Michigan
13-8, 7-4Big Ten
Michigan State
14-7, 6-5Big Ten
Michigan Wins at Michigan State to Nab State Pride Flag
10/30/2002 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
Site: East Lansing, Mich. (Jenison Field House)
Result: Michigan 3, #25 Michigan State 1 (30-24, 30-27, 24-30, 30-18)
Records: U-M (13-8, 7-4 Big Ten), MSU (14-7, 6-5 Big Ten)
Next U-M Match: Saturday, Nov. 2 -- vs. Penn State (Cliff Keen Arena), 7 p.m.
EAST LANSING, Mich. -- The University of Michigan volleyball team had the State Pride Series wrapped up after game one, but the team had its sights set on a different goal: winning tonight's (Wednesday, Oct. 30) match against Michigan State at Jenison Field House. The Wolverines, who had not won in East Lansing, Mich., since 1993, accomplished the goal and moved into third place in the Big Ten Conference standings with a 3-1 (30-24, 30-27, 24-30, 30-18) victory behind the strength of a combined 45 kills from Jennifer Gandolph (Greenwood, Ind./Center Grove HS), Erin Moore (Tiffin, Ohio/Columbian HS) and Chantel Reedus (Woodridge, Ill./Downers Grove South HS).
Gandolph led all attackers with 17 kills, Reedus added 16 and Moore posted 12 kills. The trio combined to hit .297 (45-15-101) in the four-game match. Sophomore setter Lisa Gamalski (Milwaukee, Wis./Catholic Memorial HS) recorded a match-high 56 assists and team-high 14 digs, while Katrina Lehman (Bloomfield, Hills, Mich./Marian HS) led all players with eight blocks.
Michigan's victory handed the Spartans their first home loss of the season, while the series sweep allowed Michigan to capture the State Pride Series outright. The last time the Wolverines had won the intrastate battle was 1999, and its last sweep of the State Pride Series was 1992, the third year of the annual challenge.
Michigan (13-8, 7-4 Big Ten) opened the match with a block by Lehman and Gandolph and a 3-0 lead after a service ace by Gamalski. The Wolverines worked with the lead and eventually drew it out to seven points at 16-9 following a kill by Gandolph. However, a Michigan State service ace and a bad set by Gamalski allowed the Spartans to get back into the game. MSU chipped away and finally tied the game at 19-19 after Michigan committed two consecutive attack errors. The Spartans twice took one-point leads, but Gamalski drilled a service ace to give Michigan the lead at 23-22. Lehman forced game point on a service ace before Reedus earned her fourth kill of the game to give Michigan a 30-24 win.
The Spartans (14-7, 6-5 Big Ten) took the lead early in game two, extending the gap to four points at 9-5. The Wolverines fought back, however. Michigan drew within two on a block by Lehman and Gandolph and then to one point when Lehman teamed up with Gamalski for a block. MSU let the Wolverines tied the game at 9-9 with an attack error. For the next 15 serves, neither team took more than a one-point lead and the game was tied seven times. Michigan managed to establish a five-point at 21-16 lead after back-to-back service aces by Moore and a block by Lehman and Gandolph.
The Wolverines kept the lead through a small bit of controversy as both benches received yellow cards for arguing a call that would have cut the Wolverines' margin to two points. After a bit of discussion, the initial call was reversed and Michigan was given the point for a four-point lead at 22-18. The Spartans came back fired up and scored five of the next six points to knot the game at 23-23. The Wolverines went back to the net and posted three blocks to force game point at 29-25. The Spartans scored twice before Gandolph closed out things with a smash down the middle to give U-M a 30-27 victory and a two-games-to-none lead in the match.
Adjustments during the intermission allowed Michigan State to take control of game three after the teams were tied at 4-4. The Spartans posted four consecutive points for an 8-4 lead. Michigan stopped the run and got back into the game after MSU suffered back-to-back attack errors. Michigan tied the game at 13-13 on another Spartan attack error, but MSU regained the lead on the next serve. The Wolverines were not able to get defend shots down the line and could not get back into the game on the scoreboard. MSU took its biggest lead of the game at 26-20 and then rode out the margin to a 30-24 victory to force a fourth game.
After not recording a kill in game three, Gandolph put the Wolverines on the scoreboard first in game four with a cross-court attack. The Spartans scored for the first of three ties until Gamalski dropped a shot over the net to give U-M a 4-3 lead. Michigan extended the lead to four points at 10-6 after a diving dig by Gamalski set up a back-row attack by Moore. Reedus smashed a ball down the middle and then softly tipped a set over the Spartan blockers to give Michigan a six-point lead at 15-9. A high-percentage slide by Moore gave Michigan a 16-9 lead. MSU stopped the run, but the Wolverines got the momentum back again and took their lead to 11 at 22-11.
From there, Michigan turned its play up a notch and extended the margin to 14 points at 26-12. The Spartans stopped the run once again, but the gap was too much. Michigan finished out the game 30-18 for a 3-1 victory in the match.
Michigan finishes the week at home with a match against No. 11 Penn State at 7 p.m. Saturday (Nov. 2) in Cliff Keen Arena. Fans presenting a ticket stub from Saturday afternoon's Michigan-Michigan State football game receive free admission to the volleyball match.
QUOTES
Michigan Head Coach Mark Rosen
On the match ... "I really thought our players handled the mental challenge of playing in a rivalry like this. We knew Michigan State kind of had its back against the wall and would come out fighting. I thought our kids handled it really well. They were very consistent and very steady. Every time [Michigan State] kind of made a push, our players were able to stay calm and get through it, and I thought that was awesome."
On the play of Jennifer Gandolph ... "I thought she did a great job of stepping up. This was a match she was really excited about and was nervous about too. Sometimes you have to control that excitement, and I thought she a marvelous job tonight playing within herself. She didn't try and go over the top. When she did that her game came through, and when she is playing well she is as good as anyone."
On the team's confidence ... "You want your team to get more confident as the season goes on, and I thought they did a great job with that."
On winning the State Pride Series ... "The last two years we have lost it on a tiebreaker, and this year we wanted to win it outright. We came in tonight and said that we wanted to win it outright. Our goal wasn't to just win a flag tonight, it was to win a match. If we won the match, the flag would take care of itself. I thought the players did a really good job of staying focused on the big goal. The flag doesn't get us any points in the Big Ten or move us up in the standings, so we needed to come out and take care of the match tonight."
NOTES
• Associate head coach Leisa Rosen missed tonight's match after having surgery earlier in the day to fix the finger she broke last week at practice.
• Only two of Michigan's 15 players on the roster -- Katrina Lehman and Nicole Poquette -- were on the squad the last time Michigan won the State Pride Series (1999).
• Michigan's last win in East Lansing, Mich., was a 3-2 (15-6, 6-15, 10-15, 15-9, 15-11) decision on Nov. 24, 1993.
