MSU Captures Fairfield Invitational Title With 3-0 Sweep of CCSU

SPARTAN SYNOPSIS

Michigan State wrapped up the Fairfield Invitational with a 3-0 sweep (25-23, 25-20, 25-19) of Central Connecticut. The Spartans wrapped up the tournament with four consecutive 3-0 victories over two days.

The Blue Devils (2-8) out-blocked the Spartans 10-9 on the evening, as the teams traded mini-runs to keep all three sets fairly close. The match featured 21 tie scores and nine lead changes.

Naya Gros recorded 16 kills and hit .700, adding a pair of blocks to earn All-Tournament Team honors, which featured one player from each team in the tournament. Meredith Norris had seven kills and six digs along with three assists and two aces. Julia Hatcher added a career-best six blocks to lead the team.

Raquel Quirarte had 10 kills for Central Connecticut, recording a double-double with 11 digs and five blocks.

Michigan State, now 9-1 on the season, plays its first home matches of the season next weekend when it hosts the Auto-Owners Insurance Spartan Invitational. MSU's nine-match winning streak goes on the line on Friday vs. Albany.

QUOTABLE
"This was a grueling, yet productive, weekend for us. Four matches in that time frame was really tough, but I think we saw so many good things from our team and individuals all weekend. We may have won each match by a 3-0 score, but these teams did push and test us in different ways – and I liked how we responded. We still have work to do every week, but I'm pleased with the ways in which our team has grown over the first three weeks of the season."

- Head Coach Cathy George

TOP PERFORMERS
• Julia Hatcher had a career-best six blocks (including five in the second set alone) and added three kills and an assist.
• Naya Gros had a career-best 16 kills and hit .700 (16-2-20), adding two blocks (one solo)
• Meredith Norris had seven kills, six digs, a pair of aces, and three assists.

   STATS AND STORYLINES
• MSU had nine blocks for the fourth straight match – but was outdone by CCSU, which had 10.
• Maggie Midgette had 10 assists two kills, and a dig in the opening frame, and Elena Shklyar came off the bench to deliver 20 assists two digs, two kills, and a block.
• The Spartans have won nine straight since an opening-night setback to Tennessee.

GAME REPLAY
• SET ONE: The teams were back and forth to 9-9, but the Blue Devils were able to put together a 7-4 run to take a 16-13 edge. CCSU was slightly behind the Spartans in hitting percentage (.200-.227), but three Blue Devil service aces (to none for MSU) was the difference in the score to that point. CCSU maintained that three-point lead and won the race to 20. Ensuing back-to-back hitting errors by CCSU brought the Spartans back within one at 20-19. Down 22-20, MSU rattled off three straight points with Norris on the service line to take a 23-22 lead, but the Blue Devils tied it back up. Chronowski tipped over the block for set point, and Midgette dumped on two to give MSU the first set victory, 25-23. Naya Gros had seven kills on seven swings to pace the MSU attack, which hit .300 (14-5-30) in the opening frame.

• SET TWO:   The teams were tied at 8-8 before a 3-0 run by CCSU on two kills and a block allowed the Blue Devils their largest lead at 11-8. MSU got back into it and went on a 5-1 run of its own – capped by a solo block by Julia Hatcher and a kill off the block by Chronowski – to retake the lead at 13-12. MSU continued its run, pulling ahead 17-13 on Gros' 10^th kill of the match. An MSU error started off a 3-0 CCSU run that tie it at 17-17, but Gros refused to allow the Blue Devils to retake the lead an followed a kill with a solo block that made it 19-17. The Spartans held a 22-20 lead, and finished off the set on a 3-0 run that included back-to-back blocks to close it out. Julia Hatcher had five blocks in the second frame alone, adding three kills. Meredith Norris posted five kills, and Gros four.

• SET THREE:    The Spartans took an 8-5 lead in the final set as Gros and Shklyar teamed up for MSU's eighth block of the match at the right pin, forcing CCSU to call a time out. MSU maintained a three-point lead and went up 16-12 on a laser by Norris. Both teams struggled hitting in the set – at 17-14, each team had just seven kills – with five errors for CCSU, six for the Spartans – and each team had seven service errors in the match. CCSU fought back with a pair of blocks to tie the match at 17's, forcing MSU to call a time out. Gros connected with Shklyar a pair of kills sandwiched around a block with Chronowski to re-establish a three-point edge (20-17). CCSU called time out, but Gros got them again with her 16^th kill of the match to make it 21-17. MSU closed it out 25-19, despite hitting just .111 in the frame (but holding CCSU to .040).

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Team Stats

Naya Gros

Meredith Norris

Alyssa Chronowski

Molly Johnson

Players Mentioned

Naya Gros

Julia Hatcher

Maggie Midgette

Meredith Norris

Elena Shklyar