Michigan
13-0, 1-0Big Ten
Ohio State
9-4, 0-1Big Ten
Michigan Sweeps Buckeyes to Begin Big Ten Play
9/24/2008 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
Score: #21 Michigan 3, Ohio State 0 (25-22, 25-22, 25-20)
Records: U-M (13-0, 1-0 Big Ten), Ohio State (9-4, 0-1 Big Ten)
Attendance: 2,171
Next U-M Event: Saturday, Sept. 27 -- at Michigan State (East Lansing, Mich.), 6:30 p.m.
Boxscore
COLUMBUS, Ohio -- The No. 21-ranked University of Michigan volleyball team opened Big Ten play with a sweep of host Ohio State, 3-0 (25-22, 25-22, 25-20), on Wednesday night (Sept. 24) at St. John Arena, improving to 13-0 for the third straight season. Senior Beth Karpiak(LaGrange, Ill./Lyons Township) led all players with 12 kills while sophomore Lexi Zimmerman(Barrington, Ill./Barrington) dished out 29 helpers in the win.
Ohio State jumped out to a early lead in set one, taking a 4-1 advantage before Michigan rallied to tie the set 7-7 on kills from sophomore/freshman Karlee Bruck(Elyria, Ohio/Elyria) and junior Megan Bower(Indianapolis, Ind./Cathedral). The Buckeyes built their lead back to four points, 17-13, only to see U-M come roaring back to cut the lead to one point, 17-14, forcing a home team timeout. Michigan continued the momentum out of the break, taking its first lead 22-21 on a Zimmerman termination. The Maize and Blue did not look back from there, reeling off the final three points that included a big kill by junior Juliana Paz(Porto Alegre, Brazil/Iowa Western CC) for a 25-22 come-from-behind win.
The two teams battled closely again in set two before Karpiak came through with a sequence of kills to give U-M a lead that changed hands three times through the middle of the frame. Paz then pushed the U-M advantage to four points, 18-14, and the Wolverines held on from there for a 25-23 win.
The third set saw Michigan grab an early lead for the first time of the night thanks to four Ohio State attack errors to build a five-point lead, 10-5, which it never relinquished. Timely attacks from Karpiak, Paz, Bower and junior Veronica Rood(Temperance, Mich./Bedford) secured the set, 25-20, and the 3-0 win.
Michigan played well defensively, tallying 50 digs. Senior Kerry Hance(Los Angeles, Calif./Marymount) led the way with 13 and Zimmerman added 12. Meanwhile, Bruck led the U-M net attack with four blocks.
The Wolverines continue rivalry week on Saturday (Sept. 27), traveling to East Lansing, Mich., to face Michigan State. The 6:30 pm match will take place in the Breslin Center and can be seen live on the Big Ten Network.
Contact: Matt Fancett (734) 763-4423
