Michigan
San Diego
Michigan Sweeps No. 20 San Diego at UC Irvine Classic
9/1/2006 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
IRVINE, Calif. -- Junior Lyndsay Miller (Ida, Mich./Ida) starred in game one and junior Katie Bruzdzinski (Naperville, Ill./Naperville North) took control of game two as the University of Michigan volleyball team knocked off its first ranked opponent of the 2006 season with a decisive 3-0 (30-25, 30-25, 30-21) win over No. 20 San Diego, Friday (Sept. 1) at Crawford Court. The match was the first of the UC Irvine Nike Invitational, which also includes the host UCI Anteaters and the Iowa State Cyclones.
Miller took command from the start, hammering seven of her 15 kills through the first 16 points of the match to dominate the Wolverines' left side and help U-M win game one. Bruzdzinski took the baton in game two, notching seven of her match-high 18 kills to help propel Michigan to a 2-0 lead heading into intermission. Bruzdzinski pounced on the Toreros in the final frame, hammering nine kills to send San Diego packing.
Junior Stesha Selsky (Manhattan Beach, Calif./Marymount) was a whirling dervish on defense once again, leading all players with 16 digs while also tallying 45 assists and setting Michigan to a .323 hitting percentage. Selsky added a pair of aces in her first collegiate match in her home state.
Fifth-year senior Erin Penn (Dexter, Mich./Dexter) tallied 12 kills while hitting a season-best .524 with 21 attempts and one attack error. Super sophomore server Liz Raschke (Portage, Mich./Portage Central) set a career high with three aces, serving for a match-high 21 points and playing a pivotal role in game two.
Senior Megan Bowman (St. John, Ind./Lake Central) dominated the middle, recording eight blocks -- her most since Dec. 4, 2004, at Texas in the NCAA Tournament -- while adding five kills.
Michigan battled through 17 ties and eight lead changes in game one to win 30-25 thanks to seven kills from Miller in the frame and a strong finish. The teams battled to 21-21 when a 5-1 U-M run burned both Torero timeouts and gave the Wolverines a firm grasp of the game. Dogged San Diego rallied to pull itself within one, trailing 26-25, before the Wolverines railed off four straight points for the win.
Michigan wrested control of game two on the sweet serving of Raschke, who put the Wolverines up 23-20 on back-to-back aces. The Toreros fought to within one, 23-22, but a kill by Bruzdzinski and by a pair of kills and a block by Bowman gave Michigan a 27-23 advantage. Penn finished things off with a pair of kills and San Diego hit one into the antenna for an error to end game two.
Michigan ended San Diego's comeback hopes early in game three, taking a 12-5 lead and rolling to a 30-21 victory.
U-M competes in day two of the UC Irvine Nike Invitational on Saturday (Sept. 2), taking on Iowa State at 11 a.m. PDT before facing the home Anteaters at 7 p.m. PDT.
N O T E S
Senior Megan Bowman moved into third place on U-Ms all-time blocks list, recording the 377th block of her collegiate career. Bowman passes Julia Sturm (1987-90) and finds herself 55 blocks behind second place held by Erin Moore (2000-03).
Junior Stesha Selsky moved into 4th place on U-Ms all-time digs list, tallying the 1,076th dig of her collegiate career. Selsky is four digs behind third place held by Linnea Mendoza (1994-97).
Senior Megan Bowmans eight blocks mark her best output since December 4, 2004 when she recorded 11 rejections against Texas in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
Junior Katie Bruzdzinski equaled her season high with 18 kills against San Diego.
Sophomore Liz Raschke set a career high with three aces against San Diego.
Michigan defeated its first ranked opponent since Oct. 22, 2005 when the Wolverines upset No. 7 Wisconsin, 3-2. Michigan was 1-11 vs. ranked opponents in 2005.
Head coach Mark Rosen has defeated 15 ranked opponents with the Wolverines in his eight years at the helm.
Michigan is 5-0 to start the season for just the second time in head coach Mark Rosens tenure. Rosens 2004 squad got off to a 8-0 start before suffering its first loss. That team advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
Contact: Richard Retyi (734) 763-4423
