Oct. 16, 2009
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Site: Ann Arbor, Mich. (Cliff Keen Arena)
Score: #1 Penn State 3, #11 Michigan 2
Records: U-M (16-4, 4-3 Big Ten), Penn State (19-0, 7-0 Big Ten)
Next U-M Event: Saturday, Oct. 17 -- vs. Ohio State (Cliff Keen Arena), 7 p.m.
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- The No. 11-ranked University of Michigan volleyball team took a 2-1 lead in its upset bid of top-ranked and defending national champion Penn State before the Nittany Lions won the final two sets for the 24-26, 25-8, 23-25, 25-21, 15-12 win on Friday night (Oct. 16) at Cliff Keen Arena. Sophomore Alex Hunt (Granger, Ind./South Bend St. Joseph) was stellar in the match, hitting at a .344 (16-for-32) clip, while sophomore Lexi Zimmerman (Barrington, Ill./Barrington) dished out 52 assists. As a reminder, U-M's game tonight will be shown on tape-delay on Sunday (Oct. 18) at 1 p.m. on ESPN2.
In the final set, Michigan fell down 6-2 only to bring it back to a 9-8 deficit thanks to a pair of kills from Hunt and sophomore Courtney Fletcher (Duluth, Ga./Northview). Penn State stretched it back to 14-11 before Hunt kept U-M alive with a termination, but Penn State's Megan Hodge, who tallied a game-high 25 kills, put the game away with a kill down the middle.
In set one, the Wolverines took the first three points and battled point for point to a 10-6 lead. Penn State responded to take a brief 13-12 advantage, but U-M answered to take a lead as late as 21-20. The game then turned to consecutive ties from 21-all to 24-all, with senior Megan Bower (Indianapolis, Ind./Cathedral) earning the play of the set, pounding down a kill to tie it up and allowing Michigan to win the final two points on a block and an ace by Fletcher to take it, 26-24. Hunt and senior Juliana Paz (Porto Alegre, Brazil/Americano [Iowa Western Community College]) led the offensive effort once again in the set-one win, posting five kills apiece.
Penn State jumped out to a 9-1 lead in set two, forcing U-M to call a pair of timeouts. Out of the second break, the Nittany Lions stretched the lead to 14-6 on their way to the 25-8 win. Hodge was the star of the second frame, tallying six kills on eight attempts as PSU held U-M to a -.080 attack percentage compared to its own .722 pace.
Following the intermission, the Wolverines bounced back from a deficit that went as far as 20-16. Multiple Penn State attack errors put Michigan up 23-22 and, after Penn State tied it 23-all, Bower and another attack error placed U-M within one set of the upset. The Wolverines improved tremendously offensively, hitting at a .323 pace, led by Bower's 4-for-10 performance, and holding Penn State to a .081 clip.
In the fourth set, Michigan led briefly at 5-4 thanks to two kills from Paz. U-M then fell down 10-6, only to battle back to 11-all and a one-point deficit at 17-16. Unfortunately, the Nittany Lions held off the Wolverines' charge, holding a two-point lead or larger for the remainder. Paz again had the hot hand, posting six kills, while four other Wolverines each contributed a pair.
Michigan returns to its home floor tomorrow night (Saturday, Oct. 17) for a 7 p.m. Big Ten match against the Ohio State Buckeyes.
N O T E S
• Defending national champion and top-ranked Penn State lost two sets in a match for the first time since its 2008 NCAA national semifinal match versus Nebraska and for the first time in the regular season since Sept. 15, 2007, against Stanford.
• Michigan's two set victories over the Nittany Lions marked the first set wins over PSU since a 32-30 third-set victory on Nov. 24, 2007, in Keen Arena.
• Lexi Zimmerman eclipsed the 50-assist plateau for the 24th time in her career with a 52-assist effort.
• Julilana Paz led the Wolverines in kills with 17, marking the 16th time this year she has paced the club in that category.
• Friday night's sellout crowd of 1,850 is the first sellout of the season for the Wolverines at home and the first since the 2008 regular-season finale, also against Penn State.
Q U O T E S
Michigan Head Coach Mark Rosen
Overall thoughts on the match ... "I am really proud of how we played. I think we played with confidence and with intent. They did everything we asked them to do. We struggled mightily in game two, but I am more proud of how we responded in that third set than anything else. In the end, I think Penn State was just more athletic. That is why they are number one."
On the message to the team after set two ... "I told them that we got away from what we were doing. We didn't pass very well and we need that as a foundation. I am so proud of how they came back in set three though. The serve and pass game came back, which was huge."
On the momentum swing in set five ... "We started out behind, which is tough. We were creeping back and they just made athletic plays. I don't think we did anything wrong. They were just freakishly athletic, especially in set five and we couldn't compete with that."
On the atmosphere in Keen Arena ... "I have been here 11 years and this was the best atmosphere I have ever seen here. I think the people got their money's worth tonight; it was awesome."
On going toe-to-toe with the No. 1 team ... "We talked about before the match that this is the type of match where you will get punched in the nose and the question is are you going to run into a corner, or come out swinging? I thought we punched back all night and I am proud of that."
U-M Junior Lexi Zimmerman
On taking Penn State to five sets ... "I think serving and passing was key on our side of the court. They just have phenomenal athletes on their side. We gave them all they could handle, but at the end of the day they were better tonight. I am really proud of the way we played though."
On the what the team was thinking after the 25-8 loss in set two ..."I think we just came out of the locker room realizing what we needed to do and they were playing really steady ball and we dropped off in set two. We didn't playing Michigan volleyball in that second set. We needed to play the way we did in game one and we didn't do that."
On what this five-set loss does for the team psyche the rest of the season ... "We know how we can play now. Recreating that is going to be a whole lot of fun starting tomorrow night."
U-M Senior Veronica Rood
On what she takes from the five-set loss ... "We played well as a team, I think a lot of people gained confidence back in themselves and in the team. I feel like we built a lot of trust in that match. Though we didn't get the win, I believe that is a huge step in the right direction for us."
On responding strong in set three ... "We all know in set two that our passing wasn't there and we weren't playing well. We went into the locker room and talked about what we did wrong and we basically decided that we weren't going to play like that again. We came out of the locker room a more focused, crisper team."
On what this match says to the national audience ... "I think it shows that on any given night anybody can beat any team. I think it also shows that you can play very well and still not come away with a victory. I hope is shows people that Michigan volleyball will bring it each night."
U-M Senior Megan Bower
On the loss ... "It is a bittersweet feeling but I am very proud of the way we played and how we handled the spotlight."
On the balanced offensive attack ... "I think we got back to what we are about which is a balanced offense and playing hard on defense."
On the factor the sellout crowd played ... "It was awesome. Best I have had at Michigan yet. It was an extreme benefit to us and I hope that they keep coming back for all our matches to give us that boost."
On the locker room message after the match ... "It was about pride and how we represented Michigan extremely well and how we need to come out with the same intensity and focus against Ohio State tomorrow night."
