Michigan
Ohio State
Michigan Faces B1G Road Test with Pair of Matches at No. 9 Ohio State
3/16/2021 5:39:00 PM | Volleyball
» For her performance against Indiana, sophomore May Pertofsky was named Big Ten Offensive Player of the Week for the first time in her career.
» Junior Paige Jones enters the weekend with 990 kills in her U-M career, 10 short of the 1,000-kill plateau.
» Jones set a school record with 37 kills in Michigan's five-set win over Indiana (March 12).
THIS WEEK
Friday, March 19 -- at No. 9 Ohio State (Columbus, Ohio), 6 p.m.
TV: Big Ten Network+ | Live Video | Live Stats
Saturday, March 20 -- at No. 9 Ohio State (Columbus, Ohio), 6 p.m.
TV: Big Ten Network+ | Live Video | Live Stats
Complete Notes (PDF)
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The University of Michigan volleyball team (4-3, 4-3 B1G) hits the road this week to take on the No. 9 Ohio State Buckeyes (13-1, 13-1 B1G) on Friday and Saturday (March 19-20) at the Covelli Center in Columbus, Ohio. Both matchups will commence at 6 p.m. and be streamed via Big Ten Network Plus.
Wolverine Bites
• Junior Paige Jones is coming off a weekend during which she set a new U-M record for kills in a match with 37. Jones bested the previous mark of 34 set by Sarah Behnke on Dec. 4, 1999 at Pacific. She also broke the record for kills in a match vs. a Big Ten opponent of 33 set by Karen Chase on Nov. 27, 1998 against Iowa.
• With 125 total kills on the season, Jones owns 990 kills in her U-M career. She trails Sarah Jackson (1994-97) who sits in 13th-place in program history for kills in a career with 1,084.
• As a team, Michigan ranks No. 7 in the nation and tops in the conference in kills per set with 14.65. U-M is also No. 7 and tops in the league in assists per set (13.71) and checks in at No. 2 in the league in service aces per set (1.65).
• In terms of service aces, sophomore May Pertofsky leads the team and ranks No. 6 in the Big Ten in aces per set (.39). Pertofsky was recently named the Big Ten Offensive Player of the Week. The honor is the first of her career. In the pair of victories against Indiana, Pertofsky registered a total of 30 kills, highlighted by 17 on Saturday (March 13). She hit .500 (30-5-50) in the weekend set and marked a total of seven service aces en route to totaling 38 points.
• A pair of Wolverine middle blockers rank in the top 25 nationally in hitting percentage, with junior Kayla Bair checking in at No. 18 nationally and No. 4 in the conference (.439) and sophomore Jess Robinson 24th nationally and sixth in the Big Ten (.416) through matches of March 14.
• With multiple student-athletes unavailable Friday (March 12) against Indiana, junior Abbey Malinowski stepped into the starting lineup for the first time in her career. She was second on the team in digs with 10 in U-M's five-set win.
• The Wolverines boast a trio of student-athletes from the state of Ohio in Jones (New Bremen), freshman Scottee Johnson (Centerville) and sophomore Amber Beals (Columbus). U-M associate head coach Leisa Rosen also has strong ties to Ohio State, as she is a former standout for the program and a member of the Ohio State Athletics Hall of Fame.
Opponent Preview
Ohio State
All-time series against the Buckeyes: Michigan trails, 53-27
No. 9 Ohio State enters the weekend with an overall mark of 13-1 and is coming off a series split at No. 4 Nebraska over the weekend. OSU dropped the first matchup vs. the Cornhuskers, 3-2, on Friday (March 12) before securing a win in the second matchup by a 3-2 count on Saturday (March 13). The Buckeyes are leading the Big Ten in numerous categories, highlighted by team assists (747), digs (836), kills (822) and attacks (2,032). They are second in the league in hitting percentage (.264) and total blocks (137). Emily Londot leads the league in points (258.5) and kills (227), while Kylie Murr (228 digs) and Mac Podraza (623 assists) are also league leaders.
Next Week
Note: The final home series of the season has been changed to Thursday-Friday (March 25-26) instead of Friday-Saturday as originally scheduled.
Thursday, March 25 -- vs. Nebraska (Cliff Keen Arena), 8 p.m. (TV: Big Ten Network)
Friday, March 26 -- vs. Nebraska (Cliff Keen Arena), 7 p.m. (TV: Big Ten Network)
