Big Ten Network : Volleyball Top Stories

No. 1 PSU sweeps IU, wins 7th straight outright crown

Sat, 21 Nov 2009 21:33:00 +0000

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - The No. 1 Penn State women's volleyball team clinched their 13th overall and seventh consecutive outright Big Ten title with a 3-0 (25-22, 25-16, 26-24) sweep of Indiana. The Nittany Lions have extended their winning streak to 94 straight matches. Junior Arielle Wilson (Broadview, Ill.) led all players with 13 kills attacking at a .667 clip. She tied with classmate Fatima Balza (Merida, Venezuela) with six total blocks. Junior Blair Brown (Purcellville, Va.) also posted double-digit kills with 10. Senior setter Alisha Glass (Leland, Mich.) paced the Nittany Lions offense with 39 assists and tallied four kills on five errorless swings. Junior libero Alyssa D'Errico (Byron, N.Y.) led the team in digs with 13. The Hoosiers were on the board first in set one, but Wilson answered immediately for the Nittany Lions with a kill. Penn State took its first lead, 4-3, after back-to-back kills from Glass. The lead was short-lived after two Indiana kills and two PSU errors but the Hoosiers up by two, 8-6. The Nittany Lions continued to trail until a solo stuff by Glass and an ace from junior Jessica Ullrich (Winfield, Ill.) gave the Lions an 11-10 edge. The Hoosiers tied it at 11-11, but a Balza kill and an Indiana error put the Nittany Lions up by two, 13-11. PSU grabbed its largest lead of the set, 16-13, at midpoint of the frame thanks to two-straight Dorton kills and another IU error. Penn State maintained the lead until the Hoosiers moved ahead for a 21-19 advantage forcing a PSU timeout. Hodge nailed a kill following the break and two straight Penn State stuffs gave the Lions a 22-21 advantage. After an Indiana timeout, two Hoosier errors and a solo block by Hodge gave PSU a 25-22 first set win. Wilson opened set two for the Nittany Lions tipping the ball for a kill. The two teams remained close until Penn State went on a 9-3 run for a 15-9 lead. Wilson had two kills and three stuffs in the run, including two joint blocks with Dorton. Indiana's Mary Chaudoin tried to slow Penn State's momentum with a kill, but two Hodge kills, an IU error and a Balza block increased PSU's lead to eight, 19-11. Two straight kills by the Lions had the Lions leading 21-12 and Indiana taking a timeout. After the break, Glass tallied a kill and Wilson registered three to close out the second set 25-16. The third set was similar to the second with the squads staying neck-and-neck until Penn State took an 11-8 lead after a block with Wilson and Dorton, a Brown kill and an ace from junior Cathy Quilico (Thousand Oaks, Calif.). Soon after however, Indiana was ahead, 12-11, after tallying four straight points. The score tied four times before a PSU error and an Indiana kill gave the Hoosiers an 18-16 advantage. Soon after, Penn State was back in the lead, 20-19, courtesy of a Glass kill and a joint stuff from Glass and Wilson. After an Indiana timeout, the Hoosiers tied it up, 20-20, with a kill from Ashley Benson. The Hoosiers managed to take the lead, 23-22, forcing a Penn State timeout. After IU tallied an additional point for a 24-22 lead, head coach Russ Rose called a second timeout. The Nittany Lions managed to tie the set, 24-24, thanks to an IU service error and a Dorton kill. A block by Brown and Balza and a kill from Brown secured a third set victory for the Nittany Lions, 26-24. Penn State is back in action on Friday, Nov. 27 versus Michigan State at 7 p.m. in Rec Hal. The Nittany Lions will celebrate senior night on Saturday, Nov. 28 when they host Michigan at 7 p.m. Live stats and live audio will be available for both matches via a link at GoPSUsports.com. Penn State's match with Michigan will be taped and will air on the Big Ten Network on Sunday, Nov. 29 at 6 p.m. For more information on the Penn State women's volleyball team, please visit www.GoPSUsports.com. The Penn State women's volleyball 2009 season is presented by Rockvale Outlets and The Outlets At Hershey.

Minnesota rallies to take down Michigan State

Sat, 21 Nov 2009 22:51:00 +0000

The Minnesota volleyball team (22-8, 13-5) rallied from a 2-0 deficit to defeat Michigan State (17-13, 5-13) in five sets by scores of 23-25, 21-25, 25-20, 25-19, 15-12 at Jenison Fielhouse on Saturday. Minnesota entered the third set trailing 2-0, before evening up the match at 2-2 by winning the third set 25-20 and the fourth set 25-19. The Golden Gophers jumped out to a 4-0 lead in the fifth set behind a pair of kills by Hailey Cowles (Eden Prairie, Minn.). Michigan State cut the lead to 5-3 with three of the next four points. Lauren Gibbemeyer (St. Paul, Minn.) and Taylor Carico (Manhattan Beach, Calif.) combined on a block, and the Spartans committed a pair of attack errors to make it 8-3. Michigan State answered with a 4-0 run to cut it to 8-7. Gibbemeyer, Carico and Ariana Filho (Monument, Colo.) answered with three straight kills to move the Golden Gophers ahead 11-7. The Spartans cut it to 11-9, before committing a bad set to give Minnesota a three-point lead. Michigan State scored the next two points to cut the lead to 12-11. Tabitha Love (Dauphin, Manitoba) and Cowles followed with back-to-back kills to make it match point at 14-11. The Spartans fought off the first match point, but Katherine Harms (Albertville, Minn.) responded with a kill to complete the Minnesota comeback. Harms and Cowles each had three kills in three swings in the fifth set. It marked the first time that the Golden Gophers have rallied from a 2-0 deficit since Nov. 23, 2007 when they did so at Illinois. Minnesota was led by Gibbemeyer who had 15 kills, 10 blocks, five digs, four assists and hit .406 (15-2-32). It was the second time in three matches that Gibbemeyer collected double-figure blocks. Cowles hit .462 (17-5-26) with 17 kills, nine digs and three blocks. Love had 11 kills and three digs, while Harms hit .571 (8-0-14) with four digs and two blocks. Carico had six kills, 52 assists and five blocks. Christine Tan (Safety Harbor, Fla.) had nine digs and two assists, while Megan Wilson (Lincoln, Neb.) finished with eight digs, two blocks and three kills. Filho also finished with six kills, hit .500 (6-1-10) and had a solo block. The Golden Gophers outhit Michigan State .363 to .278, despite the fact that the Spartans had 70 kills to 66 for Minnesota. After only collecting two blocks in the first two blocks in the first two sets, the Golden Gophers outblocked Michigan State 12.0-to-2.0 in the final three sets. The Spartans also entered the third set hitting .462 (35-8-66), and were limited to a .176 (35-20-85) hitting percentage the rest of the way. Minnesota hit .365 (40-9-85) after the second set. After dropping the first two sets, the Golden Gophers entered third set in need of some early momentum. The Golden Gophers fell behind 8-5, but went on a 5-0 run to take a 10-8 lead. Michigan State wrestled the lead back at 13-12, but Harms answered with a kill and Spartan setter Natalie Emro had a ballhandling error to give Minnesota the lead back at 14-13. Gibbemeyer and Cowles combined on a block to move the lead to 15-13. Michigan State cut the lead back to one point at 17-16, but Gibbemeyer and Carico followed by combining on a block, and Love delivered a kill to make it 19-16. Gibbemeyer followed with a service ace, and after a Spartan attack error Minnesota has pushed the lead to 21-16. Michigan State cut the lead to 21-18, before committing a service error. with the score at 22-19, Filho delivered consecutive kills to make it set point at 24-19. Two points later, Harms delivered a kill to give Minnesota the third set 25-20. The Golden Gophers outhit Michigan State .250 to .147 in the set, and had five blocks to one. Gibbemeyer had four blocks and a service ace in the set, while Cowles and Love each had three kills. Minnesota jumped out to a 9-7 lead in the fourth set after a Gibbemeyer kill. Michigan State cut the lead to 10-9, but Gibbemeyer delivered a kill and combined on a block to make it 12-9. The Spartans again came back to cut the lead to 12-11, but Love answered with consecutive kills, and Michigan State committed an attack error to make it 15-11. The Spartan cut the lead to 15-13, but Minnesota pushed it out to 18-14 after a Cowles' kill. Michigan State made it 18-15, but Harms and Cowles answered with consecutive kills. Minnesota stretched out its lead to 23-17 after a solo block by Carico. Gibbemeyer made it set point at 24-18, and Wilson put it away at 25-19 with a solo block to even up the match. Minnesota outhit Michigan State .429 to .146, and had 17 kills to 13 for the Spartans in the set. The Golden Gophers also outblocked Michigan State 4.0-to-0.0 in the set. Gibbemeyer and Cowles each had five kills in seven swings in the set. Michigan State was led by Kyndra Abron who hit .406 (17-4-32) with 17 kills and four blocks. Megan Schatzle also had 14 kills, while Mischelle Nelson hit .389 (10-3-18) with 10 kills and two blocks. Vanessa King also hit .588 (10-0-17) with 10 kills, four digs and two blocks. Minnesota will be back in action when it hosts Northwestern on Friday, Nov. 27 at 7 p.m. The Golden Gophers will also host No. 5 Illinois on Saturday, Nov. 28 at 7 p.m. After that match, they will have a ceremony honoring seniors Taylor Carico, Christine Tan and Megan Wilson. Both matches can be heard in the Gold Zone.

Seniors help send Purdue past Ohio State, 3-1

Sat, 21 Nov 2009 21:58:00 +0000

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - It was a big night for the Boilermaker seniors as Purdue downed Ohio State 3-1 Saturday night in the final home match of their careers. Outside hitter Carrie Gurnell eclipsed the 1,000 kill mark, while pacing the team with 20 kills and adding nine digs. Outside hitter/setter Sam Ainsworth pounded down four kills and added three blocks in her third start of the season. Freshman Ariel Turner and sophomore Tiffany Fisher joined Gurnell in double-digits with kill tallies of 12 and 11 respectively. Junior Jaclyn Hart narrowly missed a double-double with nine kills and 48 assists, while freshman Anna Drewry chipped in seven kills and a match-high eight blocks. Defensively, redshirt sophomore Blair Bashen led the way with 18 digs. Gurnell added nine, while sophomore Emily Ehlers and freshman Carly Cramer each pulled up eight. Ehlers also served up two aces. The Boilermakers owned the first half of the opening set, taking an early 3-0 lead and going on to lead 8-5. A block by Gurnell and Drewry and back-to-back aces by Ehlers accounted for the first three points. Three OSU miscues coupled with kills by Fisher and Hart brought about the latter score. The Buckeyes scored five of the next six points to go ahead 10-9. After a tie at 10, Ohio State pushed its advantage to five at 17-12. Purdue chipped away, cutting the margin to one at 22-21 after an overpass kill by Gurnell and an ace by Bashen. The Buckeyes got the first shot at the set at 24-22, but a Gurnell kill and a block by Fisher and Turner knotted the score at 24. A Kristen Dozier kill set OSU up again, but a Fisher putaway thwarted the effort. A stuff by Drewry and Turner put Purdue on the hill at 26-25. A Buckeye kill kept the set going, but a Turner kill and a block by Turner and 5-foot-6 defensive specialist Carly Cramer, who was in the front row after the Boilermakers used up its substitutions. Gurnell racked up six kills in the 28-26 win. Purdue led the second set front start to finish, allowing only a tie at 1-1 and boasting an advantage of as many as seven. The Boilermakers started the stanza with an 11-5 lead as Hart racked up three kills and senior Sam Ainsworth chipped in two. A solo stuff by Drewry capped the early rally. OSU cut the deficit to four at 13-9, but Purdue pushed ahead to a 17-10 margin after two Buckeye miscues and kills from Fisher and Hart. Ohio State crept back into the game, pulling within one at 19-18. A kill and a block by Drewry and Gurnell made it a three-point game, but OSU countered with a pair of kills. The Boilermaker seniors, Gurnell and Ainsworth put down kills to stretch the Purdue lead to 23-20. A Purdue error and an OSU putaway kept things going. Ainsworth tallied another kill to make it 24-22 Boilermakers, and Gurnell put the final nail in the 25-23 win two serves later. The senior duo and Hart tallied four kills apiece as Purdue outhit the Buckeyes .469 to .243 in the set. The Boilermakers led 4-2 in the third set after a pair of Gurnell kills and another from Drewry, but OSU quickly charged back to go up 5-4. Purdue tied it up at five and six, but soon trailed the Buckeyes by six at 13-6. Gurnell then tallied her 1,000th career kill to kick off a Boilermaker rally including four killls off her hand, which pulled Purdue within four at 15-11. Down 17-11, an OSU service error and a Turner putaway made it a four-point game again, but that is as close as the Boilermakers would come. Ohio State won the set 25-16. Gurnell racked up six kills in the set, but the Buckeyes outhit Purdue .591 to .231 in the stanza. Set four again belonged to the Boilermakers. Purdue jumped out to a 9-3 advantage as Fisher put down three kills and contributed on a block. Three Buckeye errors and a solo block by Drewry also aided in the run. OSU cut the margin to three at 15-12, prompting a Boilermaker timeout. Purdue scored three of the next five points, two on Gurnell kills and another by Drewry to go up 18-14. Ohio State scored seven of the next nine to vault into the lead at 21-20. The Boilermakers countered with five of the next eight points, two on Hart putaways, to regain the lead at 25-24. A Buckeye kill thwarted Purdue's first match point attempt, but back-to-back blocks clinched the 27-25 win. A solo block from Drewry and a combined effort by Fisher and Ainsworth capped the victory. Purdue posted a .310 hitting percentage in the stanza, while Gurnell and Fisher each tallied five kills and Turner added four. The Boilermakers (13-16, 5-13 Big Ten) wrap up the regular season at Iowa and Wisconsin next weekend.

Moffet, Johnson help NU sweep away Iowa

Sat, 21 Nov 2009 21:51:00 +0000

EVANSTON, Ill. -- Behind a combined 32 kills from juniors Sabel Moffett (Temecula, Calif./Chapparal) and Naomi Johnson (Bloomington, Minn./Kennedy) and 21 digs from senior Kate Nobilio (Johnsburg, Ill./Johnsburg), Northwestern overpowered Iowa 25-15, 25-17, 25-15 on Senior Night at Welsh-Ryan Arena. The victory moves the Wildcats into sole possession of sixth place in the Big Ten standings, improving to 7-11 in the conference and 16-14 overall. One night after a rousing victory over Wisconsin, the junior tandem struck again as Moffett knocked down 17 kills with a .538 hitting percentage, complimented by Johnson's 15 kills and .565 hitting percentage. The duo also combined for eight blocks on the night, led by Moffett's one solo block and four assisted. As a team, Northwestern was firing on all cylinders against Iowa (12-18, 4-14 Big Ten), finishing with a .364 team hitting percentage compared to the Hawkeyes' .060. The Wildcats also held a 9-3 block advantage, a 42-21 assist edge and out-dug the Hawkeyes 38-23. Junior Elyse Glab (Chicago, Ill./Resurrection) led all players with 37 assists while also knocking down five kills on six attempts for an .833 average and adding a pair of blocks. Redshirt freshman Kathryn Chrystal (Crystal Lake, Ill./Central) had four kills and two blocks while senior Ariel Baxterbeck (Menlo Park, Calif./Castilleja) and junior Brittani Gray (Cincinnati, Ohio/Sycamore) each added a pair of kills. Gray also posted four blocks on the night while Baxterbeck's six digs was second for the 'Cats. Northwestern controlled the tempo from the opening serve of set one, notching six of the first seven points and never looked back. Behind six kills from Moffett, the Wildcats extended their lead to as many as 11 at 24-13 before settling in for the 25-15 victory. With sole possession of sixth-place in the Big Ten just 25 points away, Northwestern took care of business in set three, racing out to a 10-3 lead on Iowa and again didn't look back. The Wildcats pushed their advantage to 10 at 24-14, and would hold onto that edge by taking set three 25-15 and sending the seniors out in style. Prior to the match, both Baxterbeck and Nobilio were honored on Senior Night. Baxterbeck ranks third on the team in kills (212) and is second in digs (255) in her best season as a Wildcat. With Nobilio's 21 digs on the night, she ups her season total to 490, needing just 10 more to become the first player in program history to record four 500-dig seasons. She also upped her career total to 2,155, leaving her 28 digs shy of moving into second-place all-time in Big Ten history. With its NCAA tournament hopes still alive, Northwestern returns to the court at Welsh-Ryan Arena one last time in 2009, taking on in-state rival and fifth-ranked Illinois Wednesday, Nov. 25 in its home finale. The match against the Illini will be televised live on the Big Ten Network with the opening serve set for 7:05 p.m.

DeBruler leads No. 5 Illinois past Wisconsin

Sat, 21 Nov 2009 21:41:00 +0000

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - It was a festive mood inside Huff Hall Saturday night. First, the Illini volleyball family honored its two seniors, Kylie McCulley and Ashley Edinger. In addition, Laura DeBruler was celebrating her 21st birthday. The junior All-American entertained the nearly 1,500 guests with 18 kills while hitting .424 in a 25-23, 25-11, 25-21 victory over Wisconsin in the final regular season home match of the season. Fifth-ranked Illinois, winners of 14 of its last 15 matches, improves to 15-3 in the Big Ten and 23-4 overall. Wisconsin falls to 6-12 in the conference and 11-16 overall. "The distractions of senior night are always a challenge," said Illinois head coach Kevin Hambly. "But we handled it well and took care of business." DeBruler was scintillating at times, tallying seven kills in the third set and adding seven digs for the night. Sophomore Michelle Bartsch had a solid night as well with nine kills and 12 digs, second only to Rachel Feldman (14) in that department. "Laura hit a couple of balls tonight that I don't think many players in the country can hit," Hambly said. Illinois had five aces on the night, giving the Illini 16 aces in six sets for the weekend. Once again, the Illini kept their opponent out of system, holding the Badgers to just a .092 hitting percentage. "We were doing a good job of serving aggressively," DeBruler said. "Everyone was getting after it on the serve." Wisconsin hit just -.061 in the second set while Illinois sided out at a 90 percent rate. The Illini hit .440 in that set and used an 11-2 run to go from a 10-7 to a 21-9 advantage. Freshman Jackie Wolfe served five of those points. Wisconsin used 12 different players with Caity Dupont pacing the Badgers with six kills while hitting .278. The first and third sets were competitive, but the Illini only lost the lead twice during each set. Illinois took the lead for good in set one at 12-11 after falling behind 9-7. Illinois steadily built the lead until Feldman tallied an ace to make it 21-16. Wisconsin used a 4-0 run which included a solo block by Kelsey Maloney to pull to within 23-21, but Illinois sided out from there. Set three saw more of the same. Illinois scored five straight points, four on the Kylie McCulley serve, to take a 7-3 lead. Wisconsin fought hard, tying the score a 13-13, but Illinois built a 20-16 lead capped off by an Erin Johnson kill on the back slide. Fittingly, the senior McCulley ended the match with an ace. "We set a goal of playing our best in December and that is almost here," Hambly said. "I think the perception of how well we're capable of playing keeps getting higher and higher. I think we could have played a little better tonight, but we're working harder to reach a new standard."

Buckeyes score 3-1 win over Hoosiers

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 22:48:00 +0000

COLUMBUS, Ohio - The Ohio State (22-8 overall, 10-7 Big Ten) women's volleyball team had four players record double-figure kills in the 3-1 (25-16, 25-20, 20-25, 25-22) victory at Indiana (15-16, 4-13) Friday night. OSU's Kristen Dozier had a match-high 15 kills against the Hoosiers with Katie Dull and Anna Szerszen posting 13 each and Emily Danks adding 10. Indiana's Kelsey Hall posted a team-high 13 kills with Ashley Benson adding 11 and Jordan Haverly 10. Ohio State held an early 9-6 lead before kills from Taylor Wittmer and Hall and an OSU error tied set one at nine. The Buckeyes responded with two kills from Dull and one from Dozier to take a 12-9 lead. At 14-11, a Jordan Haverly kill and an OSU error cut the lead to one at 14-13. Two Indiana errors and an ace serve from Dull gave Ohio State a 16-13 lead. After an Indiana timeout, a Hoosier error and a solo block from Danks opened a five-point lead for Ohio State at 18-13. At 20-15, two kills from Dozier and two Indiana errors gave the Buckeyes set point at 24-15. An OSU error stopped the set point at 24-16. Ohio State won the set, 25-16, with a Szerszen kill to take a 1-0 lead in the match. The Buckeyes hit .333 for the set to .188 for Indiana. A Sarah Mignin ace serve and an IU error opened set two for Ohio State with a 2-0 lead. A Hall kill cut the Buckeye lead to one at 7-6. Ohio State scored the next seven points starting with kills from Szerszen and Dozier and two Hoosier errors to make it 11-6. The run continued with two ace serves from Danks and a Szerszen kill to make the lead, 14-6. Ohio State held the lead reaching set point at 24-19 with a kill from Dozier. A kill from Hall stopped the set point at 24-20. OSU won the set, 25-20, on an Ashley Hughes kill to take a 2-0 lead in the match. The Buckeyes hit .353 for the set to .303 for Indiana. Set three saw 10 ties and three lead changes before a final tie at 13-all. Indiana scored the next three points with an OSU error, a Haverly kill and an ace serve from Benson to take a 16-13 lead. A Kelli Barhorst-Danks block and an Indiana error cut the lead to one at 16-15. Hoosier kills from Wittmer and Hall and an OSU error opened a 19-15 Indiana lead. At 23-19, a Laura Matula ace serve made it set point for Indiana. An IU error stopped the set point at 24-20. Indiana won the set, 25-20, with a kill from Benson to cut the Ohio State lead in the match to 2-1. The Hoosiers hit .158 for the set to .152 for the Buckeyes. Tied at two in set four, kills from Szerszen and Danks gave Ohio State a 4-2 lead. A Benson kill cut the margin to 4-3. The Buckeyes, with two kills from Szerszen, an ace serve from Danks and an Indiana error gave Ohio State an 8-3 lead. Ohio State held a 14-10 lead when a Haverly kill, a Wittmer-Kelci Marschall block and an OSU error cut the margin to one at 14-13. At 15-14, an IU error, a Barhorst block and a kill from Dull gave Ohio State an 18-14 lead. Trailing, 21-16, two OSU errors and a Mary Chaudoin-Benson block cut the lead to two at 21-19. At 22-20, kills from Danks and Dozier gave Ohio State match point at 24-20. Indiana stopped two match points with a Haverly kill and a Wittmer-Haverly block to cut the lead to 24-22. The Buckeyes, with a kill from Szerszen, won the set, 25-22, to win the match, 3-1. Ohio State hit .282 for the set to .275 for Indiana. Ohio State hit .278 for the match to .231 for Indiana. OSU had a 55-51 advantage in kills and an eight-to-four margin in ace serves. OSU's Danks collected a match-high three ace serves. Indiana gave up 12 service errors to seven for Ohio State. At setter, OSU's Hughes recorded 44 assists in the match. IU's Whitney Granado had 22 and Chaudoin, 21 assists. Defensively, Ohio State had a 63-53 advantage in digs. OSU's Chelsea Noble recorded a match-high 20 digs against the Hoosiers. At the net, Indiana had a nine-to-five advantage in team blocks. Wittmer (one solo, three assists) and Benson (two solos, two assists) shared match-high honors with four blocks each.

Northwestern stops Wisconsin, 3-1

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 21:16:00 +0000

EVANSTON, Ill. -- Juniors Naomi Johnson (Bloomington, Minn./Kennedy) and Sabel Moffett (Temecula, Calif./Chapparal) combined for 23 kills and 14 blocks as Northwestern defeated Wisconsin 25-23, 25-22, 20-25, 25-21 at Welsh-Ryan Arena. The victory gives the Wildcats their first victory over the Badgers since 2003, snapping an 11-match skid, and moves Northwestern (15-14, 6-11 Big Ten) into a sixth-place tie with Wisconsin in the Big Ten standings. Johnson paced the Wildcats up at the nets all night, recording 13 kills and a career-best eight blocks, including some key rejections down the stretch to seal the Northwestern victory. Moffett added 10 kills and six blocks, as with her four block assists she moves into eighth-place all-time in Wildcat history with 269 on her career. Moffett also registered two solo blocks, pushing her into ninth-place in program history with 58 for her career. Redshirt freshman Kathryn Chrystal also played a key role in the Wildcat victory, recording seven kills and adding seven blocks for Northwestern. Senior Ariel Baxterbeck (Menlo Park, Calif./Castilleja) added six kills, three blocks and eight digs for the 'Cats, with junior Brittani Gray (Cincinnati, Ohio/Sycamore) adding five kills. Junior Elyse Glab (Chicago, Ill./Resurrection) just missed notching her eighth double-double of the season, finishing with 38 assists and nine digs. Senior Kate Nobilio (Johnsburg, Ill./Johnsburg) turned away 23 Badger attacks, upping her season total to 469 digs. Set turn set the tempo for the evening, as both teams were even from the start. Neither team was able to take control, as after 17 ties and nine lead changes, both the Wildcats and Badgers found themselves knotted at 21. Wisconsin (11-15, 6-11 Big Ten) recorded two straight points and looked poised to take the opening set victory, but Northwestern rallied, tallying the set's final four points to take the 25-23 decision. Set two played out similarly to the first until the Badgers began to pull away, building a six-point cushion at 20-14. But the Wildcats would rally again, using an 11-2 run to steal set two from Wisconsin 25-22. Four kills from both Johnson and Moffett and five blocks each from Johnson and Chrystal turned the tide, giving the 'Cats the convincing 2-0 lead. Wisconsin again took control in set three, leading Northwestern by as many as seven at 19-12. But once again the Wildcats would claw their way back, pulling to within a point at 20-19. But this time the Badgers were able to hold off the Wildcat rally, taking set three 25-20. A fast Wisconsin start in set four was once again answered with a Northwestern rally, as after the Badgers built an 8-3 lead early, the Wildcats would respond to tie the set at 15. The two would then battle down the stretch, but then with the set knotted at 19, Northwestern took control for the final time, outscoring Wisconsin 6-2 down the stretch to take set four and seal the victory. Wisconsin's Brittney Dolgner and Allison Wack each recorded 16 kills in defeat, with Alexis Mitchell and Mary Ording each recording five blocks and Kim Kuzma digging a match-high 30 balls.

Michigan sweeps Minnesota, 3-0

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 20:53:00 +0000

The 12th-ranked Minnesota volleyball team (21-8, 12-5) lost in three sets to No. 14 Michigan (24-7, 12-6) by scores of 25-23, 25-14, 27-25 at Cliff Keen Arena on Friday, Nov. 20. Minnesota was led by Lauren Gibbemeyer (St. Paul, Minn.) who had 10 kills, four blocks and four digs. Sophomore middle blocker Ariana Filho (Monument, Colo.) had a career-high eight blocks and five kills on the night, while Hailey Cowles (Eden Prairie, Minn.) finished with six kills, nine digs, three assists and two service aces. Jessica Granquist (Blaine, Minn.) finished with a team-high 12 digs, while Megan Wilson (Lincoln, Neb.) had eight digs and four blocks. Senior setter Taylor Carico (Manhattan Beach, Calif.) had 27 assists, five kills, four digs and three blocks. Michigan outhit Minnesota .269 to .168, and had 55 kills to 35 for the Golden Gophers. Minnesota was also outdug 69 to 47 on the night. The Golden Gophers did have 14.0 blocks to eight for Michigan. In the first set Minnesota raced out to an early 10-4 lead after a kill by Tabitha Love (Dauphin, Manitoba). Michigan cut the lead to 12-10 with six of the next eight points, but Wilson and Gibbemeyer answered with consecutive kills to make it 14-10. The Wolverines answered with four of the next five points to cut the lead to 15-14. Minnesota moved its lead back out to three points at 19-16 after Filho and Wilson combined on a block. The Golden Gophers pushed it to 20-17 when Love and Filho combined on a block. Michigan scored four of the first five points to tie it at 21. Cowles delivered a kill to put Minnesota ahead 23-22, but Veronica Rood delivered a kill to tie the score at 23. Lexi Zimmerman delivered a kill to give the Wolverines their lead of the set and make it set point at 24-23. Alex Hunt and Karlee Bruck combined on a block to give Michigan the first set 25-23. Michigan outhit Minnesota .302 to .231 in the set, and had 19 kills to 14. Cowles led the Golden Gophers with four kills and five digs, while Juliana Paz had nine kills for Michigan in the set. Minnesota fell behind 11-7 in the second set, but scored three of the next four points to make it 12-10 on a kill by Love. The Wolverines responded with a 7-0 run to move ahead 19-10. Carico answered with a kill and combined on a block with Filho to make it 19-12. The Golden Gophers made it 21-14 after Wilson and Filho combined on a block. However, Michigan closed out the set by scoring the final four points to claim it 25-14. The Wolverines outhit the Golden Gophers .306 to .057 in the set, and had 15 kills to eight for Minnesota. Gibbemeyer led Minnesota with three kills in the set. Minnesota raced out to a 12-7 lead in the third set after Filho and Love combined on a block. The Golden Gophers expanded the lead to 14-8 when Filho and Love again combined on a block. Michigan answered with three straight points to make it 14-11, but Minnesota answered with a 5-0 run and went up 19-11 on a service ace by Granquist. Michigan came back with eight of the next 10 points to trim the lead to 21-19. Gibbemeyer responded with back-to-back kills to make it 23-19. After a Gopher service error, Gibbemeyer made it set point at 24-20 with a kill. The Wolverines fought off four straight set points to tie it at 24. Carico responded with a solo block to make it set point at 25-24. Rood answered with a kill to fight off a fifth Golden Gopher set point. Paz delivered a kill to make it match point, and Rood finished the match with a kill to give Michigan a three-set victory. On the night, Michigan was led by Paz who hit .450 (23-5-40) with 23 kills, nine digs and two solo blocks. Bruck hit .714 (10-0-14) with 10 kills and four blocks. Megan Bower finished with six kills and 19 digs, while Sloane Donhoff had 19 digs and a pair of service aces. Setter Lexi Zimmerman also had 48 assists and 10 digs.

Penn State defeats Purdue, 3-1

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 23:19:00 +0000

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - The top-ranked Penn State women's volleyball team clinched at least a share of the 2009 Big Ten title with a 3-1 (29-31, 25-17, 25-17, 25-20) victory against Purdue (12-16, 4-13). Penn State has now won 93 straight matches and is now in sole possession of second place among all Division I winning streaks. A defeat of Indiana on Saturday would give Penn State its 13th overall and seventh consecutive outright Big Ten title. Senior Megan Hodge (Durham, N.C.) led all players with 24 kills. She now has 2,009 kills and is only the second Penn State to reach 2,000 kills in her career. Junior Arielle Wilson (Broadview, Ill.) and freshman Darcy Dorton (Muncie, Ind.) also tallied double-digit kills with 10 apiece. Senior setter Alisha Glass (Leland, Mich.) paced the Nittany Lion offense with 48 assists and also finished second on the team with 11 digs. Junior Fatima Balza (Merida, Venezuela) was a wall at the net with a match-high eight total blocks, while junior Blair Brown (Purcellville, Va.) finished the night with six. Junior libero Alyssa D'Errico (Byron, N.Y.) led the team with a career-high tying 18 saves. Penn State attacked at a .306 clip, while holding the Boilermakers to just .119. The Lions finished the match with 61 kills, 5 assists, two aces, 50 digs and 13.5 total team blocks. Purdue totaled 48 kills, 43 assists, one ace, 43 digs and 10.0 team blocks. Despite Purdue tallying the first point of the night, Glass set Balza for a kill that ricocheted off the arm of a Boilermaker putting the Lions on the board. Purdue took a two-point lead, 5-3, after a kill by Carrie Gurnell and PSU error, but a Hodge kill and a Boilermaker error had the teams tied at 5-5. Wilson gave Penn State its first lead with an ace, 6-5. The two squads traded points until Penn State went on a four-point run for its largest lead of the set, 16-13. Purdue worked to within one, 16-15, but an error and Brown kill had Penn State leading, 18-15. The Nittany Lions maintained at least a two-point lead until a PSU service error and another Gurnell kill had the Boilermakers within one, 22-21. After a Penn State timeout, Hodge notched a kill for a two-point edge. However, a Gurnell kill and a PSU error had the set tied, 23-23. Hodge put Penn State in set-point position with a kill, but a kill from Ariel Turner and a Purdue stuff had the Boilermakers leading 25-24. The two teams went back and forth until a Kristen Arthurs kill and block by Turner and Tiffany Fisher gave the Boilermakers a 31-29 first set win. The second set was close early, until a Wilson kill and a stuff by Glass and Wilson gave Penn State a 7-5 edge. Following a 6-2 Penn State run, the Nittany Lions led 16-10. Two PSU errors had Purdue within four, 16-12, but the Lions posted three straight points for a 19-12 lead. Two kills by Hodge, one each from Dorton and Glass and another block by Wilson and Glass gave Penn State a convincing 25-17 set two win. Penn State hit .483 in set two, as opposed to the .275 attack percentage it registered in set one. The Nittany Lions jumped out to a 5-2 lead in the third set thanks to kills from Hodge and Glass and an ace by Glass. Back-to-back stuffs by Balza and Brown increased Penn State's lead to five, 8-3. Following a Purdue timeout, the Boilermakers managed to stay within five until an 8-1 Penn State run had PSU's lead in double-digits, 19-8. Hodge and Wilson each had two kills in the run. Two Lion errors cut Penn State's lead to single-digits, but another Hodge kill and a Boilermaker error had Penn State back ahead by 11, 21-10. Purdue worked within seven, 24-17, but Wilson closed out the third set for Penn State with a kill. A solo stuff by Turner had Purdue on the board first in the fourth set, but a monster Wilson kill and a Purdue error had Penn State in the lead, 2-1. A PSU error and an Arthurs kill put Purdue back in front, 3-2. The Nittany Lions capitalized off three Boilermaker errors and kills by Glass and Hodge for an 8-3 advantage. Two kills by Purdue had the Boilermaker within four, 9-5. By midpoint of the set, the Lions led 15-8 and Purdue took a timeout. Penn State increased its lead to eight, 19-11. The Boilermakers went on a four-point run to come within three, 23-19, thanks to two PSU errors, two Purdue kills and a Boilermaker stuff. Kills by Brown and Hodge closed out the set for Penn State, 25-20.

Iowa falls to Illinois, 3-0

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 20:48:00 +0000

CHAMPAIGN, IL –The University of Iowa volleyball team fell to fifth-ranked Illinois tonight at Huff Hall. The Fighting Illini fought off the Hawkeyes in three sets (25-9, 25-18, 25-18). Senior Megan Schipper picked up her 77th career ace in the contest to become the ninth player in program history to rank in the top 20 in career kills, blocks and service aces. Schipper paced Hawkeye offense with six kills while junior Mara Hilgenberg led Iowa with eight digs and 22 assists. ""We didn't pass well tonight,"" said Head Coach Sharon Dingman. ""That's been a constant problem we've been addressing because when we play good defense we are a significantly better team. It has to start with first touch. It's something we'll focus on again tomorrow as we prepare for Northwestern tomorrow night."" Iowa fell into a one-set hole by dropping the opening frame, 25-9. Iowa used kills from junior Becky Walters and sophomore Mallory Husz to battle to an early 2-2 tie, but Illinois used a 10-point run later in the set to take a commanding 16-5 lead. Walters ended the Illini run with a block and later added a kill, but Illinois (14-3, 22-4) controlled the final six points of the frame and held on for the set victory. The Illini rode their first set momentum to a 25-18 win in set two. Schipper recorded back-to-back kills in the early going to tie the set, 3-3, but Illinois later used a six-point run to build a 12-4 advantage. Iowa would later pull within five points, 20-15, behind a 5-2 run that included kills from Husz, Schipper and freshman Emma Krieger Kittle, but Illinois was able to pull away at the end and take a 2-0 set lead. Schipper led the Hawkeyes in the second frame with four kills. Krieger Kittle added three kills off the bench and Hilgenberg dished 10 assists. The Hawkeyes stormed out of intermission to grab a 7-5 lead in the third frame. Consecutive aces by Schipper tied the set, 4-4, and kills from Huss and Krieger Kittle helped Iowa gain the early lead. The Illini would later battle back to build an eight-point edge, 18-10, before Iowa responded with blocks from Walters and Schipper to eventually pull within four points, 19-15. Illinois then ran away with six of the set's final nine points to win the set and take the 3-0 match victory.

Michigan outlasts rival Michigan State in 5

Wed, 18 Nov 2009 20:30:00 +0000

ANN ARBOR, Mich. - The No. 14-ranked University of Michigan volleyball kept the State Pride flag in Ann Arbor, earning a five-set (25-20, 18-25, 25-21, 17-25, 15-8) victory Wednesday night at Cliff Keen Arena. The Wolverines' balanced attack saw four players record double-digit kills, led by senior Juliana Paz (Porto Allegre, Brazil/Iowa Western CC) with 18. Senior Megan Bower (Indianapolis, Ind./Cathedral) recorded her first double-double of the season with 11 kills and 10 digs. Sophomore Alex Hunt (Granger, Ind./Granger) went for 14 kills while senior Veronica Rood (Temperance, Mich./Temperance) chipped in 10. Junior setter Lexi Zimmerman (Barrington, Ill./Barrington) dished out 56 assists on the evening. The Wolverines never trailed in the fifth and deciding set, outhitting the Spartans, .375 to .118. U-M also used a 75-percent side-out ratio in the frame as Bower and Hunt each posted two kills to pace the Wolverine offense. Leading 10-7, Michigan used the second service ace of the night from junior Maggie Busch (Toledo, Ohio/Toledo Christian) along with back-to-back blocks by Rood - the second one was assisted by Paz - to cap the set and the match, 15-8. In the opening set, Michigan controlled much of the frame until the midway point when MSU crept back within one, 18-17. Down the stretch, Hunt contributed a service ace and Rood contributed three of the final five points as Michigan hit .370 in a 25-20 win. Michigan State jumped on top in set two and expanded its lead to 20-15 en route to a 25-18 victory. The Wolverines offense was good - hitting .429 - but the Spartans were even better hitting at a .609 clip and committing only one attack error. Paz had the hot hand in defeat, contributing seven kills for Michigan. While the opening two sets were very much one-sided affairs, the third was very close. Locked at 21, a string of four straight U-M points, including two kills by Hunt, capped a 25-21 Michigan win. Paz led the Maize and Blue again with seven kills while Zimmerman dished out 15 assists. Tied at 13 in set four, the Spartans used a 4-0 run to gain momentum as they cruised to a 25-17 win, evening the match at two sets apiece. U-M hit at its lowest clip of the match, .231, with five attack errors in the set. The Wolverines return to Cliff Keen Arena on Friday night (Nov. 20) for the regular season home finale and senior night when they face No. 12 Minnesota at 7 p.m. MGoBlue.com will provide live game audio and live stats. NOTES • U-M won the "State Pride" series with Michigan State for the third consecutive season with the series sweep of the Spartans Wednesday night. Michigan now owns 12 of the 20 all-time "State Pride" series wins. • Megan Bower recorded her first double-double of the season (11 kills, 10 digs) and the 10th of her career. • Bower also recorded her second highest attack-percentage of the season, hitting at a .625 clip (11-1-16). • Bower's 11 kills mark a season high, eclipsing her previous best of 10 versus Ohio State (Oct. 17). • Sloane Donhoff's 11 digs mark her 26th match with double-digit digs this season and her 10th consecutive. • Lexi Zimmerman's 56 assists mark a new season high, eclipsing her previous high of 55 versus Illinois (Oct. 3). • Zimmerman recorded her 13th match of 50 or more assists.

No. 5 Illinois bounces back, beat Ohio State

Sun, 15 Nov 2009 16:44:00 +0000

COLUMBUS, Ohio - The No. 5 Illini volleyball team returned to its winning ways on Sunday, defeating Ohio State 3-1 (25-17, 25-8, 18-25, 25-21) at St. John Arena. Senior Kylie McCulley hit .344 and notched a match-high 15 kills and 14 digs to lead Illinois, who improved to 21-4 overall and 13-3 in the Big Ten. Aggressive serving by the Illini befuddled the Buckeyes and continually forced Ohio State (21-8, 9-7 Big Ten) out of system. "Our girls responded today and played at a high level," head coach Kevin Hambly said. "We really showed what we are made of in the first two sets, and I'm proud of the response we had as a team. Our serving really put them out of system the entire match and that took their middle out of it, which was huge." The Illini jumped out to a quick start, handily winning the first set behind four kills from junior Laura DeBruler and three service aces. Solid passing led to 16 digs and 12 assists in the opening frame for the Illini, while the Buckeyes passing broke down, as Ohio State only recorded six assists and a zero hitting percentage. Freshman Erin Johnson played well up front, adding three kills and two blocks to the mix. In the second set, Illinois picked up where it left off, controlling the frame and not allowing the Buckeyes to reach double digits. DeBruler posted four kills again, and the Illini block recorded three more kills to shut down the Buckeyes, who were held to four kills and a -.190 attack percentage in the second stanza. The Illini hit .400 for the frame, as McCulley began to heat up with three kills. The Buckeyes battled back to take the third set thanks to a perfect attack percentage from Kristen Dozier, who tallied six kills in six attacks. McCulley had four more kills in the frame, but couldn't overcome the .355 attack percentage by Ohio State. The Illini and Buckeyes went back-and-forth in the fourth frame, but the Orange and Blue grabbed the lead midway through the set and never relinquished it. Ahead 19-16, Illinois played sideout volleyball for the final 11 points to wrap up the match. McCulley and Bartsch caught fire in the fourth set, netting six kills and five kills, respectively, to seal the victory for the Illini. Bartsch hit .625, while McCulley attacked at a .545 clip. "We are a pretty steady team," Hambly said. "Laura (DeBruler) started out really hot, Kylie (McCulley) ended really strong and Michelle (Bartsch) had some big swings, especially in the fourth set." DeBruler finished the match with 14 kills, while sophomore Michelle Bartsch notched 10. Illinois posted double-digit blocks (10) for the third time in the last four matches and were paced by five block assists from Johannah Bangert. Junior setter Hillary Haen controlled the tempo with 44 assists, while sophomore libero Rachel Feldman added 10 digs. Up Next: Illinois heads home for a pair of matches at Huff Hall next weekend, as the Illini face Iowa on Friday and Wisconsin on Saturday. Both matches are slated to begin at 7 p.m. CT.

Penn State stays hot, sweeps Northwestern

Sat, 14 Nov 2009 21:26:00 +0000

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - The No. 1 Penn State women's volleyball team (28-0, 16-0) secured their 92nd straight victory Saturday evening with a 3-0 (25-20, 25-14, 25-20) sweep of Northwestern (14-14, 5-11) in front of a standing-room-only crowd of 5,312 in Rec Hall. It was the fourth-largest crowd to attend a PSU women's volleyball match. The Nittany Lions are now tied for second in the NCAA record books for consecutive wins with the North Carolina women's soccer team (1990-94). The Nittany Lions were led by senior Megan Hodge (Durham, N.C.), who posted a match-high 15 kills. Junior Blair Brown (Purcellville, Va.) finished second on the squad with nine kills. Senior setter Alisha Glass (Leland, Mich.) paced the Nittany Lion offense with 37 assists, while junior Cathy Quilico (Thousand Oaks, Calif.) made 10 saves. Sophomore Katie Kabbes (Raleigh, N.C.) led the team at the net with five total blocks and also tallied four kills. Penn State attacked at a .360 clip and held the Wildcats to a meager .083. The Nittany Lions totaled 42 kills, 40 assists, 28 digs and 11.0 total team blocks. Northwestern recorded 32 kills, 29 assists, 30 digs and 5.5 total team blocks. The Nittany Lions wasted no time in the first set jumping out to a 5-0 lead before the Wildcats could get on the board. A block by Glass and junior Arielle Wilson (Broadview, Ill.), a kill by Hodge and an NU error had Penn State ahead, 8-1. The Wildcats fought to within six, 11-5, but kills from Wilson, freshman Darcy Dorton (Muncie, Ind.) and Brown gave Penn State a 14-6 advantage. After a Northwestern timeout, the Wildcats found some momentum and five kills combined with three PSU errors had NU within three, 17-14. Penn State cut off the Wildcats with a Hodge kill and a NU attack error sent the Wildcats to the bench a second time. The timeout slowed the Nittany Lions enough to allow Northwestern to come back to within three, 21-19. Penn State called a timeout to regroup and two Hodge kills, another from Dorton and a Northwestern error would secure the first set for PSU, 25-20. Two Northwestern errors put Penn State up 2-0 to start off the second set. However, a kill from Alexandra Ayers and two PSU errors had the teams tied at 3-3. Northwestern took its first lead of the match, 4-3, after another error, but the Wildcats would commit an error of their own to allow Penn State to tie it at 4-4. Back-to-back Northwestern kills put the Wildcats up by two, 6-4, but two Kabbes kills and a Wildcat error had the Nittany Lions back in charge, 8-7. Penn State increased its lead to four, 12-8, when Northwestern called a timeout. The break did little to slow PSU as the squad only increased its lead to six, 17-11, when Northwestern took a second timeout. Kabbes notched a solo block following the timeout, but Sabel Moffett posted a kill to keep Northwestern within six. Penn State held Northwestern to just 14 points in the second set as errors by the Wildcats sent the Nittany Lions surging ahead to a set two win. Northwestern's Brittany Gray posted the first point of the third and final set of the match, but she followed it with an error to put the Nittany Lions on the board. Errors would plague the Wildcats early giving Penn State a 7-3 lead. The teams traded kills until a huge block by Wilson and Dorton forced Northwestern to take a timeout. Trailing by six, 11-5, the Wildcats followed the short break with two straight kills to come within four, 11-7. Dorton slowed NU with a kill, but by midway through the frame, Northwestern was within three, 14-11. Two consecutive Penn State kills and a block by Kabbes and Brown gave the Nittany Lions some breathing room, 17-11, and had Northwestern calling its second timeout. A block by Hodge and Brown and a Hodge kill moved the Nittany Lions ahead by eight, 19-11. Despite it seeming like Penn State had firm control, Northwestern rallied and were soon within three, 23-20. Penn State called a timeout and kills from Glass and Dorton gave Penn State a 25-20 third set triumph. Penn State is back in action at Purdue on Friday, Nov. 20 at 7 p.m. The Nittany Lions then travel to Indiana on Saturday, Nov. 21 for a 7 p.m. meeting with the Hoosiers. PSU returns home to close out the regular season the weekend of Nov. 27 with matches against Michigan State and Michigan.

Gophers tally road sweep over Badgers

Sun, 15 Nov 2009 15:53:00 +0000

The Minnesota volleyball team (21-7, 12-4) won for the seventh time in nine matches as it defeated Wisconsin (11-14, 6-10) in three sets by scores of 25-11, 25-21, 25-22 at the Wisconsin Fieldhouse on Sunday. It marked the 12th time in 16 meetings that the Golden Gophers have defeated Wisconsin. During that span, Minnesota has won at the Wisconsin Fieldhouse in five of the eight meetings. Minnesota was led by Lauren Gibbemeyer (St. Paul, Minn.) who hit .480 (14-2-25) with a team-high 14 kills, a career-high 12 blocks and tied a team-best with six digs. Sophomore middle blocker Ariana Filho (Monument, Colo.) had seven kills, hit .357 (7-2-14) and had four blocks. Freshman Katherine Harms (Albertville, Minn.) had five kills and four blocks, while Hailey Cowles (Eden Prairie, Minn.) had a career-best five blocks. Cowles, Gibbemeyer, Megan Wilson (Lincoln, Neb.) and Christine Tan (Safety Harbor, Fla.) all tied with a team-high six digs. Tan also collected two service aces. Senior setter Taylor Carico (Manhattan Beach, Calif.) finished with 30 assists, four blocks and three kills. Minnesota outhit Wisconsin .207 to .026, despite the fact that the Badgers had one more kill (36-to-35). The Golden Gophers tied a season-high with 16.0 blocks as a team, and for the second straight match did not give up a service ace. The Golden Gophers ran out to a 6-0 lead in the first set after a service ace by Tan. Wisconsin trimmed the lead to 10-3, but Minnesota moved ahead 13-5 on a kill by Filho. After the Badgers cut it to 13-7, the Golden Gophers answered with eight of the next nine points and moved ahead 21-8 when Cowles and Gibbemeyer combined on a block. Minnesota pushed it to 23-9 on a kill by Gibbemeyer, and eventually claimed the set 25-11 on a kill by Filho. In the set, Minnesota outhit Wisconsin .320 to -.081, and had 11 kills to eight for the Badgers. The Golden Gophers also outblocked wisconsin 7.0-to-0.0 in the set. Gibbemeyer paced Minnesota with six kills and six blocks in the set. The Golden Gophers jumped out to a 12-9 lead in the second set after Cowles and Filho combined on a block, however Wisconsin answered with three straight points to tie the set at 12. Minnesota pushed it to 15-13 on a kill by Gibbemeyer. With the score at 17-16, the Golden Gophers went on a 4-0 run that featured a Filho kill and three Badger errors. Harms helped the Golden Gophers finish off the last part of the set by delivering a kill to move the score to 22-18. She continued with a kill that made it set point at 24-20, and then delivered a kill to give Minnesota a 25-21 victory in the second set. Minnesota outhit Wisconsin .133 to .026 in the set. The Badgers had 14 kills to 10 for the Golden Gophers, but also committed 13 attack errors to six for Minnesota. The Golden Gophers also outblocked Wisconsin 5.0-to-3.0 in the set. Harms and Gibbemeyer each had four kills in the set. The Golden Gophers jumped out to a 16-10 lead in the third set following a kill by Tabitha Love (Dauphin, Manitoba). Wisconsin answered with five of the next six points to cut the lead to 17-15. After a Badger service error, Tan followed with a service ace and Cowles and Gibbemeyer combined on a block to make it 20-15. Wisconsin answered with four straight points to make it 20-19. Minnesota led by two points at 23-21, before the Badgers cut the lead to 23-22. Carico responded with a kill to make it match points, and Love finished the match with a kill. The Badgers were led by Allison Wack who had 11 kills, 10 digs and two blocks. Brittney Dolgner also had 10 kills, while Kim Kuzma finished with nine digs. Minnesota will be back in action on when it travels to No. 14 Michigan on Friday, Nov. 20 at 6 p.m. (CT). The Golden Gophers will also face Michigan State on the road on Saturday, Nov. 21 at 6 p.m (CT).

No. 14 Michigan outlasts Indiana

Sat, 14 Nov 2009 21:34:00 +0000

ANN ARBOR, Mich. - For a second straight night, the No. 14-ranked University of Michigan volleyball team went five sets, coming out victorious again, 3-2 (25-23, 25-14, 23-25, 16-25, 15-11) over Indiana Saturday night at Cliff Keen Arena.The Wolverines had to hold on after winning the first two sets in a mirror-image contest from the previous night. Junior setter Lexi Zimmerman (Barrington, Ill./Barrington) finished just one kill shy of a triple-double, racking up 48 assists, 12 digs and nine kills.Sophomore Alex Hunt (Granger, Ind./South Bend St. Joseph) led the attack with 18 kills while seniors Juliana Paz (Porto Allegre, Brazil/Iowa Western CC) and Veronica Rood (Temperance, Mich./Bedford) added 15 and 13 kills, respectively.Sloane Donhoff (Louisville, Ky./Assumption) and Megan Bower (Indianapolis, Ind./Cathedral) led the Michigan defense with 19 and 18 digs, respectively. In the deciding fifth set, the two teams traded points to a 10-10 tie. A back-row kill by Hunt put the Wolverines on top, giving the team a lead it would not relinquish as Paz and Bower finished off the Hoosiers down the stretch in the 15-11 win. Set one proved to be a close affair as the teams found themselves tied at 20-all. Indiana reeled of the next two points to grab its largest lead of the frame before U-M fired back with three straight, including a service ace by junior Maggie Busch (Toledo, Ohio/Toledo Christian) for a 23-22 lead to send Indiana to the bench with a timeout.The Hoosiers tied it up out of the break before back-to-back kills by Paz sealed a 25-23 Michigan win. In set two, the Wolverines scored the first four points and never looked back en route to a 25-14 win.Offensively, the Wolverines were red-hot, attacking at a .483 clip without a single attack error while posting an 86-percent side-out ratio. Hunt and Paz posted four kills apiece in the set while Zimmerman added three. Locked at 14-all in set three, the Wolverines strung together three straight points, including a kill by Hunt, to grab a 17-14 lead. The lead quickly evaporated as the Hoosiers fired back with a 5-1 run for just their second lead of the set.Trailing 24-22, a kill by Rood brought U-M within one, but Indiana held on down the stretch for a 25-23 win. Still leading two sets to one, Michigan kept the fourth set close before the Hoosiers pushed a 16-14 advantage to a 25-16 win on the strength of 9-2 run. The Wolverines offense sputtered in the frame, producing seven attack errors and three service errors as they hit just .027. The Wolverines are back in action Wednesday night (Nov. 18) when they face intrastate rival Michigan State at 6 p.m. in Cliff Keen Arena. The match that will decide the State Pride series winner can be seen live via the Big Ten Network with MGoBlue.com providing live game audio and live stats.

MIchigan State snaps skid, sweeps Purdue

Sat, 14 Nov 2009 21:15:00 +0000

EAST LANSING, Mich. - Looking to end its three-match losing skid, the Michigan State volleyball team (17-11, 5-11 Big Ten) downed the Purdue Boilermakers on Saturday, Nov. 14, at Jenison Field House. The win mark the Spartans' first against the Boilermakers since a win at home in 2007. Senior Vanessa King (Spring Lake, Mich.) led all Spartans with her .571 attack percentage while tallying 10 kills. "We are at a point in the season where every win matters," said head coach Cathy George. "The team just needs to keep its focus as the season begins to wind down, and take it one match at a time." MSU struck early in the first set, leading 5-3. The Spartans extended their lead to three, bringing the score to 12-9. However, the Boilermakers scored three straight points, tying the set at 12. After three straight Michigan State points, Purdue called its first timeout. MSU grew its lead to five with the score 20-15. The Boilermakers stormed back, taking seven of 10 points to make it a 23-22 set, in favor of MSU. After a Spartan timeout, Michigan State took the final two points, clinching the set 25-23. Senior Vanessa King (Spring Lake, Mich.) and sophomore Becca Zlabis (Wheaton, Ill.) each tallied four kills in the set. The Spartans once again pounced early leading 4-2. After the Boilermakers tied the match at four, each team traded service until MSU broke free, making it 8-7. Michigan State extended its lead to three, 12-9. Purdue called timeout when MSU was leading 14-10. After scoring four of five points, Michigan State forced the Boilermakers into its second timeout. The Spartans closed out the second set 25-21. King and sophomore Kyndra Abron (Livonia, Mich.) posted a team-high four kills. Michigan State continued its success, taking an early 4-1 lead. MSU pushed its lead to four with the score 9-5. The Spartan lead grew to six when Purdue called its first timeout with the score 16-10. Michigan State dug deep to close out the match, winning the third set 25-18. Abron led the Spartan attack with a 1.000 attack percentage on four kills. Zlabis ended the night with nine kills while hitting .450. Sophomore Natalie Emro (Wildwood, Mo.) led the team with 36 assists. Junior Allyson Karaba (Muskegon, Mich.) tallied 13 digs while King solidified the defense with three blocks. MSU will be back in action on Wednesday, Nov. 15, when it travels to Ann Arbor for a showdown against Michigan. The match will be aired live on the Big Ten Network beginning at 6 p.m.

Wildcats drop four-set decision to Buckeyes

Fri, 13 Nov 2009 21:34:00 +0000

COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Northwestern fought back from a slow start, but Ohio State proved to be too much as the Wildcats drop a 16-25, 27-25, 10-25, 15-25 decision at St. John Arena. NU remains in seventh place in the Big Ten standings with a 5-10 mark and are 14-13 on the year. Sophomore Alexandra Ayers (Playa del Rey, Calif./Marymount) came up big for Northwestern, leading the squad in both kills (11) and digs (13) for her third double-double of the season. Junior Sabel Moffett (Temecula, Calif./Chapparal) finished with 10 kills and three blocks while senior Ariel Baxterbeck (Menlo Park, Calif./Castilleja) added eight kills and seven digs. Senior Kate Nobilio (Johnsburg, Ill./Johnsburg) finished with 11 digs on the night. Junior Naomi Johnson (Bloomington, Minn./Kennedy) and redshirt freshman Kathryn Chrystal (Crystal Lake, Ill./Central) each knocked down five kills and added a block for the Wildcats in the middle as junior Elyse Glab (Chicago, Ill./Resurrection) recorded a double-double of her own with 32 assists and 10 digs. After a competitive early start to set one, Ohio State (21-7, 9-6 Big Ten) began to take control. Holding a 6-5 advantage, the Buckeyes would tally 15 of the next 20 points to break the set open at 21-10. Northwestern staged a late rally, but it wasn't enough as Ohio State takes set one 25-16 despite three kills apiece from Ayers, Baxterbeck and Chrystal. The Wildcats took control early in set two, building a five-point cushion at 19-14 and seemed to have the set in hand. But a 10-3 Buckeye run would give Ohio State match point at 24-22. However, Northwestern would not only fight off two set points, but would put together a 5-1 run of its own and held off OSU 27-25, tying the match at a set apiece. But the momentum gained by the Wildcats was short-lived as the Buckeyes notched 15 of the first 18 in set three that edge. Ohio State would keep Northwestern at bay for the duration, taking set three comfortably at 25-10. The Wildcats were never able to recover, with set four playing out in similar fashion as the Buckeyes closed out the match with a 25-15 decision. Ohio State's Katie Dull finished with a match-high 20 kills, complimented by nine from Anna Szerszen and eight from Kristen Dozier. In a very unfamiliar fashion, the Wildcats, who rank third in the conference in blocks, were out-blocked by the Buckeyes 13-5.

PSU sweeps No. 5 Illinois

Fri, 13 Nov 2009 21:30:00 +0000

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - Behind a superb effort from junior Blair Brown (Purcellville, Va.), who tied her career high with 17 kills, the top-ranked Penn State women's volleyball team (27-0, 15-0) swept No. 5 Illinois (20-4, 12-3), 3-0 (25-20, 27-25, 25-15) on Friday night with 4,163 loyal Penn State fans packed into Rec Hall. The Nittany Lions extended their winning streak to 91 consecutive matches. Senior setter Alisha Glass (Leland, Mich.) paced the Nittany Lion offense to a .350 hitting percentage and tallied 39 assists. Junior Arielle Wilson (Broadview, Ill.) finished second on the team in kills with nine and blocks with three. Junior Fatima Balza (Merida, Venezuela) led the team with four total blocks and junior Alyssa D'Errico (Byron, N.Y.) posted a team-high 11 digs. The Nittany Lions finished the night with 48 kills, five aces, 47 digs and 7.0 total team blocks. The Fighting Illini posted 37 kills, three aces, 36 digs and 4.0 team blocks. Penn State held Illinois to just .189 hitting for the evening. Penn State took a 2-1 lead in the opening stanza after an Illinois error and a kill by Glass, but the Illini soon tied it up at 3-3. The Nittany Lions took the lead for good after Brown's first kill of the evening. PSU led y five, 8-3, when Illinois called its first timeout. Illinois' Laura DeBruler posted a kill after the break, but another Brown kill and a D'Errico ace had Penn State leading 10-4. By midway through the set, Penn State had built an eight-point lead, 15-7, but Illinois managed to work to within four, 15-11, after three straight PSU errors. After a kill by senior Megan Hodge (Durham, N.C.) and two Illini errors, Illinois called a second timeout. Johannah Bangert notched a kill immediately after the timeout, but Brown put up two kills followed by one from freshman Darcy Dorton (Muncie, Ind.) to give Penn State a 21-12 advantage. The Illini managed four straight kills to come within five, 21-16, but Brown cut off the run with another kill. A kill by Illinois' Erin Johnson, another from Bangert and a PSU error brought the Illini within four, 23-19, forcing Penn State to call a timeout. Wilson posted two kills after the timeout to give Penn State a 25-20 first set victory. Despite Wilson putting the Nittany Lions on the board first in the second set with a kill, back-to-back Illinois kills would have the Illini leading early, 2-1. Brown tied the set at 2-2 with a kill, but Illinois took the lead again, 5-2, after two kills from Michelle Bartsch and an ace by Jackie Wolfe. Penn State soon regained the lead, 6-5, thanks to kills from Brown, Balza and Dorton and an Illini error. The Nittany Lions managed to stay at least one step ahead of Illinois until halfway through the set when they had developed an 18-14 lead and the Illini called a timeout. Wilson pounded a kill following the break, but two Illinois kills and two PSU errors had Illinois within three, 20-17, a short time later. Three Illinois kills and another Penn State error brought the Illini within two, 22-20, and the Nittany Lions headed to the bench. The timeout did little to slow Illinois as the two teams were soon tied at 22-22 after a Hilary Haen ace and a block by Barstch and Bangert. The teams would tie twice more before a Hodge kill and a block by Balza and Dorton secured a 27-25 second set win for Penn State. The third set was all Penn State as the Nittany Lions took off early with a 4-0 lead. Illinois immediately called a timeout and Bangert put the Illini on the board with a kill. The two teams traded kills, but an Illini error had Penn State leading, 7-2. Illinois worked to within four points, 10-6, but that was the closest the Illini came for the remainder of the set. Penn State grabbed its largest lead of the set, 18-9, when Hodge followed a second Illinois timeout with a kill. Illinois fought to within six, 19-13, thanks to two DeBruler kills, one form Bartsch and a Wolfe ace. However, the Nittany Lions held off the Illini with on kill each from Balza, Brown and Dorton and a D'Errico ace for a 25-15 set three win. Penn State posted 16 kills on 28 errorless swings in the third set for a .571 attack percentage.

Boilermaker rally against Michigan falls shorts

Fri, 13 Nov 2009 21:37:00 +0000

ANN ARBOR, Mich. - The Boilermaker volleyball team rallied from two sets down and held off six match-point attempts before finally succumbing to No. 14 Michigan Friday night. The Wolverines won the match 25-17, 26-24, 22-25, 22-25, 18-16. "We put together a pretty good match tonight; unfortunately, Michigan was in control for most of game 5 and we had to play catch up," head coach Dave Shondell said. "But, you can't be anything but proud when your team is down 14-9 in the fifth set and comes back. We showed great heart and determination tonight. We played the 14th-ranked team in country on their home floor and took them to the wire. We were a team trying to find itself and we took a big step in that direction tonight." Junior Kristen Arthurs put down 13 kills to lead a quartet of Boilermakers with double-digit efforts. Senior Carrie Gurnell and freshmen Ariel Turner and Anna Drewry rounded out the group with 11 kills apiece. Drewry hit at a match-high .529 clip, while junior Jaclyn Hart tacked on seven kills at a .455 clip. Defensively, redshirt sophomore Blair Bashen led the way with 17 digs. Sophomore Emily Ehlers pulled up 16 digs, while Hart added 14 to her 46 assist effort for a double-double. Freshman Courtney Gosewisch chipped in nine digs. At the net, Arthurs put up eight blocks, while sophomore Tiffany Fisher added seven, including four solo efforts, and Drewry recorded six stuffs. Hart was credited with five blocks, including one solo effort, as Purdue outblocked Michigan 19.5 to 11. The Boilermakers scored the first two points of the deciding fifth set on a kill and a solo block by Arthurs. Michigan countered with six straight points and led 8-4 at the changeover. Purdue cut the margin to one at 9-8 after a Gurnell kill and a Drewry overpass putaway. The Wolverines scored five of the next six points to go up 14-9. With their backs against a wall, facing five match point attempts, the Boilermakers buckled down and thwarted all five efforts. Kills from Gurnell, Turner and Drewry, a Michigan hitting error and a stuff by Drewry and Arthurs knotted the score at 14-14. A kill gave the Wolverines another shot at the match, but an Arthurs kill evened the score again and a Michigan hitting error put Purdue in the driver's seat at 16-15. UM would score three in a row on an overpass kill, a block and a kill to escaped with the 18-16 win. Michigan took a 6-3 lead in Set 1, but Purdue used back-to-back blocks, a solo stuff by Hart and a combined effort by Hart and Drewry, to pull within one at 6-5. The Wolverines raised their advantage to six at 15-9, but again the Boilermakers came charging back, slicing the margin to one with a 5-0 run. Kills from Arthurs and Fisher as well as a pair of blocks aided the comeback, making it 15-14. Michigan closed out the set with a 10-3 run. A pair of aces capped a run of five straight for the Wolverines in the 25-17 win. Purdue put up 5.5 blocks in the set. The Boilermakers kicked off the second set with an ace by Ehlers and went on to lead 9-6 after kills by four different players. Turner, Arthurs, Gurnell and Hart all got in on the action. Purdue maintained its edge at 12-9, but the Wolverines scored six of the next eight to go up 15-14 and force a Boilermaker timeout. Purdue regained the edge at 18-17 after a kill by Arthurs and an ace by Bashen. The teams tied at 18, 19, 20 and 21 before an ace put Michigan on top 22-21. A service error, a kill by Drewry and a UM hitting miscue put the Boilermakers one point away from the set at 24-22. The Wolverines, however, snatched the 26-24 victory with four straight, including two blocks and two Purdue hitting errors. Purdue capitalized on UM errors to start the third set with a 3-1 lead, including a block and a kill by Fisher. Ties at 5, 11 and 12 followed, but the Boilermakers scored five of the next six to go up 17-13. Kills by Drewry, Arthurs and Hart helped Purdue to the advantage. Michigan would cut the margin to two several times, but could get no closer. A Wolverine error and a kill by Arthurs put Purdue on the hill at 24-21. A hitting error kept the set going, but a solo stuff by Hart clinched the 25-22 Boilermaker win to keep the match going. Arthurs and Drewry each tallied four kills in the set, which saw Purdue hold Michigan to a negative hitting effort (-.059). Michigan led 9-6 early in Set 4, but Purdue used an 8-3 run to turn the deficit into a 14-12 advantage. Drewry tallied two kills a block, while Turner, Arthurs and Fisher also chipped in during the rally. The Boilermakers scored three straight to stretch their lead to four at 19-15 and force the Wolverines to use their final timeout. After the break, Purdue pushed its advantage to five at 23-18 after a pair of Turner putdowns and an ace by Bashen. Michigan countered with three straight, but a kill by Turner, her fifth of the set gave Purdue its first shot at the set at 24-21. A UM kill thwarted the first effort, but a hitting error sent the match to a deciding fifth set care of a 25-22 Boilermaker victory. Purdue racked up five blocks in the stanza.

Gophers sweep Hawkeyes

Fri, 13 Nov 2009 21:23:00 +0000

The 13th-ranked Minnesota volleyball team (20-7, 11-4) defeated Iowa (12-16, 4-12) in three sets by scores of 25-13, 25-13, 28-26 at Carver-Hawkeye Arena on Friday, Nov. 13. With the Minnesota win and an Illinois loss to Penn State, the Golden Gophers moved to within one match of second place at 11-4. Minnesota was led by freshman Tabitha Love (Dauphin, Manitoba) who hit .500 (15-2-26) with 15 kills and two blocks. Junior middle blocker Lauren Gibbemeyer (St. Paul, Minn.) hit .364 (10-2-22) with 10 kills and three blocks. Gibbemeyer became the 21st player in school history to collect 1,000 career kills at 4-1 in the first set. She also became the sixth player in school history to have 1,000 career kills and over 400 blocks. Junior outside hitter Hailey Cowles (Eden Prairie, Minn.) also had eight kills, seven digs, a career-high four service aces and two blocks. Freshman Katherine Harms (Albertville, Minn.) also had a career-high eight kills. Senior setter Taylor Carico (Manhattan Beach, Calif.) collected 39 assists, four kills and eight digs, while senior libero Christine Tan (Safety Harbor, Fla.) had a match-high 16 digs and four assists. Megan Wilson (Lincoln, Neb.) had 10 digs, two assists and a service ace, while Jessica Granquist (Blaine, Minn.) had eight digs and an assist. Minnesota jumped out to a 6-1 lead in the first set after Carico finished a 5-0 run with a kill. The Golden Gophers expanded it to 10-3 on a kill by Love. After the score moved to 12-5, Minnesota scored five of the next seven points to take a 17-7 lead. Iowa scored two straight points to cut the lead to 17-9, but the Golden Gophers ripped off four straight points, and moved ahead 21-9 on back-to-back service aces by Cowles. Love eventually moved it to set point at 24-13 with a kill, and the Golden Gophers won the first set after a Hawkeye attack error. The Golden Gophers outhit Iowa .387 to .077, and had 16 kills to seven. Love led the way with five kills in the set. Minnesota jumped out to a 4-1 lead in the second set after a kill by Cowles. With the score at 12-8, the Golden Gophers went on a 5-0 run and expanded their lead to 17-8 on a kill by Gibbemeyer. Minnesota pushed it 21-10 after a service ace by Carico. That closed out an extended 9-2 run for the Golden Gophers. Harms delivered a kill to make it set point at 24-12, and closed out the set with a kill to give Minnesota a 25-13 victory in second set. The Golden Gophers outhit Iowa .389 to .053 in the second set, and had 17 kills to seven. Cowles, Love and Gibbemeyer each collected four kills in the set. Iowa jumped out to a six-point lead in third set at 14-8, and kept a five-point lead at 18-13. Minnesota responded with kills from Gibbemeyer and Love, and a service ace by Cowles to make it 18-16. Love and Carico followed with consecutive kills to tie the set at 18. The Hawkeyes stayed ahead at 19-18 and 20-19, before a service error and a Harms kill gave the Golden Gophers their first lead of the set at 21-20. Ariana Filho (Monument, Colo.) and Love built that lead to 23-20 with consecutive solo blocks. Love delivered a kill to make it match point at 24-22, however Iowa responded with back-to-back points to tie the set at 24. Filho delivered a kill by Iowa's Mallory Husz answered with a kill to tie it at 25. With the score tied at 26, Gibbemeyer delivered a kill and had a solo block to close out the match. Iowa was led by Husz who had 10 kills and three blocks, while setter Paige Stevens had 23 assists and 11 digs.