Michigan
2-6,0-0Big Ten
Bowling Green
5-5,0-0MAC
Wolverine Comeback Falls Short Against Bowling Green
9/15/2023 10:33:00 PM | Volleyball
» Michigan fell in a five-set match at Stroh Center on Friday, taking the third and fourth sets.
» Kendall Murray led the Wolverines on offense with 14 kills.
» Scottee Johnson registered her fourth straight double-double with 43 assists and 11 digs.
» All 13 dressed players saw action in the match. Â
BOWLING GREEN, Ohio -- The University of Michigan volleyball team fell to Bowling Green in five sets (20-25, 19-25, 25-17, 25-22, 10-15) at the Stroh Center on Friday night (Sept. 15).
Kendall Murray led the Michigan offense with 14 kills and was one of three Wolverines to reach double-digit kills. Scottee Johnson tallied a double-double with 43 assists and 11 digs, her fourth straight. Four U-M players registered double-digit digs with Murray leading the way at 15. Valentina Vaulet joined Murray and Johnson and registered her first career double-double with 12 kills and 12 digs.
Michigan (2-6) earned the first point in set one with a Murray kill. Bowling Green tied it at one, before a 4-0 run by the Wolverines -- which was led by two aces from Murray. The Falcons battled back and got within one at 6-5, but Vaulet tallied her second kill of the set to end the run. The set remained close until Morgan Burke entered the match and led the Wolverines on a 6-0 run with two aces. Bowling Green stormed back after a timeout to tie the match at 19. Both teams traded the next two points before the Falcons took the final five points of the set winning 25-20.
Bowling Green (5-5) took the lead to start the second set before a Vaulet kill tied the match at one. BGSU retook the lead and kept it for the remainder of the set. The Falcons took a 6-1 lead which forced a Michigan timeout. Vaulet stopped the Bowling Green run out of the timeout with her second kill of the set. The Falcons extended their lead to 14-6 before a service error helped start a 3-0 Michigan run. Scottee Johnson tallied an ace and Boney tallied back-to-back kills to cut the Falcon lead to five. U-M brought the score to 18-15 after a couple kills from Amalia Simmons, but the Falcons took seven of the final ten points to take the second set, 25-19.
The third set played out like the second, but in favor of the Wolverines. Murray led off the set with a kill and the Falcons tied it at one. Michigan took a 5-2 lead and then a 10-6 lead behind aces from Murray and Vaulet. BGSU brought the score to within two, but U-M held off the Falcons. Boney tallied an ace and Serena Nyabmio tallied a kill to re-establish a strong Wolverine lead at 15-10. Michigan took eight of the final ten points with Murray, Nyabmio and Boney all tallying kills. Maddi Cuchran registered an ace and an attack error from the Falcons gave U-M the third set, 25-17.
The teams battled in the fourth set with six lead changes and 10 tied scores after just five tied scores and one lead change in the first three sets combined. The score was knotted at 10 before the Falcons took a 15-13 lead. After the media timeout, Nyambio brought the Wolverines within one, but Bowling Green retook a two-point lead. A kill for Simmons and Murray tied the game at 16 before a BGSU attack error gave Michigan the lead. Michigan kept the lead for the remainder of the fourth set and took the set, 25-22. Four different Wolverines registered kills in the final seven points for Michigan with Vaulet tallying the final one to force a fifth set.
Michigan took an early lead in the fifth set after a kill and ace from Murray. The Falcons hung around and tied the score at five before going on a 5-0 run. Michigan used both timeouts and out of the second U-M ended the BGSU run with a 3-1 run of its own. A kill from Nyambio and two attack errors by the Falcons cut the lead to 11-8. The Falcons took a time out and took four of the final six points to win the set, 15-10, and the match, 3-2.
The Wolverines will look to seek revenge against Bowling Green on Sunday (Sept. 17) at 2 p.m. from Cliff Keen Arena.
