Michigan
12-13, 8-10Big Ten
Ohio State
23-3, 15-3Big Ten
Michigan Falls to Ninth-Ranked Buckeyes in Four Games
11/17/2001 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
Site:Â Columbus, Ohio (St. John Arena)
Result:Â #9 Ohio State 3, Michigan 1 (30-13, 30-25, 26-30, 30-19)
Records:Â U-M (12-13, 8-10 Big Ten), OSU (23-3, 15-3 Big Ten)
Next U-M Match:Â Friday, Nov. 23 -- vs. Indiana (Cliff Keen Arena), 7 p.m.
COLUMBUS, Ohio -- The University of Michigan volleyball team dropped its final regular-season road match 3-1 (30-13, 30-25, 36-30, 30-19) to the ninth-ranked Ohio State Buckeyes tonight (Saturday, Nov. 17) in front of 2,018 fans at St. John Arena. The Wolverines were led by Ohio natives Carrie Ritchie (Mansfield, Ohio/Madison Comprehensive HS), who recorded 10 kills, five digs and three blocks, and Erin Moore (Tiffin, Ohio/Columbian HS), who had nine kills, six digs and five blocks for the Wolverines.
Michigan (12-13, 8-10 Big Ten) fell behind in the match after losing game one 30-13 and game two 30-25. The Wolverines' offense struggled in the first game, hitting just .034 (6-5-29), while the Buckeyes could do no wrong, recording 21 kills and a hitting percentage of .613 (21-2-31) in the opening game. Game two was much of the same, with U-M hitting .179 (13-6-39) and Ohio State hitting .277 (19-6-47).
The Wolverines did rally in the third game to capture a 30-26 win over the Buckeyes. Michigan limited its errors to just three and forced OSU into a match-high eight in the game. The win started things in the right direction, but it wasn't enough. Ohio State came back in game four and defeated Michigan 30-19 to win the match 3-1.
Ohio State (23-3, 15-3 Big Ten) was able to keep Jennifer Gandolph (Greenwood, Ind./Center Grove HS), seven kills, and Nicole Poquette (Grand Haven, Mich./Grand Haven HS), six kills, from putting up big numbers despite receiving nearly 30 sets each. The Buckeyes' Stacey Gordon and Anne Botica recorded 29 and 24 kills, respectively, in the match. Gordon's total is the most kills Michigan has allowed an opposing player in any match this season.
Defensively, Michigan recorded just 44 digs, the second-lowest total in nine four-game matches this season. The Buckeyes recorded 60 digs, nearly half of U-M's 133 attacks in the match.
Michigan closes out the regular season at home next weekend with matches against Indiana (Friday, Nov. 23) and No. 21 Illinois (Saturday, Nov. 24). Both matches are scheduled to start at 7 p.m. at Cliff Keen Arena.
NOTES
• Carrie Ritchie recorded double-digit kills for the second time in her career. The first was last night's match (Nov. 16) at No. 14 Penn State.
• Ritchie led the team in kills against the Buckeyes, the first time in her career she has done so.
• Shannon Melka, with six kills, tied her career high for the second consecutive match and the third time in four outings. It is the 11th time in her career and fifth time this season that she has posted six kills in a match.
• Michigan remains winless against Ohio State in Columbus, Ohio, with a record of 0-21.
• Fans attending the match against Indiana on Friday (Nov. 23) can enter to win two tickets to the Britney Spears concert on Monday, Nov. 26, at The Palace of Auburn Hills. The ticket giveaway is courtesy of Pepsi.
• Tonight's match against No. 9 Ohio State will be shown tape-delayed at 3 p.m. Sunday (Nov. 18) on the Ohio News Network.
