Michigan
8-5, 2-1Big Ten
Indiana
11-4, 1-2Big Ten
Lehman Reaches Block Record as U-M Rocks Indiana
10/4/2002 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
Site: Ann Arbor, Mich. (Cliff Keen Arena)
Result: Michigan 3, Indiana 1 (30-27, 30-26, 28-30, 30-26)
Records: U-M (8-5, 2-1 Big Ten), IU (11-4, 1-2 Big Ten)
Next U-M Match: Saturday, Oct. 5 -- vs. Ohio State (Cliff Keen Arena), 7 p.m.
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- Senior Katrina Lehman (Bloomfield Hills, Mich./Marian HS) recorded six blocks tonight (Friday, Oct. 4) to become the University of Michigan volleyball program's career block leader with 377. She reached the milestone in the fourth game of a 3-1 victory (30-27, 30-26, 28-30, 30-26) over Indiana University at Cliff Keen Arena. A season-high crowd of 1,137 fans witnessed the feat and helped the Wolverines to their eighth consecutive victory in the annual Rock the House event.
Jennifer Gandolph (Greenwood, Ind./Center Grove HS) led Michigan in kills for the eighth time this season with 18. She also added 10 digs for her eighth double-double. Nicole Poquette (Grand Haven, Mich./Grand Haven HS) chipped in with a season-high 13 kills and posted seven digs. Erin Moore (Tiffin, Ohio/Columbian HS), who had some heat on the ball tonight, tallied 14 kills. Chantel Reedus (Woodridge, Ill./Downers Grove South HS) was the fourth Wolverine with double-digit kills, contributing 11 of the team's 73 kills.
Michigan (8-5, 2-1 Big Ten) ran its offense almost perfectly in the three games it won against the Hoosiers. Sophomore setter Lisa Gamalski (Milwaukee, Wis./Catholic Memorial HS) received great passes and turned them into 55 assists. She also helped the Wolverines on defense with 10 digs and on offense with nine kills and zero errors in 13 attempts for a U-M season-high .692 hitting percentage.
Indiana (11-4, 1-2 Big Ten), which received votes in the latest USA Today/American Volleyball Coaches Association poll, matched up well against the Wolverines. In the first two games, the score was tied 13 times and there were nine lead changes. In each game, the Hoosiers started off well but allowed Michigan to catch up quickly. In the first game, the Wolverines took the lead for good at 18-13 following a service rotation by Poquette and back-to-back errors by the Hoosiers. IU closed the gap to two points at 26-24, but Michigan took the game 30-27. Game two was much the same, with the Wolverines winning 30-26.
After the intermission, Indiana jumped out to a 6-1 lead in the third game. The counter was slower this time, but the Wolverines did knot the score at 15-15. Michigan took the lead soon after, but the Hoosiers rallied and won the match 30-28 despite a late charge by U-M.
The fourth game was just as tight as the first three, but it was Michigan that took the early lead. The Wolverines extended their lead to 13-9 on a service rotation by Lindsay Dern (Orinda, Calif./Miramonte HS) and held on for a 30-26 victory in the game and a 3-1 victory in the match.
The Wolverines complete the weekend with a match against No. 16 Ohio State tomorrow night (Saturday, Oct. 5) in Cliff Keen Arena. The Buckeyes (6-6, 0-3 Big Ten) fell to Michigan State in five games (30-27, 23-30, 30-28, 26-30, 17-15) tonight in East Lansing, Mich.
NOTES
• Michigan volleyball has posted a record of 96-79 (.549) in 14 years at Cliff Keen Arena. The team needs just four more wins to reach the century mark, making the Saturday, Oct. 26, match against Purdue the earliest possible date for the accomplishment.
• With six blocks tonight, Katrina Lehman now has 377 career blocks. She passed Julia Sturm (375, 1987-90) for the U-M all-time record.
QUOTES
Michigan Head Coach Mark Rosen
On the match ... "I think Indiana is a very good team. That's the best team they've had since we've been at Michigan. It's a solid team, and I think our kids stepped up really well. They did a good job of doing the things we needed to do to be successful against them."
On the play of U-M's middle blockers ... "Our tempo was very good. We passed exceptional in the first two games, and it allowed us to create that tempo. I think (Lisa) Gamalski ran the offense as well as she has at any point in her career. She had a great night. The middles were very much unstoppable, and that set up everyone else."
On the blocking record by Katrina Lehman ... "I think it's huge. It's something that she hasn't focused on, but she knows it there and we know it's there. It's something that I think she is very deserving of. I think it's a great honor to have coached her during her career and have that happen. She deserves it. It's been a great thing for her. It was really neat to see her in the locker room. She was pretty excited about it, and she should be. It's a great honor."
On tomorrow's match with Ohio State ... "It should be a great match. They're a team that is trying to develop some consistency with a really changed lineup because of injuries, and that's no fun. Nobody wants to be in that situation. They are also very capable. They have Stacey Gordon, who I think is the best player in the conference. When you have a player who is that good, anything can happen. We have to make sure we do a great job."
U-M Senior Katrina Lehman
On the season-high crowd ... "The more people, the more pumped up we get. It's great to have people come out here. We hope to win for them, but the more packed it is, the more cheering there is and the more that gets us going."
On the blocking record ... "It really wasn't that important. I am just glad we beat Indiana. Now Jen Gandolph will stop coming to my room every night to tell me how many more I need. I'm excited about that."
