Michigan
7-0
Oakland
3-4
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | Final F |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oakland | 21 | 21 | 14 | 0 |
| Michigan | 25 | 25 | 25 | 3 |
Michigan Storms Past Oakland in Home Opener
9/12/2008 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
Event: Michigan/Pepsi Invitational
Score: Michigan 3, Oakland 0 (25-21, 25-21, 25-14)
Records: U-M (7-0), Oakland (3-4)
Attendance: 891
Next U-M Event: Saturday, Sept. 13 -- vs. Toledo (Cliff Keen Arena), 11 a.m.
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- Led by junior Juliana Paz's (Porto Alegre, Brazil/Iowa Western CC) 15 kills and sophomore Lexi Zimmerman's (Barrington, Ill./Barrington) 39 assists, the University of Michigan volleyball team stayed undefeated with a convincing 3-0 (25-21, 25-21, 25-14) home-opening win over Oakland Friday night (Sept. 12) on day one of the Michigan/Pepsi Invitational at Cliff Keen Arena.
Juliana Paz
Michigan got off to a fast start in the opening set, building a 7-3 lead on back-to-back kills by Paz. The lead quickly disappeared as Oakland used a pair of U-M attack errors to close the gap to 10-8 and then forced the first tie at 10-10 on another Michigan miscue. The two teams traded the lead until junior Megan Bower (Indianapolis, Ind./Cathedral) delivered a termination that put Michigan up for good, 20-19. Down the stretch, U-M used kills by Paz, Bower and freshman Courtney Fletcher (Duluth, Ga./Northview) to finish off the Golden Grizzlies, 25-21.
Set two saw another Wolverine making her home debut, sophomore/freshman Karlee Bruck (Elyria, Ohio/Elyria) record three kills and Zimmerman dished out 10 helpers as the Wolverines went on to another 25-21 victory. The Michigan back row got into the act, combining for 20 team digs, including seven by senior Kerry Hance (Los Angeles, Calif./Marymount), holding Oakland to a .056 hitting percentage.
In the final set, Michigan stormed out to an 11-3 advantage and led by as much as nine points on its way to the 25-14 win. Paz exploded for eight of U-M's 19 kills in the third frame, terminating at a .727 clip while Zimmerman enjoyed 15 assists and a pair of kills of her own in the finale.
Nine Wolverines got into the scoring, led by Paz's 15 kills while Bower added seven and four players -- Bruck, Zimmerman, junior Veronica Rood (Temperance, Mich./Bedford) and senior Beth Karpiak (LaGrange, Ill./Lyons Township) -- had six apiece. Defensively, Hance led the way with 16 digs and Paz added 11 for a double-double. Karpiak posted four blocks to lead the team.
The Wolverines have a short turnaround as they face Toledo to kick off day two of the Pepsi Challenge at 11 a.m. Saturday (Sept. 13) in Cliff Keen Arena. Michigan will then close the tournament with a 7:30 p.m. contest against Auburn.
NOTES
• Five different Michigan players -- Juliana Paz, Sloane Donhoff, Courtney Fletcher, Alex Hunt and Karlee Bruck -- made their home debuts Friday night (Sept. 12).
• Sophomore Lexi Zimmerman posted 39 assists, her sixth straight match of the season and the 39th of her career eclipsing the 30-assist plateau.
• Michigan has yet to lose in 13 attempts versus Oakland after its latest triumph Friday night, running the all-time record to 12-0-1 and continues its streak of sweeps versus OU, having not dropped a set to the Golden Grizzlies since the 1983 season -- a span of six matches.
• Senior Kerry Hance appeared in her 105th consecutive match Friday night, tops among active Wolverines.
• Michigan made its home debut Friday night in front of 891 fans.
QUOTES
Michigan Head Coach Mark Rosen
On the key to victory against Oakland ... "I thought we played physical. The first two games we weren't playing well, but we were physical. I thought we came out very tight to start the night, and we were trying to be too perfect. When you are at home, especially for the home opener, sometimes there is a tendency to try to be too perfect for the home crowd and I thought that was the case for us tonight. In set three, we finally hit our groove and by the end of the match I thought we hit our stride and were playing very well."
On the atmosphere in Cliff Keen Arena ... "I thought in set one both Beth (Karpiak) and Juliana (Paz) played very well for us. Throughout the night I thought different people started picking it up for us. Rood picked it up, Fletcher picked it up in set two and three and Karlle (Bruck) came in and did a really nice job. The bottom line is the crowd can't win us any points, we have to take care of that, but they certainly did help and I think it helped that they had our backs tonight."
On the distractions that come with a home match ... "I think playing at home played a lot into us coming out a little flat to start the match. You want to play well for your friends and your family and with us being on the road for our first six matches, we got into a rhythm of being in a hotel, eating, going to the gym, and then coming back to the hotel. We have to get back to a routine at home and it can be very difficult for the first time to get into that groove."
On the quick turnaround facing the team tomorrow ... "Toledo is a very good team. I was very impressed with how they played against Auburn so we have our work cut out for us. Our girls need to get some rest tonight and we better come in here ready to play."
