Michigan
14-3, 4-2
Illinois
11-3, 3-2
Michigan Unable to Pull Off Upset at 24th-Ranked Illinois
10/8/2004 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. -- Freshman Katie Bruzdzinski (Naperville, Ill./Naperville North) had 20 kills to lead four Wolverines with double-digit kills, but the University of Michigan volleyball team fell to No. 24 Illinois, 3-2 (30-28, 22-30, 16-30, 30-26, 12-15), Friday night (Oct. 8) at Huff Hall. Freshman Lyndsay Miller (Ida, Mich./Ida) had 15 kills, while senior Jennifer Gandolph (Greenwood, Ind./Center Grove) recorded 11 kills and sophomore Erin Cobler (Dexter, Mich./Dexter) had 10.
Michigan falls to 14-3 and 4-2 in the Big Ten, while Illinois improves to 11-3 and 3-2 in the conference.
Michigan led by two early in the fifth game, up 3-1, but Illinois recovered to force seven ties before finally scoring twice in a row to make it 12-10. Miller recorded a kill to make it 12-11 Illini, but Illinois closed out the match on a 3-1 run to win 15-12.
Illinois jumped to a 1-0 lead in game four, but Michigan tied it and then held the advantage until the Illini rebounded to pull ahead, 19-18. Michigan, led by 10 kills from Bruzdzinski, fought to regain the lead, pulling ahead 26-24 and scoring four of the last six points to force game five with a 30-26 win.
The Wolverines came out of the gates early in game one, building a six point, 22-16 lead, but allowing the Illini to build an 8-2 run, tying the game 24-24. Michigan pulled ahead, and Illinois tied it, 25-25, but the Wolverines scored the next four points, leading 29-24, before finally closing out it out, 30-28.
Michigan will hit the road again next weekend with a swing to nationally ranked Penn State and Ohio State on Friday and Saturday (Oct. 15-16), respectively.
Contact: Richard Retyi (734) 763-4423
