Michigan State University Athletics
Michigan State University
5-0
Central Michigan
1-4
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | Final F |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Central Michigan | 14 | 17 | 20 | 0 |
| Michigan State | 25 | 25 | 25 | 3 |
Spartans Improve to 5-0 with Win Over Central Michigan
9/3/2016 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
Box Score | 
Highlights vs. Central Michigan
SPARTAN SYNOPSIS
Michigan State improved to 5-0 with a 3-0 win over Central Michigan on Saturday evening. The home team was led by a trio of players in double digit kills, as Autumn Bailey posted her second double-double of the seaon and Chloe Reinig and Holly Toliver had 10 kills each. The Spartans now ready for a showdown with No. 7 Florida on Sunday at 3:30 pm at Jenison Field House. The Gators are 3-1 and like MSU, downed both CMU and Morgan State in games on Saturday afternoon.
Quotable
I thought that we were better than we were in the morning match, and a lot of credit to a scrappy Central Michigan team. I'm thrilled to see Mike [Gawlik] with his own program, He is a great coach, and there's a lot of knowledge and experience that he has to share with his players. I certainly see that CMU has made big strides since we last saw them in our spring tournament - and I just know that Mike and Krista [Rice], who were both here on staff, are going to have a great impact on that program.
-- Head Coach Cathy George
- SET ONE: Trailing 3-2 to their visitors, the Spartans went on a 7-1 run to jump out to a 9-3 advantage, forcing the Chips into a timeout. Eventually, MSU built it to a 10-point advantage at 20-10, using three- and four-point scoring runs from Chloe Reinig (twice) and Holly Toliver. Autumn Bailey led a balanced scoring attack with three kills, and Megan Tompkins, Reinig, and Toliver each had two.
- SET TWO: Central Michigan took advantage of Spartan miscues to pull out to a three point lead at 13-10 and 14-11, a pair of Reinig kills sandwiched around a big big stuff at the right pin by Reinig and Garvelink pulled the teams even at 14-14. Reinig and Toliver pushed the lead out to two to extend MSU's run to five straight points and forced the Chippewa bench into a time out. CMU had to call another timeout down 22-16, trying to stall an 11-2 MSU run. Toliver stepped in to serve at 23-17, got the Chips out of system for an easy dump on an overpass for Bailey, and then scored her second ace of the night to seal a 25-17 victory. Toliver and Reinig each had five kills in the set, as MSU hit .359 in the frame.
- SET THREE: Central Michigan was a determined team in the third set, fighting and clawing to stay in the match and trailing by just a point, 14-13. An 8-4 run pushed the Spartans out on top by five (22-17), at which point the Chips called their final time out of the match. CMU managed to pull within three at 23-20, but back-to-back kills by Allyssah Fitterer - who had six kills, all the third set - gave MSU its fifth straight victory.
TOP PERFORMERS
- Autumn Bailey recorded her second double-double of the season, notching 12 each kills and digs, and hitting ..429. She also had a pair of assists and a solo block.
- Chloe Reinig contributed 10 kills and added a match-best four blocks, tied with Alyssa Garvelink, who added six kills to her four stuffs.
- Holly Toliver contributed 10 kills, two aces, and seven digs.
STATS AND STORYLINES
- The match was a homecoming for former MSU associate head coach Mike Gawlik, who spent 11 years on Cathy George's staff at Michigan State and took over the CMU program in January. He helped MSU to nine NCAA Tournament appearances and had a hand in recruiting each of the Spartan players on the roster, and his assistant coach, Krista Rice, was a two-year volunteer assistant when MSU made back-to-back Sweet 16 appearanaces in 2012 and 2013.
- The Spartans held CMU to hitting .100, and overall has held its last three opponents t or under that mark. Morgan State to a 0.82 hitting percentage in the morning match, and Marist hit just 0.80 last Saturday in the SDSU Tournament finale.
- Bailey had her second double-double of the season and the third in her six-game MSU career. Her 2015 season was cut short with injury.
- Rachel Minarick dished out 33 assists, including 16 in the final set. She also had eight digs.
