Michigan
4-0
Syracuse
2-3
Michigan Spikes Syracuse, Improves Record to 4-0
9/10/1999 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
Site:Â Ann Arbor, Mich. (Cliff Keen Arena)
Result:Â #25 Michigan 3, Syracuse 0 (15-3, 15-8, 15-12)
Records:Â U-M (4-0), Syracuse (2-3)
Next U-M Match: Friday, Sept. 11 -- vs. Pepperdine at All Sport® Challenge (Cliff Keen Arena), 7:30 p.m.
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- The University of Michigan volleyball team continued its winning ways as the 25th-ranked Wolverines plowed through Syracuse in a three-game sweep (15-3, 15-8, 15-12) of the Orangewomen to begin their run for the All Sport Volleyball Challenge title. The Wolverines were led by Annie Maxwell (Santa Barbara, Calif./Santa Barbara HS), who hit .733 (11-0-15) with a career- and match-high 11 kills in the win.
The Wolverines took the court at Cliff Keen Arena carrying their first ever top 25 national ranking. Michigan came out with vengeance and breezed through the first game of the match. The story of game one was Michigan's phenomenal hitting percentage and balanced attack. The Wolverines hit .548 (19-2-31) in the first game compared to Syracuse's .125 (10-6-32). Joanna Fielder (Costa Mesa, Calif./Newport Harbor HS) helped lead the team in the first game as she hit .429 (3-0-7) with three kills and a game-high seven attempts.
Although Michigan was out-blocked for the first time in four matches this season, the Wolverines use a strong offensive attack to key its success against Syracuse. Game two of the match saw a very similar trend as game one, as the Wolverines hit .382 (19-6-34) and out-killed Syracuse by a margin of 19-8 in winning the game 15-8 and taking a 2-0 lead.
The Wolverines came out in the third game with their eyes on a three-game sweep and opened on an 8-1 tear, forcing a Syracuse timeout. It looked as if Michigan was on its way to another easy win, but the Wolverines had to stage off a late third-game comeback from the Orangewomen in order to win the third game 15-12.
Michigan continues to defend its national ranking and undefeated record at the All Sport Volleyball Challenge against No. 11 Pepperdine at 7:30 p.m. Friday (Sept. 10) in Cliff Keen Arena.
MATCH BESTS
Kills: U-M 55 (Annie Maxwell 11); Syracuse 33 (Drisana Carey 10)
Assists: U-M 113 (Nicole Kacor 26); Syracuse 104 (Dana Fiume 25)
Service Aces: U-M 5 (Five tied with 1); Syracuse 5 (Julianna Stokes 2)
Digs: U-M 48 (Kacor 13); Syracuse 33 (Rachel Watson 7)
Blocks: U-M 5 (Four tied with 2); Syracuse 6 (Fiume, Julie Nicholson 4)
NOTES
• Nicole Kacor (Chicago, Ill./Mother McAuley HS) recorded her second straight double-double, posting 11 kills and a match-high 13 digs.
• Annie Maxwell recorded a career high with 11 kills and tied a career high with seven digs.
• Michigan was out-blocked 6-5, marking the first time that the Wolverines have been out-blocked during the 1999 season.
• Head coach Mark Rosen's 4-0 debut ranks as the third best in school history behind Barbara Canning, who won her first six matches in 1984, and Greg Giovanazzi, Rosen's predecessor, who led U-M to victory in his first five contests in 1992.
QUOTES
Michigan Head Coach Mark Rosen
On winning the match ... "I thought that we played really well in games one and two. In game three we made some changes in the lineup and, although the people that we brought in played well, it seemed to upset our chemistry a little bit. Yet we still hung on to win game three and win the match."
On the middle blocker position ... "Obviously we knew (Joanna) Fielder was going to be our number one option. However, Annie Maxwell and Katrina Lehman are playing great at the middle blocker position opposite of Fielder. Going into the season that position in the lineup was one of concern for me but the way that those two are playing I am becoming very confident with it."
