Michigan
1-0
Western Kentucky
0-1
Wolverines Claw Lady Toppers in Season-Opening Win
8/25/2006 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
Site: Toledo, Ohio (Savage Hall)
Event: Rocket Classic
Score: Michigan def. Western Kentucky 3-0 (30-21, 30-27, 30-23)
Records: U-M (1-0), WKU (0-1)
Next U-M Event: Friday, Aug. 25 -- vs. Binghamton at Rocket Classic (Toledo, Ohio), 5 p.m.
TOLEDO, Ohio -- The University of Michigan volleyball team earned an impressive 3-0 win over Western Kentucky in the season opener, beating the Lady Toppers 30-21, 30-27, 30-23 Friday morning (Aug. 25) in the first match of the Rocket Classic at Savage Hall.
Michigan overpowered the six-time defending Sun Belt champions from the start, confusing the Lady Topper defense with attacks from all sides while setting up formidable blocks across the line and forcing WKU out of system. Michigan outclassed Western Kentucky throughout the match, holding the Lady Toppers to a .019 hitting percentage for the match, forcing 28 WKU attack errors and recording eight blocks.
Junior tri-captain Katie Bruzdzinski (Naperville, Ill./Naperville North) led the offensive charge with 15 kills on 31 swings, while junior tri-captain Lyndsay Miller (Ida, Mich./Ida) had 10 kills in her first start as an outside hitter. New setter junior Stesha Selsky (Manhattan Beach, Calif./Marymount) led the team with 36 assists and 13 digs, becoming just the seventh Wolverine in U-M volleyball history to reach the 1,000 dig mark in her career.
Fifth-year senior Erin Penn (Dexter, Mich./Dexter) and sophomore Beth Karpiak (La Grange, Ill./Lyons Township) chipped in with eight and six kills, respectively, and anchored the right side defense with six blocks combined. Karpiak set a career high in kills and tied her career high with three blocks.
Michigan's serving was also a factor in the U-M win with nine service aces, led by a career-best four from Selsky. Bruzdzinski had a pair of aces, while Penn, sophomore Kerry Hance (Los Angeles, Calif./Marymount) and sophomore Liz Raschke (Portage, Mich./Portage Central) recorded one apiece. Raschke's ace was the first of her collegiate career.
Western Kentucky was forced into 10 attack errors and four service errors in game one, while Michigan picked apart the WKU defense with a variety of attacks on the left, up the middle and on the right side. Selsky took to her role as the team's new setter right off the bat, leading the Wolverine offense to a .355 hitting percentage in the first frame, while the U-M blockers stuffed the WKU offense, holding it to a .000 hitting percentage.
Bruzdzinski was her best in a close game two, tallying eight kills to help U-M hang on to a 30-27 victory. Hance also stepped up her presence on the floor as the team's new libero with six digs in the frame.
Western Kentucky took its first lead of the match in game three, ahead 9-7, but Michigan rallied back on the strength of its defense and three service aces from Selsky to close out the match with a 30-23 win.
Michigan faces Binghamton in Friday's (Aug. 25) nightcap at 5 p.m.
