U-M to Face Notre Dame in Home-and-Home to Close Non-Conference Play

Promotions

Sept. 21
• STEM Day presented by Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan - Come spike your curiosity and serve up some science at Crisler Center. Kids and families are encouraged to come early and check out all the STEM activities going on around the concourse.
• Michigan Brain Teaser Giveaway - The first 500 kids in attendance will receive a Michigan brain teaser puzzle.
• Wolverine Kids Club Day - All Wolverine Kids Club Members are invited to attend this match! Complimentary Kids Club tickets must be claimed through the Kids Club promo code in advance. Offer not valid at the box office.

ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- The University of Michigan volleyball team (8-1) will close out non-conference play with a home-and-home against Notre Dame on Friday (Sept. 19) and Sunday (Sept. 21). The Friday contest will take place in South Bend, Ind., at 6 p.m. in Purcell Pavilion, and will stream on ACCNX. Two days later, the Wolverines return home to welcome the Fighting Irish for a 3 p.m. match in Crisler Center. Sunday's home affair is slated to air on Big Ten Network.

Notes

• The Wolverines are 8-1 in non-conference action with the only loss coming over the weekend in five sets to Virginia. U-M responded on Saturday (Sept. 13) and swept Virginia, hitting .280 and limiting the Cavaliers to a .180 hitting percentage. Michigan is coming off a three-set sweep of Central Michigan, where U-M hit .423 with 41 kills and eight errors on 78 swings.

• Michigan's offense is second in the Big Ten in kills per set and assists per set, trailing only No. 7-ranked Wisconsin in both. The Wolverines are averaging 14.63 kills per set and 13.41 assists per set, and are also fourth in the Big Ten and tenth nationally in hitting percentage with a .311 hitting percentage.

• Second in kills and hitting percentage, Lydia Johnson is off to a great start. Johnson has surpassed her season high in kills already, tallying 49 kills in 41 sets with a 0.071 hitting percentage in her freshman year. This season, Johnson has 82 kills in 32 sets and is hitting .442. Her hitting percentage is second in the Big Ten Conference, and she has gone errorless three times -- including the most recent match -- where she hit .818 with nine kills on 11 swings.

• Leading the Wolverines in kills against Central Michigan was Ella Demetrician, who tallied 12 kills. She did so with just one error on 20 swings and added three blocks. Demertician has started three of the last four matches after just two appearances in the first five matches. This season, she is hitting .374 with 46 kills and 37 digs.

• Allison Jacobs leads Michigan and the Big Ten kills this season with 140. Jacobs has tallied double-digit kills in every match but one this season with a high of 24 against Wake Forest. She is third in the Big Ten in kills per set averaging 4.38 and third in points per set averaging 5.19. Jacobs also leads Michigan in aces with 16.

• Michigan's starting middles have been strong with Serena Nyambio and Jenna Hanes starting all nine contests. Nyambio leads the Big Ten in hitting percentage and is seventh nationally at a .474 clip. She has totaled 63 kills on 114 swings. Hanes is close behind, ranking fourth in the Big Ten in hitting percentage at .422 with 52 kills on 102 swings. Both are tied in blocks per set, averaging 0.97, but Nyambio has 31 on the season compared to Hanes' 29.

• Setting up the Wolverines for success is junior setter Morgan Burke. Burke has 208 assists to lead Michigan and is averaging 6.50 per set. She has tallied 20 assists in all but one match this season, and added 11 aces and 77 digs. Against Central Michigan, Burke led the match with nine digs and 20 assists.

• Maddi Cuchran ranks sixth in the Big Ten in total digs, totaling 108 this season. Cuchran has totaled double-digit digs in seven of the nine matches this season with a season high of 18 in a three-set win over Marshall. She has added 43 assists and six aces.

• Earning a spot in the lineup over the past few games, Cymarah Gordon has totaled 19 kills for far this season. Gordon got her first real playing time against USI, where she tallied two kills on seven swings with three blocks. She then played in all five sets against Virginia and tallied 10 kills on 26 swings with two blocks. Against Central Michigan, Gordon recorded four kills with no errors on six swings with three blocks.

• Notre Dame is 3-3 this season with wins over Santa Clara, Colorado State and East Texas A&M. The Fighting Irish have lost to LSU in three sets, and Villanova and Illinois in five sets. All-time, the series is tied at nine games each -- with Michigan taking the most recent contest last year. The teams met at Mississippi State and U-M won in four sets, led by 19 kills from Jacobs and 18 from Demetrician.