Michigan
Minnesota
Miller Shines in Loss Against Top-Ranked Minnesota
9/25/2004 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
Site: Minneapolis, Minn. (Sports Pavilion)
Score: Michigan lost to #1 Minnesota 0-3 (26-30, 17-30, 27-30)
Records: U-M (10-2, 1-1 Big Ten), Minnesota (13-1, 2-0 Big Ten)
Next U-M Event: Tuesday, Sept. 28 -- vs. Notre Dame (Cliff Keen Arena), 7 p.m.
MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. -- Freshman Lyndsay Miller (Ida, Mich./Ida) had a match-high 10 kills and added five blocks, while senior Lisa Gamalski (Milwaukee, Wis./Catholic Memorial) recorded her fourth-straight double-double with 24 assists and 12 digs but the University of Michigan volleyball team fell 3-0 (26-30, 17-30, 27-30) to the No. 1-ranked Minnesota Gophers Saturday night (Sept. 25) at the Sports Pavilion. Michigan falls to 10-2 and 1-1 in the Big Ten, while Minnesota improves its record to 13-1 and 2-0 in conference with its 12th straight win.
Minnesota recorded 90 digs to Michigan's 70 as Gophers libero Paula Gentil set a school record with 39 digs in the three-game match. The Wolverines hit .062 to the Gophers' .173, despite committing three fewer attack errors. Michigan hit .075 in game one despite Miller's efforts, notching six kills off of seven swings, while in game two Michigan struggled to hit -.033, committing 10 errors to six kills.
U-M came out of the blocks with a 3-0 lead in game one after kills by sophomore Megan Bowman (St. John, Ind./Lake Central) and senior Jennifer Gandolph (Greenwood, Ind./Center Grove) and a block by Bowman and sophomore Erin Cobler (Dexter, Mich./Dexter), but Minnesota recovered with a 7-0 run to take charge, 7-3. Michigan clawed back into the game and closed within two points when Gandolph recorded a solo block on the right side, making it 14-12 Minnesota, but the Golden Gophers pulled away again, up 20-15. U-M closed within three on kills by Miller and Gandolph, but Minnesota increased its lead to five with a 24-19 lead and finished out the first game, 30-26.
Minnesota carried its momentum from game one with a 10-2 run to begin the second game before sophomore Danielle Pflum (Martinsville, Ind./Martinsville) sparked a 4-1 rally, making it 11-6 Minnesota. The Golden Gophers responded with an 8-4 run to lead 19-10 when Pflum notched her third kill on her third swing of the night, helping pull Michigan to within seven at 19-12. Minnesota cut the Wolverine rally short, embarking on an 11-5 run of their own to hand Michigan a 30-17 loss, its worst of the season.
The No. 1 Golden Gophers came out of the intermission on a 4-0 run, but Michigan fought back to cut the lead to three -- at 13-10, 16-13 on a kill by Pflum and 17-14 on a kill by Miller -- before tying it 18-18. After a timeout, the Gophers jumped out to a 4-0 run as Gentil broke Minnesota's record for digs, backstopping the Gopher defense and giving the home team a 23-18 lead. Michigan closed to within three at 20-23, 25-22 and 26-23 before back-to-back kills by Gandolph and Gamalski pulled Michigan to within two, 27-25. Minnesota pointed next but committed an error on the following series, making it 28-26. Gamalski blocked the next Gopher attack, pulling the Wolverines within one at 28-27, but Minnesota's defense failed to break, scoring the next two points to sweep the match.
The Wolverines return home for a weekday match against Notre Dame on Tuesday (Sept. 28) at 7 p.m. The match will be broadcast on Comcast Sports Local and shown on tape delay later in the week. Notre Dame was ranked No. 25 in the USA Today/CSTV preseason poll.
N O T E S
• Michigan will play its third televised match of the season on Tuesday (Sept. 28) against Notre Dame. The match is set for 7 p.m. at Cliff Keen Arena and will be broadcast on Comcast Sports Local. Michigan's win over No. 22 Tennessee was broadcast on Comcast Sports Local twice this week and the Wolverines' 3-0 sweep of Iowa will be shown on FOX Sports Chicago Sunday (Sept. 26) at 6 p.m.
• Jennifer Gandolph needs 38 kills to break the all-time record.
• Megan Bowman recorded the 200th block of her career against Minnesota.
• Erin Cobler recorded the 100th block of her career against Minnesota.
• Michigan is 1-1 vs. ranked opponents in 2004.
