Michigan
15-3, 4-2B1G
Ohio State
12-6, 2-4B1G
No. 23 Michigan Downs No. 14 Ohio State in Top-25 Showdown
10/9/2016 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
» There were a total of 18 ties in the match but only three lead changes as Michigan dominated the majority of play.
» For the fifth time this season and the second straight outing, three Wolverines recorded double-figure kills in the win.
» The 3-1 victory is Michigan's first win over a top-25 opponent this season.
» Sunday's match marks Michigan's second sellout crowd (1,800) this season.
Site: Ann Arbor, Mich. (Cliff Keen Arena)
Score: #23 Michigan 3, #14 Ohio State 1 (25-20, 25-23, 16-25, 27-25)
Records: U-M (15-3, 4-2 B1G), OSU (12-6, 2-4 B1G)
Next U-M Event: Wednesday, Oct. 12 -- at Northwestern (Evanston, Ill.), 6 p.m. CDT
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- A .310 team attack average and three players with double-figure kills pushed the No. 23-ranked University of Michigan volleyball to a four-set victory (25-20, 25-23, 16-25, 27-25) over No. 14 Ohio State on Sunday (Oct. 9) in front of a sellout crowd inside Cliff Keen Arena and a national television audience on ESPN2.
The victory marks the Wolverines' first win over an AVCA top-25 opponent this season and improves Michigan's Big Ten Conference record to 4-2 on the year.
Senior Abby Cole led Michigan's offense, earning 16 kills and committing no errors for a .667 hitting percentage. From the outside, junior Adeja Lambert kept pace with 15 kills, while junior Katherine Mahlke rallied for a season-high 12 at a .375 clip.
Guiding the offense to a .310 kill percentage was freshman setter MacKenzi Welsh, who totaled 50 assists and 14 digs for her fourth career assist-dig double-double. She added five kills with a .444 attack percentage and one block assist.
Defensively, sophomore libero Jenna Lerg earned her sixth 20-plus dig outing of the season with a team-high 20 digs in the victory. Senior Kelly Murphy and freshman Tiffany Clark added six apiece from the back row.
From the net, seven Michigan players combined for eight team blocks, with junior Claire Kieffer-Wright leading the charge for the ninth time this season with two solo blocks and two block assists.
Michigan came out hot in the first set, picking up three kills and forcing three Buckeye errors to take a 6-0 lead and force an Ohio State timeout. Despite the stoppage in play, the Wolverines surged on thanks to kills from Welsh, Murphy and Kieffer-Wright to take a 12-4 lead and force another OSU timeout. Led by five kills from Lambert, Michigan rallied for 13 kills on a .323 kill percentage and took the set, 25-20.
The Wolverines again came out swinging in the second set, but the Buckeyes soon caught up to tie the set at 5-5. From there, the teams played nearly point for point, tying the set on 13 occasions. Cole and Murphy each had five kills in set two, and while Ohio State finished the game hitting at a .406 clip, Michigan's .643 attack percentage in the set propelled the Wolverines to a 25-23 set victory and a 2-0 lead going into the break.
Ohio State jumped out to a 5-2 lead in set three before Michigan could rally and tie things up at 7-7. The Buckeyes then rattled off four straight points to force a Michigan timeout, but the lead was set from there. Holding the Wolverines to just a .125 attack percentage, Ohio State took set three by a 25-16 score.
The Wolverines began the fourth set with kills from Cole and Mahlke to take a 3-0 lead and put the momentum in their favor. Despite eight kills from Cole and as much as an eight-point lead in the set, Michigan allowed the Buckeyes to string together a 12-3 run and tie the score at 21-21. From there, the teams battled point-for-point, but an OSU attack error and a kill from Murphy ended the set with Michigan on top, 27-25.
The loss is the Buckeyes' second straight while also marking Michigan's second victory in a row.
Michigan will return to action with a trip to Evanston, Illinois, for its first midweek match of the season on Wednesday (Oct. 12). First serve against host Northwestern is slated for 6 p.m. CDT at the Wildcats' home court inside Welsh-Ryan Arena.
