Michigan State University Athletics
Michigan State University
17-6, 10-4Big Ten
Northwestern
13-13, 3-11Big Ten
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | Final F |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Michigan State | 25 | 25 | 25 | 3 |
| Northwestern | 13 | 19 | 18 | 0 |
Bailey Leads MSU to Sweep at Northwestern
11/4/2017 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
Box Score | PDF Box: Michigan State 3, Northwestern 0
SPARTAN SYNOPSIS
Michigan State went on the road and took a 3-0 (25-13, 25-19, 25-18) win at Northwestern on Saturday evening to split its action on the week. With the win, the No. 9 Spartans improve to 17-6 overall and 10-4 in Big Ten play. Northwestern drops its second match of the week and is now 13-13, 3-11 in Conference games.
The Spartans held large leads in all three sets, but had to hold off a surging Wildcats squad who battled back from a 10-2 deficit to cut the MSU lead down to two points in the third frame before the Spartans closed it out.
The Spartans got a big night from senior Autumn Bailey, who had a season-best 18 kills and hit .536 (18-3-28), adding five digs, a block, and a service ace. Alyssa Garvelink added eight kills, hit .429, and had four blocks, and Holly Toliver had seven kills, seven digs, and three blocks.
Rachel Minarick had 35 assists in the winning effort, pushing her career total to 4,179 and into second place in the all-time MSU record book. She now trails just Nikki Colson (2000-03) who sits atop the MSU career assists list with 4,563
For the home team, Symone Abbott had 11 kills, hit .474 (11-2-19), while Nia Robinson added eight kills
Michigan State has a home weekend on tap for its next action - the Spartans welcome Illinois to town on Friday and then will host the rematch with the Wildcats at Jenison Field House on Saturday.. QUOTABLE
"Winning on the road is never an easy proposition for any team in the Big Ten, and how we came out tonight after a disappointing loss on Wednesday was pretty important. We obviously got a big night from Autumn Bailey, but I thought our entire team had good energy and was focused on gettitng the job done. Now, we'll be able to have a full week to prepare for a couple of home matches next Friday and Saturday ."
- Head Coach Cathy George
TOP PERFORMERS
- Autumn Bailey had 18 kills and five digs, hitting .536
- Alysssa Garvelink had eight kills and four blocks, and hit .429 on the night
- Holly Toliver had seven kills, three blocks, and seven digs to go along with one service ace.
STATS AND STORYLINES
- Bailey had a season-best 18 kills
- Megan Tompkins delivered three service aces, a career best, in addition to posting four kills and a block, hitting .500
- MSU hit .379, just short of their season-best .398 set vs Ohio State.
GAME REPLAY
- SET ONE: The home team took a two-point lead early, but a 7-0 MSU run (which included two service aces for Megan Tompkins) gave MSU a four-point edge. Up 14-11, the Spartans finished off the set on a 9-2 run, as Autumn Bailey recorded seven kills on seven swings and added a pair of digs; MSU hit .429 (16-4-28) as a team, which included four kills for Holly Toliver and two for Rachel Minarick. MSU held the hosts to just five kills on 20 attempts (.100).
- SET TWO: The early part of the match was a back-and-forth affair, as the teams were tied at 8-8. MSU put a little distance from their hosts when they went up 12-9, and held a three-point edge until pulling ahead 16-12 on a Bailey kill and error by the Wildcats that forced the NU bench to call its second time out. The Spartans were relentless from the break, pulling ahead 22-14 after a NU service error and Tompkins' career-best third ace of the match. Northwestern made a late surge, pulling back within 24-19 aided by a pair of Spartan errors, but Garvelink closed it out with her fourth kill of the match to give MSU a 2-0 match lead going into the locker room. Bailey added six kills to her total on 13 swings and added a pair of digs and an ace, while Kranda had a pair of blocks, Garvelink had a block and three kills. Alana Walker countered with four kills for the home team, which improved its hitting percentage to .172 in the second set, while MSU hit .242.
- SET THREE: MSU had the hot hand out of the locker room from the set break, racing out to a 10-2 lead during which NU took both of its time outs. Northwestern went on a 6-2 run fueled by three kills from Symone Abbott, pushing her set total to five. MSU called time out with a 12-8 lead to regroup, but the rekindled fire of the home team allowed them to pull back within two at 13-11. MSU got big at the net, as Garvelink teamed up with Kranda on the left and Toliver on the right for back-to-back blocks that gave MSU a 17-12 lead and a bit more of a comfortable lead. MSU closed it out and won the set by a 25-18 score. The Spartans hit .379 on the night.
