Spartans Host Minnesota, Wisconsin at Jenison
11/6/2014 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
| Michigan State vs. Minnesota, No. 5 Wisconin | |
| Dates | Friday, Nov 7 vs. Minnesota, 6:30 p.m Sunday, Nov. 9 vs. Wisconsin, 1 p.m. East Lansing, Mich. Jenison Field House |
| Tickets & Packages | (F) Family Four Pack | (S) Four Seats, Four Treats Order Tickets |
| Television/Video Stream | none |
| Radio | Spartan Sports Network | Download the SSN App |
| Live Statistics | |
| Download Game Notes | Michigan State | Minnesota | Wisconsin |
| Previews | Cathy |
| Social Media | @MichStVB  | Facebook  |
SERIES NOTES
• MSU continues a four-game homestand with games against Minnesota and Wisconsin at Jenison Field House.
• Friday and Sunday's games will have a radio broadcast on SpartanSportsNetwork.com, with play-by-play man Keaton Gillogly on the call.
• Minnesota is 14-9 overall (4-8 B1G) and is looking to get back on track, having lost five of the last six matches. The Gophers are in a stretch of seven of 10 games on the road. Minnesota's 2.88 blocks per set ranks second in the conference and fourth in service aces at 1.27 per set. The Gophers are coached by Hugh McCutcheon, a former USA Volleyball coach who led the US men to a gold medal at the 2008 Olympics.
Daly Santa leads the attack for the Gophers, ranking third in the Big Ten in kills per set at 3.86 while hitting .181. Sarah Wilhite is also on the Big Ten leader board for kills per set, ranking 14th with a 3.08 average. Sophomore Paige Tapp is second in the conference in blocks, averaging 1.39 per set, while her sister Hannah is fourth with 1.26 blocks per set. Katie Schau facilitates the Gopher's offensive attack, leading the team in assists and ranking 10th in the Big Ten with 8.93 assists per set.
• No. 4 Wisconsin, last year's national runner-up, enters the weekend with a 20-1 overall record and is 11-1 in Big Ten play, sitting atop the conference standings. The Badgers have won their last 11 matches and haven't dropped a set in over a month, and just 11 all season.
Haleigh Nelson is the top hitter for the Badgers, ranked fourth in the conference with a .375 hitting percentage and contributing 2.19 kills per set. Nelson also ranks tied for seventh in the conference in blocks with teammate Dominique Thompson at 1.20 blocks per set. Sophomore Lauren Carlini handles setting duties, averaging 11.41 assists per set, which ranks first in the Big Ten; she is also on the leader board in digs per set, averaging 2.90 and ranking 14th in the conference. Taylor Morey leads the Badgers and the Big Ten in digs per set, averaging 5.38.
TEAM NOTES
• MSU split its two matches last weekend at home, falling to No. 10 Illinois 3-1 before rebounding with a sweep of Northwestern on Saturday. MSU sits in seventh place in the B1G standings at 6-6 behind frontrunner Wisconsin at 11-1.
• MSU concluded the first half of Big Ten play at 5-5. The Spartans were 6-4 at the midpoint of the 2013 season, and went 4-6 in 2012 before rallying for a 7-3 second half to finish 11-9.
• MSU played seven of its first 10 Big Ten games away from Jenison Field House. The Spartans opened with three straight road games in Big Ten play for the first time since 1996, then played three straight at home in eight days, hosting Michigan, Nebraska, and Iowa, winning two of three. MSU went 2-2 in its most recent four-game road streak, and split last weekend's home matches.
• MSU has concluded its season meetings with four of its six "one-plays" on the schedule this season, and competes against the other two this weekend. In the scheduling format employed beginning in 2014, each team plays seven teams twice and six teams just once. The Spartans will not get a return game in East Lansing from Penn State, Ohio State, or Maryland; MSU's three home "one plays" are Illinois, Minnesota, and Wisconsin.
• The Illinois match was MSU's third straight against a ranked team and the second straight against a top-10 opponent.
• MSU's next victory will be the 750th in program history. This is the 42nd season of varsity volleyball at MSU.
• The first RPI for women's Division I volleyball was announced on Monday, Oct. 6, and the Spartans are 47th in this week's ranking, and was ranked a season-high 33rd in the first RPI release.
• MSU averages 2.64 blocks per set, good for fourth in the Big Ten and 28th nationally. MSU is behind B1G leader Minnesota (2.88 blocks/set), Illinois (2.79) and Nebraska (2.79). Overall, MSU's 221.5 team blocks is fourth in the Conference.
• After recording double-digit blocks in its first four Big Ten games, MSU was limited to single-digit block totals in its next four (against Nebraska, Iowa, Maryland, and Rutgers). MSU's four blocks vs. the Scarlet Knights was its fewest in Big Ten play, and the second-fewest in a match this season - the Spartans had just three team blocks in a 3-0 loss to North Carolina back in the second week of the season. MSU has put up double-digit blocking totals in each of its last four games.
• MSU has had some strong hitting performances in recent matches. The Spartans hit .381 against Northwestern last Saturday, its highest in a Big Ten match this season and third-best overall on the year. The Spartans had just eight attacking errors and three service errors, season lows in both categories.
The Spartans hit .247 at Penn State, with just 13 attacking errors (36-13-92). It is MSU's best hitting percentage in a loss this season, and is a higher hitting percentage than the Spartans have posted in five of their 13 victories.
• The Spartans have limited opponents to a .162 hitting percentage, which is second the Big Ten and ranks 34th nationally.
• This season, MSU has won the first set in 16 of 23 matches, and is 13-3 when winning the first set.
• The Spartans went 7-4 in non-conference action, but also played the perhaps the toughest pre-Conference schedule in Cathy George's tenure. In all, eight of MSU's 11 non-conference opponents won 18 games or more in 2013, and combined for a 63.1% winning percentage. • MSU's final seven non-conference opponents (UNC, Duke, Oregon, Oregon State, Western Kentucky, LIU-Brooklyn, and Milwaukee) went a combined 61-21 (.743) in the non-conference portion the season. Three of those teams (No. 20 North Carolina, No. 19 Duke, and No. 18 Oregon) were in the top 25 when they played MSU, and two others (Oregon State and Western Kentucky) were receiving votes.
• Among other Big Ten teams, only Illinois also played five games against non-conference teams which appeared in the top-25 or are receiving votes. Wisconsin, Michigan, and Nebraska are the teams which also played three top-25 teams in their non-conference schedule. Overall, MSU has the 17th-toughest schedule in the country.
• Michigan State's strong schedule was an effort to acclimate a young team to the rigors of Big Ten play. The Spartans have a seven-member freshman class, and have 12 freshmen and sophomores on an 18-player roster. MSU regularly has five freshmen or sophomores (and a senior libero) on the floor.
• Michigan State fell out of American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) national poll on Sept. 22. The Spartans debuted at No. 16, and now after nine weeks MSU is no longer receiving votes. In a streak which was halted Sept. 22, MSU was in the AVCA top 25 for 21 consecutive weeks, the longest streak since appearing for 43 straight weeks from 1995-97.
• MSU lost 55.9% of its kills from its 2013 team to graduation (fourth nationally), 56% of its blocks (third), and 53.9% of its assists (13th).
• The Spartans rank 10th nationally in average attendance, (2,798), as 27,977 fans have taken in a volleyball match at Jenison Field House this season, the 11th highest total among Division I programs. MSU has five home matches remaining.
• MSU shattered its home attendance record in 2013, with 43,368 fans over 15 home matches. MSU brought nearly 10,000 more fans to Jenison Field House last year than it had in 2012. The 43,368 was 11th nationally in 2013; its average of 2,891 per game was also 11th.
PLAYER NOTES
• Kori Moster averages 4.54 digs per set, which ranks fourth in the Big Ten overall and her 4.57 in B1G matches ranks fourth.
• Moster surpassed the 2,000 digs mark in the first set against Penn State (Oct. 25), and her current total of 2,049 career digs ranks sixth all-time in the Big Ten annals, and is eighth among active Division I players.
• Moster has held the school's career digs record since her junior season, and holds three of the top seven single-season dig performances in school history. With 381 as a senior, she needs just 28 more to post a fourth season among the top-10 all-time best. Her career-best season of 602 came as a sophomore (second), and she posted 592 as a junior (third) and 474 as a freshman (seventh).
• On the night she was honored at Jenison Field House for surpassing 2,000 digs, Moster tied her career best with 29 digs against Illinois.
• Moster ranks seventh among active players in career matches played (127), and 17th in sets played (460).
• Moster needs 129 digs to move into fifth place in the Big Ten career standings, as Michigan's Stesha Selsky, (2004-07) currently holds that spot with 2,178.
• Moster has posted double-digit digs in 20 of the 23 Spartan matches this season; In 127 career matches, Moster has been held with less than 10 digs only 18 times; six of those occasions were her first six collegiate matches.
• Moster is one of the 10 finalists for the Senior CLASS Award. To be eligible for the award, a student-athlete must be classified as an NCAA Division I senior and have notable achievements in four areas of excellence - community, classroom, character and competition. She is also an Academic All-America nominee, boasting a 3.65 GPA as an advertising major. Fans can vote daily at http://www.seniorclassaward.com/vote/
• Moster is the only player in program history to be named the Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year, and she has now done it in back-to-back seasons. She led the Big Ten in 2013 in digs per set (4.70), her career-best average and good for third in the MSU single-season recordbook.
• Chloe Reinig has averaged double-digit kills since Big Ten play began, and has just seven matches overall this season where she was held with nine kills or fewer. She ranks fourth overall in the Big Ten with 3.63 kills/s, and in B1G play alone, her 4.05 K/s is second to Illinois' Joscelyn Birks (4.26). Ahead of her overall is Minnesota junior Daly Santana, (3.86/s) against whom she'll face off this week.
• Reinig has gone for 20+ kills four times this season, including in back-to-back matches vs. Michigan.
• Reinig ranks sixth overall in points (4.05/s). In conference games only, she is averaging 4.47 points, good for second behind Birks.
• Senior Jazmine White is averaging 1.23 blocks per set overall (good for sixth in the Conference and 62nd nationally ) and 1.24 in B1G games, (seventh). In Big Ten matches only, Allyssah Fitterer averages 1.07 per set, which ranks 14th.
• White had six kills and three blocks and a pair of digs in MSU's four-set loss to Illinois, but came back with 11 kills (tied for the team lead), five blocks, three digs, and a pair of aces against Northwestern, hitting a career-best .529. The 11 kills was also a career-best for the senior.
• Rachel Minarick was named the Big Ten Freshman of the Week on Monday, Oct. 20, her first such honor of the season. She earned the kudos with 11 assists per set in two matches against Maryland and Rutgers, helping the Spartans to their first B1G weekend sweep of the season.
• Minarick ranks sixth in the Big Ten overall in assists per set (9.82), and is the top freshman in that category. She is seventh in B1G play as well (10.18/s).
• Minarick's 0.27 service aces per set in conference games ranks in a tie for sixth.
• Freshman Alyssa Garvelink has been evolving into a steady force for the Spartan front row. She had four kills and a pair of blocks against Illinois, then had six kills and a pair of blocks agaisnt Northwestern.
• Freshman DS Marissa Ratzenberger made her collegiate debut against Rutgers, and recorded four digs. She has played in each of MSU's four matches since.
• Moster and White will serve as team captains in the 2014 season. Moster is the third three-time captain in program history, along with Nikki Colson (2001-03) and Katie Johnson (2005-07).
• The season of freshman Holly Toliver is over before it really got started. She played in the first two weekends of the season before being sidelined with a leg injury, and while she attempted to come back to action, further tests have ruled her out for the remainder of the season. Over her first six matches, she was averaging 2.75 kills and 0.45 blocks per set.
• Junior setter Halle Peterson was injured in the Oregon match (Sept. 19), and has not played since.
• MSU welcomed four newcomers, a freshman class ranked No. 6 in the country by PrepVolleyball.com. Alyssa Garvelink, Rachel Minarick, Abby Monson, and Holly Toliver form the incoming class; Minarick, a two-time AVCA All-American, is the No. 21 Senior Ace by PrepVolleyball.com and last summer was the MVP at club nationals where she led Sports Performance to a National Championship. Minarick (No. 22), Garvelink (No. 26), and Toliver (No. 31) appeared in the rankings by PrepVolleyball.com of the nation's top seniors, while Monson was an Honorable Mention.
