Michigan State University Athletics
Michigan State University
Penn State
Volleyball Stumbles At No. 5 Penn State, 3-1
10/16/2004 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
Oct. 16, 2004
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - Meghan Schoen set a career high with 14 kills, while Kim Schram had 14 kills of her own in Michigan State volleyball's 3-1 loss at No. 5 Penn State Saturday in University Park, Pa. The Spartans fell, 17-30, 24-30, 30-23, 22-30 in the match. MSU's record now stands at 6-10 on the season and 1-7 in the Big Ten, while Penn State moves to 16-1 overall and 7-1 in the league.
Meghan Schoen's 14 kills were a career high, and came on .333 hitting as she added two blocks and four digs. Schram also had 14 kills with a .314 attack percentage, to go along with eight digs and four blocks. Maggie Griffin had 54 assists, eight digs and a block on the night. Michelle Kopka and Katie Johnson each had 12 kills in the match. Kopka had 10 digs, for her first double-double of the year, while Johnson added four digs and three blocks. As a team, MSU hit .239 on the evening (62K-24E-159TA).
The first game saw Penn State take control from the start, as the Nittany Lions built an early lead at 13-5. The Spartans fought back, but could not close the gap to fewer than five points throughout the game (16-11), and lost, 30-17. Schram had five kills on .556 hitting (5K-0E-9TA) in the first game, and Griffin had 10 assists and three digs. Kopka added two kills, two assists and two digs, while Schoen had two kills, a dig and a block. The Spartans hit .206 (12K-5E-34TA) in the game, while Penn State posted a team attack percentage of .436 (20K-3E-39TA). PSU's Ashley Pederson and Kate Price had six kills each in the game.
The teams traded the lead five times early in the second game before PSU pulled out to a five-point lead that the Nittany Lions would not relinquish. MSU struggled, posting seven service errors, and Penn State took the 2-0 lead in the match on a 30-24 win. Schram again led the Spartan offense with five kills, and added a service ace and two digs. Schoen had three kills and a block, while Griffin recorded 13 assists. MSU held the Nittany Lions to a .229 attack percentage, while hitting .314 in the game.
Michigan State built an early six-point lead in the third game (11-5), thanks in part to a service run from Miken Trogdon. The Spartans trailed only once in the game, and led most of the game by five to seven points, forcing game four on a 30-23 win. Johnson and Schoen led the Spartan attack, posting six kills apiece, mostly at key times in the game. Griffin had 18 assists in the game, while Schram had two kills and two blocks. State hit .381 in the game, to Penn State's .205.
The Nittany Lions rebounded from their game three loss to win the fourth and final game of the match, 30-22. Michigan State hung with PSU early in the game, but a six-point service run from Tabitha Eshleman put the game out of reach for MSU. Kopka led MSU in the game, with five kills to go along with two digs. Schoen had three kills, while Griffin had 14 assists. Schram and Langston each added two kills and a dig. Marley Bellwood had six digs to push her night's total to 12. The Spartans hit just .083 in the final game, with 16 kills and 12 errors on 48 attacks, compared to PSU's .273 (16K-4E-44TA).
The match will air on ESPN2 Sunday, Oct. 17 at 2:30 p.m. EDT.
After two weeks on the road, the Spartans return home on Friday, Oct. 22 to face Wisconsin in a 7 p.m. match in Jenison Field House. Saturday, Oct. 23, MSU plays host to Northwestern at 7 p.m.
No. 5 Penn State 3, Michigan State 1 (University Park, Pa.)Michigan State K E TA Pct.Game 1 12 5 34 .206Game 2 14 3 35 .314Game 3 20 4 42 .381Game 4 16 12 48 .083TOTAL 62 24 159 .239
Penn State K E TA Pct.Game 1 20 3 39 .436Game 2 16 8 35 .229Game 3 18 8 44 .205Game 4 16 4 44 .273TOTAL 69 23 162 .284#MSU#
