Michigan
19-7, 7-6Big Ten
Illinois
19-3, 11-2Big Ten
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Final F |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MICHIGAN | 27 | 22 | 21 | 17 | 1 |
| ILLINOIS | 25 | 25 | 25 | 25 | 3 |
Donhoff Posts Career High in U-M Loss at No. 5 Illinois
11/6/2009 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
Site: Champaign, Ill. (Huff Hall)
Score: #5 Illinois 3, #15 Michigan 1 (25-27, 25-22, 25-21, 25-17)
Records: U-M (19-7, 7-6 Big Ten), Illinois (19-3, 11-2 Big Ten)
Next U-M Event: Saturday, Nov. 7 -- at Northwestern (Evanston, Ill.), 7 p.m. CDT
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. -- After taking the opening set, the No. 15-ranked University of Michigan volleyball team watched as No. 5 Illinois took the next three sets in a 3-1 (25-27, 25-22, 25-21, 25-17) final Friday night (Nov. 6) at Huff Hall.
Sloane Donhoff
Sophomore libero Sloane Donhoff (Louisville, Ky./Assumption) posted a career-high 29 digs in the losing effort, while sophomore Alex Hunt (Granger, Ind./South Bend St. Joseph) paced the Wolverine attack for the third straight match with 19 kills.
In the fourth and final set, the Wolverines held an early 2-0 lead and a 13-11 advantage before Illinois used three different 4-0 runs en route to a 25-17 win. Michigan hit just .056 to the Illini's .256 clip in the frame and was outblocked, 4-0.
Set one saw both teams trade blows throughout the frame with Michigan eventually prevailing 27-25 on back-to-back kills from Hunt for the final two points. Michigan blanketed the court defensively with 23 digs, while Hunt posted seven kills.
Illinois responded in set two with a 25-22 win after never relinquishing the lead from 7-6 on. The Illini defense blocked Michigan six times in the frame and held the Wolverines to a .042 attack percentage, evening the match at a set apiece.
Coming out of intermission, the two teams found themselves in another close battle. Tied at 18-all, Illinois reeled off seven of the final 10 points for a 25-21 victory. Senior Veronica Rood (Temperance, Mich./Bedford) posted six kills to lead all Wolverine attackers in the set.
U-M is back in action Saturday night (Nov. 7) when it takes on Northwestern at Welsh-Ryan Arena in Evanston, Ill. First serve for the nationally televised Big Ten Network match is scheduled for 7 p.m. CST with MGoBlue.com carrying live game stats.
NOTES
• With her first assist of the night, sophomore setter Lexi Zimmeran reached 1,000 assists for the third consecutive season.
• Sophomore libero Sloane Donhoff posted a career-high 29 digs in the loss to Illinois Friday night (Nov. 6). Donhoff eclipsed her previous career-best of 25 set earlier this season at Purdue (Sept. 27).
• Senior Megan Bower posted 19 digs in the match, two shy of matching her season high of 21.
• Sophomore Alex Hunt tied her season high with 19 kills vs. Illinois.
