Michigan State University Athletics
Michigan State University
Florida State
Volleyball Claims Seventh-Straight Spartan Invitational Title
9/1/2007 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
Sept. 1, 2007
EAST LANSING, Mich. - Michigan State volleyball (3-3) swept Florida State, 3-0, and in turn claimed the Spartan Invitational title Saturday night in Jenison Field House. Seniors Ashley Schatzle and Miken Trogdon earned All-Tournament honors, while Katie Johnson was named the MVP.
The honor for Johnson marks the second time in her Spartan career to be named the tournament's MVP. She previously won the award in 2005.
In the invitational final match, MSU came out firing and never let up on the Seminoles, as the victory proved to be a decisive one with 30-27, 30-19 and 30-22 scores. The Spartans fueled the wins with aggressively smart play at the net, recording 49 kills. Schatzle led the team with 15 kills, followed by Jessica Hohl with 12 and Johnson with 11.
Game one came down to a battle defensively with both teams plastering the ball at the net. There were 27 total kills in game one, and while the Spartans claimed 16 of those points, they also stole kills from the Seminoles with 13 digs. With intensity matched on both sides, Johnson and Hohl helped push MSU on top with two aces a piece in the 30-27 win.
The Spartans continued to highlight their strengths in game two, illustrated by the .519 hitting percentage. Johnson and Hohl both served aces, while as a team, MSU committed not a single serve receive error. The Spartans quickly came out of game two with a solid 30-19 win.
In the final tournament game, the Spartans proved to the 1,065 fans that the tournament was indeed theirs by playing with a purpose. MSU posted 17 kills in game three, and with five block assists and 16 digs, and it held Florida State to just seven kills. In the end, the Seminoles were no match for MSU, as the Spartans claimed the game 30-22 and the match 3-0.
Following match action, Michigan State's Sideout Club presented the Spartans with the tournament trophy as well as Johnson, Schatzle and Trogdon with their individual statues. Rounding out the all-tournament team is Missouri State's libero Nikki Vondepopulier, Florida State's middle blocker Brianna Barry and Kansas's middle blocker Brittany Williams and outside hitter Emily Brown.
MSU swept the invitational with its 3-0 record; Florida State finished second, going 2-1, while both Kansas and Missouri State ended the tournament 1-2.
Spartan volleyball returns to action at the Harvard Invitational in Boston, Mass., Friday, Sept. 7-Saturday, Sept. 8 where MSU will face Wofford, Boston College, Delaware State and host Harvard. Live stats and audio will be available at www.msuspartans.com.
