Michigan State University Athletics
Michigan State University
Ohio State
MSU Volleyball Stuns No. 9 Ohio State
11/16/2001 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
Nov. 16, 2001
COLUMBUS, Ohio - The Michigan State volleyball team (17-7, 10-7 Big Ten) stunned No. 9 Ohio State (22-3, 14-3) Friday night in St. John Arena, handing the Buckeyes a 30-25, 24-30, 30-23, 30-24 loss. The Spartans snapped the Buckeyes' five-match winning streak while handing Ohio State only its second home loss of the season. MSU won for the fifth time in its last six road matches and the sixth time in its last seven contests overall.
Senior Erin Hartley had 14 kills and added nine digs and four blocks to lead the Spartans, while freshman Kim Schram (13), junior Kyla Smith (11) and junior Angela Morley (10) also had double digit kills. Morley added a team-best nine blocks and hit .526, while sophomore Nikki Colson had 46 assists and eight digs.
The Spartans controlled the tempo of most of the match, hitting .293 and committing only 17 attack errors on 133 swings. In the three games MSU won, the Spartans hit a combined .394 and were amazingly consistent, hitting .393 in game one and .394 in both games three and four. MSU also dominated in blocks, holding a 15-3 advantage.
Michigan State looked strong in the opening game, erasing an early 10-7 deficit with a 12-3 run to open a 19-13 lead. Morley had three of her six first-game blocks during the run to spark the Spartans, while Smith had a pair of service aces early in the stretch. Ohio State closed within 19-17, but kills from Morley and Smith gave MSU some breathing room, and the Spartans won game one with a kill from Hartley for their 30th point. The Spartans hit .393 in the game, collecting 14 kills while committing only three errors.
Game two was controlled by Ohio State from the outset, as the Buckeyes opened a 7-3 lead and MSU could never get closer than two points the rest of the way. The Buckeyes hit .268, but more importantly, limited Michigan State to a percentage of .051 while collecting 16 digs. Michigan State managed only 10 kills and had eight errors in the game.
The third game was tight throughout, with eight ties through the early going. MSU used a 10-3 spurt to take control with a 22-17 lead. From there, the Spartans played sideout volleyball with Ohio State, ending game two on a kill by Jenny Rood. MSU hit .394 in the game, pounding 16 kills with just three errors.
Michigan State kept its momentum in the fourth game, racing to a 4-0 lead. Ohio State closed within two points on three occasions, but the Spartans kept OSU at bay. The lead was only 23-20 when Michigan State scored four straight, capped by a Hartley kill, to take a commanding 27-20 lead. A Schram kill gave MSU its final point and the upset victory.
Ohio State was its own worst enemy at times, committing five service errors in the fifth game, and 15 for the match. Conversely, MSU had only five service errors and six aces. The Buckeyes did outdig Michigan State, 45-44, but hit only .235 with 34 errors.
The Spartans will play their last road contest of the regular season Saturday night at No. 14 Penn State at 7 p.m.
