Michigan State University Athletics
Michigan State University
11-13, 3-10
Ohio State
19-7, 7-6
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | Final F |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ohio State | 25 | 25 | 25 | 3 |
| Michigan State | 17 | 23 | 22 | 0 |
Volleyball Falls to Ohio State, 3-0
11/5/2010 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
Nov. 5, 2010
EAST LANSING, Mich. - The Michigan State volleyball team (11-13, 3-10) returned home for the first time in four matches on Friday, Nov. 5, when it faced Ohio State (19-7, 7-6) in Jenison Field House. The Green and White battled hard, however they were unable to pull out the win, falling 3-0. Freshman Kristen Kelsay (Wheaton, Ill.) led the team with 15 assists while also chipping in with nine digs.
Michigan State fell into a bit of a hole early on, trailing OSU, 3-1. The Spartans, however, managed to get back within one at 4-3. The two teams began to trade service for the next six points until it was still OSU's one-point lead at 7-6. The Buckeyes began to break away from MSU when the Spartans were forced to call a timeout at 12-9. After two straight Green and White points, Michigan State once again found itself down one at 12-11. A 6-1 run in favor of Ohio State once again resulted in MSU calling a timeout at 18-12, its second timeout of the set. The Buckeye lead grew to eight as the score became 23-15. The Spartans were able to score two more points in the set, before OSU finally closed out the set at 25-17. Red-shirt junior Jenilee Rathje (Mount Pleasant, Mich.) was the top MSU attacker in set one with four kills. Kelsay dished four assists, while also pulling in four digs. Junior Natalie Emro (Wildwood, Mo.) also tallied four assists in the set.
The Spartans returned in set two with a tough battle with Ohio State, as neither team was able to gain an advantage after the first six points, resulting in a tie at three. OSU took the next two points to make it 5-3, and then the next three of four to double the lead at 8-4. The lead became five at 10-5 as MSU called its first timeout of the set. Following the timeout, the Spartans responded with an 8-2 run for themselves to force the Buckeyes into their first timeout of the match at 13-12 in favor of the Spartans. Two of the next three points gave MSU a two point lead at 15-13. The Green and White maintained their lead at 19-17, however Ohio State took two straight from the Spartans to tie the set at 19, resulting in a MSU timeout. Neither team was able to gain the advantage as they were tied at 20, 21 and 22. Following the Spartan point to tie the set up at 22, Ohio State called its second timeout of the set. The Buckeyes responded with the next two points to force set point. MSU scored one more point before OSU took the set, 25-23. Rathje once again led the team in the set with six kills. Kelsay added six assists to her total, while Weiler chipped in another seven digs.
Looking to close out the match in three, Ohio State came out of the intermission strong, leading MSU 5-1. A 6-3 MSU run put the Buckeyes back on their heels as they called their first timeout of the set with the 8-7 lead. OSU responded the break with an 11-9 lead before the Spartans tied the set up at 11. As the Buckeyes regained the lead at 14-12, the Green and White rallied back to tie the set at 14 and then gain its first lead of the set at 15-14. Two straight OSU points, however, game it a 16-15 lead just as the Spartans called their first timeout of the set. Three straight MSU points gave it an 18-16 lead. The lead remained two at 19-17 before the Buckeyes got two straight to tie it up at 19. Two more MSU points to make the Green and White lead 21-19 caused the Buckeyes into their second timeout of the set. Ohio State took three of the next four points to tie the set back up at 22, causing MSU to call a timeout. OSU claimed the final three points in the set to gain the 25-22 third set win. Senior Megan Schatzle (Monroe, Mich.) posted a team-best four kills in the third set. Kelsay had five kills, while junior Becca Zlabis (Wheaton, Ill.) had a MSU high of five digs.
Weiler led all Spartans with 15 digs for the MSU defense. Joining Kelsay with nine digs against Ohio State was Zlabis. Rathje led the team with 12 kills on the night, while Schatzle recorded another seven. Kelsay also posted a team-best three service aces, while Schatzle, freshman Kelsey Kuipers (Otsego, Mich.) and red-shirt freshman Alexis Mathews (Detroit, Mich.) each had three blocks.
The Spartans return to action tomorrow (Nov. 6) against No. 9 Penn State. Action is scheduled to begin at 6:30 p.m., inside Jenison Field House. All fans who attend the MSU football game against Minnesota will receive free admission when they present their ticket stub at the door.
