Michigan
7-1
Virginia
4-5
Wolverines Breeze Past Virginia for Fifth Straight Win
9/16/2000 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
Site:Â Fayetteville, Ark. (Barnhill Arena)
Event:Â Arkansas Bank of Fayetteville Invitational
Result:Â #23 Michigan def. Virginia 3-0 (15-1, 15-4, 15-6)
Records:Â U-M (7-1), Virginia (4-5)
Next U-M Match:Â Saturday, Sept. 16 -- at Arkansas in Arkansas Invitational (Fayetteville, Ark.), 7:30 p.m. CDT
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. -- Less than 24 hours after coming back to win a grueling, five-game match over Houston, the 23rd-ranked Michigan volleyball team had a much easier time in disposing of Virginia 3-0 (15-1, 15-4, 15-6) in its second match at the Arkansas Bank of Fayetteville Invitational on Saturday (Sept. 16) at Barnhill Arena.
The Wolverines hit a season-best .394 (53-12-104), while senior outside hitter Sarah Behnke (Baroda, Mich./Lakeshore HS) played her second straight strong match after returning from injury. Behnke hit .318 (12-5-22), while collecting a match-best 14 digs along with a pair of blocks to help Michigan push its season record to 7-1.
Michigan dominated this match from the outset, evidenced by its game-one hitting percentage of .682 (15-0-22). Michigan was led by Katrina Lehman's (West Bloomfield, Mich./Marian HS) four kills, including the final two points of the game, in the opening game as the Wolverines rattled off the first seven points of the match. Leading 11-1, junior setter Shannon Melka (Wheaton, Ill./St. Francis HS) served out the final four points of the game for a 15-1 Michigan win.
In a virtual carbon copy of game one, the Wolverines stormed out to an 8-0 lead in game two. Michigan's attacking cooled off a bit in game two, but junior outside hitter Nicole Kacor (Chicago, Ill./Mother McAuley HS) remained hot and notched five kills in the second game en route to a match hitting percentage of .688 (13-2-16). The closest Virginia came in game two was 14-4, before one of Kacor's five kills in the game gave Michigan a 15-4 game-two win and a 2-0 match lead heading into intermission.
The Wolverines struggled to open up game three and Virginia led 4-3, before a 6-0 Michigan run paced by senior Alija Pittenger (Virginia Beach, Va./First Colonial HS) put the Maize and Blue in control. Pittenger notched a game-high six kills in game three, while hitting at a clip of .474 (11-2-19) for the match. Virginia closed the gap to just three (9-6), however, Behnke caught fire from the service line and served out the final six points in the match to give Michigan a 15-6 game-three win and a match sweep.
Michigan closes out play at the Bank of Fayetteville Invitational with a 7:30 p.m. CDT match Saturday night against host Arkansas.
MATCH BESTS
Kills: U-M 53 (Nicole Kacor 13); Virginia 33 (Deanna Zwarich, Page Davis 10)
Assists: U-M 52 (Shannon Melka 41); Virginia 32 (Abby Whittenburgh 31)
Service Aces: U-M 7 (Katrina Lehman 3); Virginia 2 (Cathy Arnette, Davis 1)
Digs: U-M 54 (Sarah Behnke 14) Virginia 34 (Whittenburgh, Davis 7)
Blocks: U-M 8 (Lehman 6); Virginia 4 (Zwarich 4)
NOTES
• Michigan's 52 team assists in the win over Virginia is the most by the Wolverines in a three-game match this season. The previous high was 51, which they registered in the win over South Carolina (Sept. 9).
• Alija Pittenger nearly recorded the first triple-double of her career with 11 kills, 13 digs and eight assists.
• Michigan has now won 10 straight matches played on a neutral site, dating back to Sept. 19, 1998.
QUOTES
Michigan Head Coach Mark Rosen
On winning a fifth straight match ... "It was nice to see us play very well and efficiently today, especially since we were coming off a five-game marathon in less than 24 hours. We attacked very well today, as the numbers indicate, and Shannon Melka is really clicking with our outside hitters right now."
On the play of Nicole Kacor ... "Nicole made a couple of adjustments to her swing over the summer and the hard work is showing off right now. She is really attacking with great efficiency and that is important because she gives Shannon [Melka] another option to work with."
