No. 23 Michigan to Wrap Homestand Wednesday Against Iowa

THIS WEEK
Wednesday, Nov. 13 -- vs. Iowa (Cliff Keen Arena), 7 p.m.
Tickets | Live Stats

• Complete Game Notes (PDF) | Digital Program (PDF) | Rosen Report

• Social Media: Facebook | Twitter | Instagram

The No. 23-ranked University of Michigan volleyball team (17-7, 10-4 Big Ten) will wrap a three-match homestand by welcoming Iowa to Cliff Keen Arena Wednesday (Nov. 13) at 7 p.m.

Michigan's split week will send the Wolverines to Minneapolis to take on No. 5-ranked Minnesota Saturday (Nov. 17). The Wolverines look to avenge a heartbreaking five-set loss to the Golden Gophers earlier this season (Oct. 25).

Back in the Top 25

• The Wolverines are back in the AVCA Top 25 ranking at No. 23 after defeating both No. 21 Illinois and rival Michigan State by 3-1 finals last week. It marks the first time since week two that U-M has been ranked.

• Last weekend's win over No. 21 Illinois was Michigan's second win over an AVCA Top 25 team in 2019. U-M also defeated the Illini in Champaign, Illinois, earlier this season (Nov. 1). The Wolverines are now 2-4 against ranked opponents and will play No. 5-ranked Minnesota Saturday (Nov. 16) in Maturi Pavilion.

• Monday's (Nov. 11) AVCA Top 25 poll has seven Big Ten Conference teams ranked. Minnesota leads the way at No. 5, while Nebraska (6), Wisconsin (7), and Penn Sate (8) all sit inside the top 10. Purdue comes in at No. 16, with Michigan at 23 and Illinois at 25.

Keeping Up with Jones

• Sophomore Paige Jones earned Big Ten Player of the Week honors for her performances against Michigan State (Nov. 6) and No. 21 Illinois (Nov. 9). The outside hitter continued her tear against the Big Ten last week, finishing with 38 kills (4.75 kills per set) at a .298 clip while adding 19 digs, four service aces and three block assists.

• Wednesday night's 26-kill output matched Jones' career high set earlier in Big Ten play against Minnesota (Oct. 25). The New Bremen, Ohio, native has had 10 or more kills in eight straight matches.

The Million Dollar Quartet

The Wolverines had four player reach double-digit kills in both matches two weekends ago (Nov. 1-2), marking the first time U-M accomplished that feat in back-to-back matches since the 2016 season. In fact, when Paige Jones (15), Sydney Wetterstrom (13), May Pertofsky (13) and Jess Robinson (11) all reached double-digit kills against Illinois (Nov. 1), it was the first time since Dec. 1, 2017 that a Michigan quartet had done so.

How May Mac Assist You?

Senior MacKenzi Welsh moved into fourth in Michigan volleyball history in all-time assists thanks to her 44-assist performance at Northwestern (Nov. 2). Her 4,897 career assists put her 175 behind Linnea Mendoza (5,072, 1994-97) for third place in U-M annals. Welsh had her fifth 50+ assist performance of the season with 53 against Michigan State (Nov. 6), which was her first time topping that plateau in a four-set match.

Scouting the Opposition

Iowa
All-time series against the Hawkeyes: U-M leads, 43-27
Iowa comes to Cliff Keen Arena with an overall record of 9-16 and holds a Big Ten record of 3-11. The Hawkeyes rank sixth in the Big Ten as a team in digs per set with a 13.80 average. Halle Johnston leads the team and is second in the league with a 4.56 digs per set mark.

Michigan Under Mark Rosen

The 2019 volleyball campaign marks the program's 47th season and 21st under head coach Mark Rosen. In his time leading the Maize and Blue, Rosen has compiled a 425-261 record and guided Michigan to 17 of its 20 NCAA postseason appearances. In addition to serving as the longest-tenured volleyball coach at Michigan, Rosen is the winningest coach in program history.