Michigan
6-0
Tennessee State
4-3
U-M Wins K-State Invite, Sweeps TSU for Sixth Straight Win
9/3/2016 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
» Freshman Cori Crocker led Michigan with 10 kills in the three-set sweep, marking a career high.
» Freshman setter Katerina Rocafort made her Michigan debut in the contest, appearing in the third set and tallying two assists.
» The Wolverines finished the match hitting at a .444 average, their highest team attack percentage since a three-set sweep of Iowa on Nov. 3, 2012.
Site: Manhattan, Kan. (Bramlage Coliseum)
Event: K-State Invitational
Score: Michigan 3, Tennessee State 0 (25-7, 25-14, 25-16)
Records: U-M (6-0), TSU (4-3)
Next U-M Event: Friday, Sept. 9 -- vs. American (Pittsburgh, Pa.), 4:30 p.m.
MANHATTAN, Kan. -- A .444 team attack average -- including a career-high 10 kills from freshman Cori Crocker -- propelled the University of Michigan volleyball team to a 3-0 victory (25-7, 25-14, 25-16) over Tennessee State in Michigan's final match at the K-State Invitational Tournament on Saturday (Sept. 3) at Bramlage Coliseum. The attack average is Michigan's highest since a three-set sweep of Iowa on Nov. 4, 2012, and marks the Wolverines' sixth straight win to start the season.
Michigan jumped out early on back-to-back kills from senior Kelly Murphy, and senior Abby Cole and Crocker each followed with a kill apiece for a 4-0 lead. Two Tennessee State attack errors then put the Wolverines up by six, forcing the Tigers to call a timeout. Following the stoppage in play, a Tennessee State kill got the Tigers on the scoreboard for the first point in the match, but the Michigan offense was too much to handle moving forward. Hitting at a .556 attack percentage, all but one hitter recorded a kill in the first set as the Wolverines took the game, 25-7.
In the second set of the match, the Wolverines again jumped out to a sufficient lead, going ahead 5-0, before a Michigan attack error put the Tigers on the board. From there, the Wolverines surrendered just 13 more points, and nearly every player picked up at least one kill. Leading the charge in the second set was junior Katherine Mahlke, whose seven kills on just 10 swings pushed Michigan to a 25-14 set victory.
Despite trailing 2-0, the Tigers took the first point of the third set for their first lead of the day. A double-block by Mahlke and Crocker quickly tied the score, however, and the Wolverines took control of the defining lead from there. Neither Murphy nor Cole touched the court in the third set, which allowed Michigan to utilize different formations and substitutions. With no timeouts called in the final set of the match, the Wolverines surged ahead for a 25-16 set victory to execute the three-set sweep.
In addition to an impressive offensive showing, the Wolverines shined defensively, never allowing more than 16 points in a set. Freshman Jenna Lerg finished the match with 20 digs, coming just three short of her season high set in the first match of the day.
From the net, Michigan recorded seven team blocks -- all on block assists. Junior Claire Kieffer-Wright led the charge with four, while Crocker picked up three, and senior Ally Davis tallied two.
Along with Crocker's career-high 10 kills, Mahlke picked up a season-high nine, while Murphy added seven. Freshman Sydney Wetterstrom also recorded six for a season high.
Michigan will return to play on Friday (Sept. 9) when the Wolverines compete in the Panther Invitational in Pittsburgh. First serve against American is set for 4:30 p.m.
