Michigan
16-15
Pacific
30-2
U-M Falls at Pacific in NCAA Second-Round Thriller
12/4/1999 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
Site:Â Stockton, Calif. (Alex G. Spanos Center)
Event:Â NCAA Tournament (Second Round)
Result:Â #5 Pacific 3, Michigan 2 (10-15, 16-14, 15-3, 12-15, 19-17)
Records:Â U-M (16-15), UOP (30-2)
Next U-M Match:Â Season completed
STOCKTON, Calif. -- The University of Michigan volleyball team pushed No. 5 Pacific to the limit but in the end fell in five games (15-10, 14-16, 3-15, 15-12, 17-19) on Saturday (Dec. 4) in the NCAA Tournament second round. In an exciting and intense match, the Tigers took two hours and 17 minutes to squeak past the Wolverines in front of their home crowd of 1,762. Despite the loss, the Wolverines set numerous team and individual records. Michigan finishes its season with a 16-15 record, while the Tigers (30-2) advance to the regional semifinals.
Michigan came out on fire, jumping out to a 7-2 lead in the first game. Pacific slowly crept back into the game, keeping it close and tying the game twice before the Wolverines scored the final five points. Two block solos by Katrina Lehman (Bloomfield Hills, Mich./Marion HS) fueled both of the Wolverines' runs. As a team, Michigan hit a phenomenal .404 (26-5-52) in game one. After three attempts at game point, Nicole Kacor (Chicago, Ill./Mother McAuley HS) put down her 10th kill of the game for the Michigan victory, 15-10.
Michigan carried its momentum into game two, leaping out to an 8-1 and then a 10-3 lead. The Wolverines controlled the game at the net with nine team blocks, forcing long rallies and throwing Pacific out of its game. Joanna Fielder (Costa Mesa, Calif./Newport Harbor HS) led the Wolverines great blocking effort. The Tigers chipped away at the Wolverine lead and tied the game at 14-14. Sarah Behnke (Baroda, Mich./Lakeshore HS), who finished with a school-record 34 kills, led the Wolverines with 21 kills and a .576 hitting percentage through the first two games. However, Pacific never relented, and despite five Michigan attempts at game point, the Tigers evened the match with a 16-14 game-two win.
Michigan ran out of gas just as the Tigers seemed to refuel. The Tigers jumped out to an 11-1 lead in game three. Pacific controlled the game from the first point and held Michigan to six kills and a -.111 (6-10-36) hitting percentage. Pacific finished off the Wolverines with a Jennica Smith kill to win 15-3.
It was Michigan's turn to play catch-up in the fourth game as the Wolverines trailed early 11-3. Despite the efforts of Pacific's Elsa Stegemann, who reached the 40-kill mark in the fourth game, the Wolverines managed to stay in the game and come from behind. The Tigers relaxed with their eight-point lead and Michigan took advantage. With consistent play, the Wolverines fought their way back with a 15-12 win. A triple block by Lehman, Alija Pittenger (Virginia Beach, Va./First Colonial HS) and Behnke forced an attack error by Stegemann.
In the deciding fifth game with rally scoring, neither team held more than a one-point lead until the end and the game was tied 12 times. Shannon Melka (Wheaton, Ill./St. Francis HS) spread the offense around nicely while racking up 82 assists for the match. Behnke put down her 34th kill of the night, setting the all-time Michigan single-match record for kills. Michigan had three chances to put the game away but could not capitalize. The game went back and forth numerous times before Elsa Stegemann put down her 46th kill of the night to end the Wolverines' season, 19-17.
MATCH BESTS
Kills: U-M 100 (Sarah Behnke 34); Pacific 108 (Elsa Stegemann 46)
Assists: U-M 92 (Shannon Melka 82); Pacific 105 (Kara Gormsen 71)
Digs: U-M 89 (Alija Pittenger 27); Pacific 102 (Jamie Hamm 30)
Service Aces: U-M 8 (Pittenger, Nicole Kacor 2); Pacific 10 (Three with 2)
Blocks: U-M 16.5 (Katrina Lehman 9); Pacific 13 (Tracy Chambers 9)
NOTES
• Sarah Behnke set a Michigan all-time individual record for kills in a match with 34, breaking the mark of 33 set by Karen Chase against Iowa on 11/27/98.
• Alija Pittenger set a career high with 27 digs, which is also the highest mark for a Wolverine this season. She also set a career high with seven blocks.
• Joanna Fielder set a career high with three block solos, while Shannon Melka set a career high in assists with 82. Katrina Lehman set career highs with three block solos and nine total blocks.
• The team set season highs in kills (100), attempts (258) and assists (92).
QUOTES
Michigan Head Coach Mark Rosen
On the game ... "What can I say, UOP played superb and we played phenomenal. The game was fun to watch, but not fun to be on the other side of it."
"It is definitely a sport of momentum. ... For a while, they (Pacific) couldn't do anything wrong and we couldn't do anything right."
On having so many chances to win the fifth game ... "The girls really left it on the floor. It won't haunt me because they put it out there. We went after it. There's no feeling sorry and no second guessing. If we had been passive it might haunt me, but we went after it."
On this year's team ... "Our team just keeps growing and getting better. Every time they've faced adversity, they've come back and showed character. They get better every day, and we cannot let ourselves stop here."
