Michigan State University Athletics
Penn State Visits For Top-10 Showdown Wednesday
10/31/2017 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
| Big Ten Week Seven: MSU No. 1 Penn State, at Northwestern | ||
| Dates/Times | Wednesday, Nov. 1 vs. Penn State; 7 pm | East Lansing; Jenison Field House Saturday, Nov. 4 at Northwestern, 8 pm ET/7 pm CT | Evanston, Ill.; Evanston Township High School | |
| Tickets | Spartan Ticket Office Ticket Promotions: Wednesday: Family Four Pack | |
| Parking | Fans are encouraged to utilize Breslin Center, IM West, and Kellogg Center if Jenison lots are full. | |
| Bag Policy | A no-bag policy for all indoor athletic facilities went into effect on Oct. 20. View List of Permitted/Prohibited Items | |
| Live Statistics | | at Northwestern | |
| Television | Wednesday only: Big Ten Network | Mike Wolf, pxp; Liz Tortorello-Nelson, analysis | |
| Live Video Streams | vs. Penn State | at Northwestern | |
| Radio | SpartanSportsNetwork.com | John Kreger, pxp | |
| Download Game Notes | Michigan State | Penn State | Northwestern | |
| Press Conference | Watch the Cathy | |
| Social Media | @MichStVB  | Facebook  | |
| Wednesday Promotions | Professor Appreciation | Free admission with an MSU Faculty/Staff ID | |
MATCH NOTES
Michigan State has a midweek/weekend schedule on tap, hosting No. 1 Penn State on Wednesday to wrap a three-match homestand before heading to Evanston, Ill. for the first of two meetings this season with Northwestern.
• Wednesday's match is an 7 pm first serve with which will air live on Big Ten Network and will have a webstream on BTN2Go. Mike Wolf and Liz Tortorello-Nelson call the action.
• Saturday's match with Northwestern starts at 7 pm CT (8 pm ET). Due to ongoing renovations to NU's Welsh-Ryan arena, the match will be held at Evanston Township High School.
• MSU will have a radio broadcast of all matches - home and away - throughout the rest of the season. John Kreger returns behind the mic for the call on SpartanSportsNetwork.com.
• Live statistics for both matches will be available on MSUSpartans.com.
- Both matches will have a webstream available on BTN2Go (subscription required).
TEAM NOTES
• Michigan State split last weekend's matches, falling to No. 7 Nebraska 3-1 before rebounding with a 3-1 victory over Iowa.
• The Spartans got through the first half of Big Ten play with an 8-2 mark, the best start to the Conference season for MSU since the 1996 team started 12-0.
• The Spartans' loss to Nebraska blemished MSU's perfect record at Jenison Field House this season. The Spartans are now 8-1 on their home court. MSU had gone 13 months between Big Ten losses at Jenison Field House - the last time the Spartans had lost to a B1G team at home was Sept. 24, 2016 vs. the Huskers.
• In the first 12 Big Ten matches of the season, the Spartans have played six games against teams ranked seventh or higher in the AVCA national poll and own a 3-3 mark in those contests Four of those top-10 matches were road affairs.
• MSU's three losses in Big Ten have come to the two league frontrunners: once on the road at No. 2 Penn State and the home-and-home series with No. 4/ 7 Nebraska. MSU looks to split the season series with the Nittany Lions.
• With three wins over top 10 teams so far this season, it is the most top-10 victories in a single season in school history.
• MSU has concluded its home-and-home series for 2017 with three teams - Maryland, Nebraska, and Wisconsin - with a 5-1 mark against those squads. Penn State, Michigan, Northwestern, and Indiana are MSU's other two-plays for 2017. Both matchups with Northwestern and Indiana remain in the second half of the schedule for MSU, along with single games against Illinois, and Purdue. • Michigan State moved up to No. 9 in this week's American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) national poll, MSU's highest spot occupied in the national poll this season. The Spartans were No. 10 the last three weeks.
• Six Big Ten programs earned spots in the latest AVCA coaches poll, : No. 1 Penn State, No. 5 Minnesota, No. 7 Nebraska, No. 8 Wisconsin, No. 9 MSU, and No. 22 Purdue. Illinois is among the teams receiving votes.
• The Spartans went 7-2 in non-conference action, dropping true road contests at Georgia Tech and (RV) Notre Dame. The Spartans won two of the three tournaments they played, and had one entire weekend of games (at No. 2 Florida, and against American and UNC-Greensboro) washed out due to Hurricane Irma. Florida sits at No. 5 in the latest RPI, while American (20-7, 11-1 Conference) sits at the top of the Patriot League standings.
• The Big Ten again promises to be the pacesetter in Division I volleyball this season, despite losing the most 2016 All-Americans (9) to graduation of any conference in the country. The Big Ten returned 17 2016 All-Americans, six more than the Big 12 (11) and seven more than the Pac-12 and SEC (10 each).
• The Big Ten went a combined 128-27 in non-conference action (.826), just edging out the Pac-12 (104-22, .825). The SEC also won more than 100 games, going 105-40 (.724).
• Eleven Big Ten volleyball teams are ranked in the top 50 of the NCAA RPI through Oct. 29, including nine of the top 46: No. 1 Penn State, No. 2 Minnesota, No. 4 Nebraska, No. 8 Wisconsin, No. 13 MSU, No. 24 Purdue, No. 25 Illinois, No. 29 Michigan, No. 34 Ohio State, No. 38 Maryland, and No. 46 Iowa. Northwestern (No. 76) gives the Big Ten a 12th team in the RPI top 100.
• MSU is 7-43 all-time against Penn State, and the Nittany Lions enter Wednesday's match with a 20-1 overall record with the lone blemish a home loss to then-No. 14 Nebraska, 3-0. The Spartans last beat Penn State in the B1G season opener in 2013 in State College - redshirt seniors Brooke Kranda and Megan Tompkins were a part of that team.
• Haleigh Washington is hitting a Big Ten-best .519 and is averaging 3.01 kills and 1.48 blocks per set. Simone Lee is averaging 3.92 kills per frame (3rd, B1G) and hitting .324, and Ali Frantti is averaging 2.43 kills per frame.
• In the first meeting of the teams on Oct. 13, No. 2 Penn State took a 3-1 win in State College (25-18, 15-25, 30-28, 25-18). PSU was led by Simone Lee, who had 17 kills and 13 digs. Haleigh Washington had 13 kills and four blocks, hitting .414. Three Spartans finished with double-doubles: Autumn Bailey shared the match high of 17 kills, and had 10 digs. Rachel Minarick had 49 assists and a match-best 15 digs, and Holly Toliver had 11 kills, 10 digs and three aces.
• Northwestern boasts an overall record of 13-11 and is 3-9 in Big Ten play. The Wildcats have dropped six of seven, splitting last weekend with a win over Rutgers before falling to No. 9 Wisconsin. MSU has won seven of the last eight matches vs. NU, including a 3-0 win in last season's lone meeting of the teams.
• Symone Abbott leads the Big Ten with 4.34 kills per set and averages 1.89 digs per frame. Nia Robinson is second with 3.56 kills per set, and Gabrielle Hazen leads the team in blocks (1.15/s) and a .323 hitting percentage. Senior Taylor Tashima averages 11.14 assists per set, good for fifth in the Big Ten.
• Overall, MSU ranks in the top 30 nationally in four categories: 12th in aces (1.69/s), 20th in kills (14.22/s), 28th in assists (13.15/s), and 30th in hitting percentage (.260). MSU is also 38th in winning percentage (16-5, .762).
• MSU is holding opponents to a .174 hitting percentage, which ranks third in the Big Ten and 52nd nationally. Iowa hit a season-high .304 against MSU (Oct. 28), the only opponent to hit .300 or better. MSU has held five opponents under .100.
• The Spartans are second in the Big Ten and rank 12th nationally in service aces (1.69 per set). MSU boasts three individuals among the league's top five in aces per set (Rachel Minarick, Holly Toliver, and Brooke Kranda).
• MSU has 121 service aces on the season and ranks first in the Big Ten with 1.68 per frame. The Spartans have allowed just 65 aces against.
• MSU has had six double-digit blocking performances this season, and only one in Big Ten play. The Spartans rank sixth in the league in blocking (2.32/s)
• With 15.49 digs per set, the Spartans are third in the B1G rankings. MSU has seven players averaging between 2.22 and 3.35 digs per set.
• MSU continues to have a well-distributed offense. The Spartans have three players averaging better than 3.0 kills per frame, and four between 2.54 and 3.23.
• MSU hit .300 or better six times in the first 12 Big Ten matches. MSU's two lowest hitting performances in B1G play came vs. Nebraska ( .147 on the road and .144 at home), while its high was .396 vs Ohio State (Sept. 30).
• The Spartan senior class was the No. 6 recruiting class in the country back in 2014, while the current freshman class was ranked No. 9 this past summer by PrepVolleyball.
• Cathy George celebrated her 600th career victory with the 3-0 sweep of San Diego State (Sept. 1), and needs two wins to become the all-time winningest coach in Spartan history. Annelies Knoppers won 250 games from 1974-84, and Chuck Erbe was 244-140 in his 12-year tenure (1993-2004). George is 248-168 in her 13th season at MSU.
• George is the third Big Ten head coach to amass 600 wins, along with Penn State's Russ Rose (1,234) and Wisconsin's John Cook (678). She ranks 22nd among active coaches in coaching victories.
• MSU's match at Nebraska (Oct. 4) was the 1,000th match coached in the career of Cathy George.
• The Spartans are one of just three Big Ten programs to finish .500 or better in Big Ten play in each of the last six seasons -- Penn State and Nebraska are the other two.
• Michigan State has averaged 3,767 fans for each of its three Big Ten matches at Jenison Field House, and 2,921 over six home matches. MSU currently ranks 13th in Division I in overall attendance (20,421) and ninth in average attendance (2,917).
PLAYER NOTES
• In 13 of the last 14 matches, the Spartans have gone with a senior-dominated starting lineup: OH's Autumn Bailey, Brooke Kranda, and Holly Toliver, MB's Alyssa Garvelink and Megan Tompkins, setter Rachel Minarick, and freshman libero Jamye Cox. The lone match where MSU did not use its senior-laden lineup was at Rutgers.
• A key to the Spartans' success this season is a widely-distributed offense (and defense). MSU boasts four players averaging between 2.54 and 3.23 kills per set, three who average 0.71 blocks per set or more, and four starters boast dig averages of 2.22 or more per frame.
• MSU also has three players among the top five in the Big Ten (and among national leaders) in service aces per set: Holly Toliver (0.41, 2nd B1G/40th), Rachel Minarick (0.38, 4th B1G/70th nationally), and Brooke Kranda (0.37, 5th B1G/88th).
• Three Spartans average nearly a block per set or better: Alyssa Garvelink (1.44, 4th B1G/19th nationally), Megan Tompkins (0.79), and Brooke Kranda (0.71).
• Last Saturday, senior co-captains Rachel Minarick and Alyssa Garvelink were honored for reaching career milestones. Minarick surpassed 4,000 career assists on Oct. 21 vs. Maryland, while Garvelink posted her 500th career block vs. Nebraska. Minarick is the 45th Big Ten setter to pass 4,000 kills, while Garvelink is the 46th player to post 500 blocks or more.
• Alyssa Garvelink will graduate as one of MSU's top blockers in school history. She currently ranks fifth all-time at MSU in total blocks (508) and fourth in block assists (457). Her 1.21 blocks per set average over four years is fifth all-time at MSU.
• Garvelink is also closing in on 1,000 career kills. With 957, she is looking to become the 23rd Spartan to reach the milestone.
• Garvelink currently fourth in the B1G and 19th nationally in the B1G in blocks per set (1.44), which is her career-best average. Her hitting percentage of .371 ranks eighth in the Conference (52nd nationally), and she's contributing 2.54 kills/set.
• Garvelink is eighth among active NCAA Division I players in total career blocks (508), and is 18th in blocks per set (1.21).
• Minarick averages 10.95 assists (eighth, B1G/34th nationally), 0.38 aces (4th, B1G/70th nationally), and 2.46 digs per set. Last week, she averaged 9.62 assists and hit .667 (8-0-12) against Nebraska and Iowa.
• Minarick is 12th among active NCAA Division I players in total career assists (4,098).
• Minarick and Garvelink are both CoSIDA Academic All-America candidates. Minarick boasts a 3.97 cumulative GPA as a Kinesiology major. She is a two-time Academic All-Big Ten and Big Ten Distinguished Scholar honoree, and last year earned CoSIDA Academic All-Region kudos. Garvelink is a two-time Academic All-B1G honoree who owns a 3.36 GPA as a Communications major.
• Autumn Bailey leads the Spartans with 3.23 kills per frame (14th, B1G), is hitting .253, and is averaging 3.35 digs per set. She leads the team and ranks 10th in the Big Ten in digs per set - the highest among six-rotation players in the league.
• Bailey recorded her seventh double-double in Big Ten play last week against Iowa, when she had 15 kills and a team-best 16 digs while hitting .293. On Friday, she shared the team lead with nine kills and added eight digs and a pair of aces against Nebraska.
• Nationally, Bailey ranks ninth among active players in kills. She has 1,655 career terminations (which includes 1,059 in her two seasons at Marquette), and she is sixth among active players in career attempts (4,462). She is 14th among active players in kills per set (3.90), and also boasts 1,319 career digs, which is 70th - but she is seventh in career digs among six-rotation players.
• Holly Toliver ranks third on the team in kills per set (3.03) and hitting percentage (.239) and is contributing 2.22 digs and 0.41 aces, and 0.54 blocks per frame. She is second in the B1G and 40th nationally in aces per set.
• Toliver led MSU with 16 kills on 43 swings vs. Iowa, tying her season best in both categories; she also had three aces, two assists, and two blocks. She posted eight kills, seven digs, and three blocks the previous night vs. Nebraska.
• Brooke Kranda averages 3.19 kills per set (second on the team) and is averaging 0.71 blocks and 0.37 aces per set (5th B1G and 88th nationally). Kranda was one of four players in double-digit kills on Saturday vs. Iowa, where she also added two aces and three digs. Against Nebraska, she had a season-best six digs, two blocks, and shared the team high of nine kills.
• Senior middle Megan Tompkins is averaging 0.79 blocks per set (good for second on the team), and also chipping in 1.38 kills per frame.
• Jamye Cox has been the Spartan libero in each of the last 14 matches. Cox had a match-best 18 digs against Nebraska to go with three aces, and added 11 in the win over Iowa, where she also had three assists and an ace.
• Cox is averaging 3.21 digs per set on the season, which ranks 11th in the Big Ten. She has worn the libero jersey for the last 14 matches, over which she is averaging 3.95 digs per set.
• Abby Monson is averaging 2.75 digs per set as a back row specialist. Monson came off the bench and had five digs against the Huskers.
• Monson has the second-best reception percentage (.965) on the team, with four errors in 115 tries. Autumn Bailey leads the way with seven errors in 295 chances (.976).
• Samantha McLean has become a regular contributor for the Spartans in the back row, and is averaging 1.35 digs per set. She had a season best four assists against Iowa.
• Three Senior Aces are among the five freshmen on MSU's 2017 roster. Alyssa Chronowski (No. 30), Jamye Cox (No. 40), and Meredith Norris (No. 25) all enrolled at MSU in January and already have a semester of college courses under their belts. Julia Hatcher and Bella Legarza round out the Spartan newcomers. In addition, redshirt freshman Lauren Swartz will see her first collegiate action this fall after redshirting a year ago and earning the team's Most Improved Award.
• MSU has two 2017 graduates who are pursuing their graduate degrees at other universities and playing beach volleyball during their fifth year of collegiate eligibility: Allyssah Fitterer will play at Hawaii, and Chloe Reinig will play this spring at Loyola-Marymount in Los Angeles.
• MSU has a home weekend on tap Nov. 10-11, when Illinois comes to town on Friday for the only meeting between the teams. On Saturday, the Northwestern Wildcats make their return visit to Jenison Field House to wrap up the season series.
