Michigan State University Athletics
Michigan State University
2-0
Auburn
1-1
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | Final F |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Michigan State | 25 | 25 | 25 | 3 |
| Auburn | 16 | 19 | 20 | 0 |
Toliver Helps Spartans to Sweep of Auburn
8/26/2017 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
Box Score (HTML) | Box Score (PDF)
SPARTAN SYNOPSIS
MSU picked up its second win of the 2017 season on Saturday afternoon, downing Auburn 3-0 (25-16, 25-19, 25-20). The 17th-ranked Spartans are now 2-0, and Auburn falls to 1-1.
The two teams put on a display of powerful, physical volleyball, with both teams taking big swings. MSU held the edge in kills (32-27), blocks (10-3), aces (10-4) and digs (49-43), and held the Tigers to a .049 hitting percentage.
Senior Holly Toliver led MSU with 12 kills on 30 swings, contributing three aces and seven digs along with four blocks. Alyssa Garvelink had seven blocks (one solo) after a nine-block effort on Friday, and added five kills. Autumn Bailey and Brooke Kranda each had six kills, while setter Rachel Minarick had 26 assists and three aces. Senior libero Abby Monson led all players with 17 digs.
For Auburn, Macy Reese had seven kills, hitting .222 and adding a block. Gwyn Jones contributed six kills, while Shania White and Brenna McIlroy each had five.
MSU will finish up the Georgia Tech Invitational on Saturday evening, taking on the host Yellow Jackets at 8 pm.
QUOTABLE
"We started pretty slow last night, and that was a point of emphasis for us today - come out poised and strong. I thought we did that, and did a nice job of weathering the storms when Auburn tried to come at us a bit. We're still a work in progress and working on getting better in all aspects of the game, but I like the way we've responded to things when they come up in matches, making the necessary adjustments. We have a challenge with playing the host school tonight, but we're going to eat, rest, and come back to the gym determined to finish off the weekend the way we intended." - Head Coach Cathy George
TOP PERFORMERS
- Holly Toliver had 12 kills on 30 attempts, and added seven digs, four blocks, and three aces.
- Alyssa Garvelink had a match-best seven blocks and added five kills, hitting .333
- Rachel Minarick finished with 26 assists, and added three aces to the four she had Friday night in the opener.
STATS AND STORYLINES
- MSU improved to 2-0, and it was the 599th victory in the career of 31-year career of head coach Cathy George. She goes for No. 600 Saturday night vs. Georgia Tech.
- Alyssa Garvelink moved into eighth place in the MSU record book in block assists (337), moving ahead of Dawn Andrews (329) and Jenilee Rathje (332). SHe is also now eighth all-time at MSU in total blocks (422), moving ahead of Jessica Sanborn (421).
- MSU's strong service game from 2017 has continued, as MSU had 10 aces against Auburn after serving up seven against Furman on Friday night.
GAME REPLAY
- SET ONE: MSU jumped out to an early lead on some sharp hitting, and led by as many as nine points in taking a 25-16 set one victory. Holly Toliver led the Spartans with four kills, adding a block and two digs. Both Megan Tompkins and Brooke Kranda had two kills each, while Garvelink and Kranda teamed up for two blocks each. MSU held Auburn to a negative hitting percentage (7-8-34, -.029), but also only hit .115 (8-5-26).
- SET TWO: Auburn kept the second set far tighter - the Tigers held an early 4-2 lead, but MSU pushed ahead at 6-5 and led by only as many as four points. MSU held an 18-14 lead, but a Macy Reese kill, a Spartan hitting error, and a tape-aided ace allowed the Tigers to pull within one at 18-17. Garvelink stopped the run with a solo block, and a 3-0 MSU Spartan run re-established a four-point lead, at which point Auburn called its second time out. MSU kept the foot onthe gas from there, taking the second set 25-19 to take a 2-0 match lead. Autumn Bailey and Alyssa Garvelink each had four kills in the frame, with Garvelink adding three blocks. MSU out-blocked the Tigers 5-0 in the frame and led 8-1 in that category over two sets.
- SET THREE: MSU was in control again in the third, building to a 19-12 advantage before the Tigers trimmed it down to a three-point game with a 6-1 run. The Spartans did not panic and got some help with untimely service errors from Auburn that got MSU to set point at 24-20. Tolier stepped in and smoked an ace to seal the victory. The Spartans committed a match-high six errors in the final set, hitting just .139 for a match total of .159 - but the Spartans held the Tigers under .100 for the third straight set, and to just .049 for the match. Toliver had five of her kills, two blocks, and two aces in the final set.
