitting with a .500 record coming into the weekend, Dayton's losses have been to high-caliber opponents. The Flyers lost at home to reigning national champion and No. 3-ranked Kentucky, were defeated twice on the road by No. 2 Wisconsin and fell at home to Horizon League champion and crosstown rival Wright State.
Up Next
Friday, Sept. 24 -- at Minnesota (Minneapolis, Minn.), 8 p.m. CDT
