Michigan
1-1
Florida Atlantic
0-2
Wolverines Rout Florida Atlantic for First Victory of 2003
8/29/2003 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
Site: Tallahassee, Fla. (Tully Gymnasium)
Score: Michigan 3, Florida Atlantic 1 (30-26, 28-30, 30-12, 30-18)
Records: U-M (1-1), FAU (0-2)
Next U-M Event: Saturday, Aug. 30 -- at Florida State at Florida State Invitational (Tallahassee, Fla.), 6 p.m.
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. -- The University of Michigan volleyball team picked up its first win of the 2003 campaign in its second match, downing Florida Atlantic by a 3-1 margin (30-26, 28-30, 30-12, 30-18) at the Florida State Invitational. Senior captain Erin Moore (Tiffin, Ohio/Columbian HS) led the Wolverines with a match-best 18 kills, while junior Jennifer Gandolph (Greenwood, Ind./Center Grove HS) notched a double-double with 15 kills and a team-high 14 digs.
The first two games were tightly contested, with the Wolverines winning by four points in Game 1 before the Owls took the second stanza by a two-point margin. Each team hit fairly similarly in terms of percentage, hitting no lower than .351 in the first two games. Tied at one game each, Michigan then took over the match, outscoring FAU by a 60-30 margin over the final two games while holding the Owls to a -.115 attack percentage. Over the final two games, the Wolverines were close to perfect, committing only three errors while hitting .460.
For the match, Michigan posted a .407 attack percentage, its highest since hitting .512 against Eastern Michigan on Sept. 8, 2001. Florida Atlantic was held to a mark of .160.
Gandolph, who led the team with 16 double-doubles in 2002, also hit .464 from the floor, recording only two errors in her 28 attempts. Senior Chantel Reedus (Woodridge, Ill./Downers Grove South HS), who missed most of the 2002 campaign due to injury, also hit in double figures to aid the Wolverines, tallying 13 kills.
Redshirt freshman Erin Cobler (Dexter, Mich./Dexter HS) paced the Wolverines' defensive efforts, posting eight total blocks, including two solos, as U-M out-blocked the Owls by a 12.5-1 margin. Freshman Megan Bowman (St. John, Ind./Lake Central HS) was also strong at the net in her second collegiate appearance, recording five block assists, and junior Sarah Allen (Mechanicsburg, Pa./Mechanicsburg HS) added 10 digs off the bench.
Senior Nicole Poquette (Grand Haven, Mich./Grand Haven HS), who started against No. 15 Kansas State earlier in the day, sat out the match with an injury and will miss the rest of the weekend.
Michigan concludes play in the Florida State Invitational tomorrow (Saturday, Aug. 30) with a 6 p.m. match against Florida State, the host of the tournament.
QUOTES
Michigan Head Coach Mark Rosen
On the match ... "I'm really pleased. We got better in some areas, we were a lot more consistent and we served better. We controlled the match much better and did a nice job. Anytime we hit .400, I can't find much to complain about. I thought Lisa Gamalski did a nice job running the floor, and we just played more as a team. We still have some steps to take, but I see some serious potential with this team. If we keep getting better like we did tonight, in a few weeks or a month we're going to be good. Right now we have some work to do."
