Homestand Wraps Against Wisconsin, Maryland


B1G Week Four- Spartans vs. No. 3 Wisconsin, Maryland
vs. [3] Wisconsin	Friday, Oct. 15 \| 6 pm
vs. Maryland	Saturday, Oct. 16 \| 6:30 pm
Location	Jenison Field House; East Lansing, Mich.
Radio	Spartan Media Network; John Kreger, play-by-play v s. Wisconsin \| vs. Maryland
Television	Friday, Big Ten Network (streaming on FoxSports App)
Webstreams (B1G+/$)	vs. Maryland
Live Statistics	Click Here
Game Notes	Michigan State \| Wisconsin \| Maryland
Social Media	Facebook Twitter Instagram
Press Conference	Watch this week's Cathy George Press Conference
Gameday Program	Download this week's game progam
Parking Information	The lot at Jenison Field House fills quickly; fans are encouraged to utilize parking lots at the Breslin Center, IM West, or the Kellogg Center parking ramp, which features a walkway to Jenison Field House.

In line with indoor mask mandates campus-wide, all fans, media, and individuals working at Michigan State volleyball matches will be required to correctly wear a mask.

THE WEEKEND AHEAD
• MSU continues a four-match Big Ten homestand when it welcomes Wisconsin and Maryland to Jenison Field House this weekend.

• John Kreger returns behind the mic to call the action for Michigan State volleyball on the Spartan Sports Network. He will call both MSU matches this weekend.

• Friday's match against Wisconsin will air live on Big Ten Network, while the Maryland match will have live video webstream on BTN+. MSUSpartans.com has links to all live statistics and webstreams.

• MSU dropped a pair of tough decisions last weekend to Ohio State (3-0) and Minnesota (3-1). Against Ohio State, both of the first two sets went to extra points (24-26, 26-28). In the match against Minnesota, the Spartans took the first set 25-22 before falling by two, four, and four points in the next three frames.

• The Spartans went 2-1 in each of the first two weekends of non-conference tournaments before sweeping the final weekend of non-conference play with wins against Oakland, IUPUI, and Central Michigan in the Green & White Classic.

• Wisconsin is 13-1 overall on the season and 5-1 in the Big Ten, with its lone loss at the hands of Maryland in a five-setter the opening night of the season.

• The Badgers own a 54-28 all-time edge in the series, which includes a 22-14 mark in East Lansing. Wisconsin took both meetings in the spring of 2021 (3-0, 3-1) and own five straight wins dating back to the 2018 season.

• Kelly Sheffield is in his ninth season at the helm of the Wisconsin program, and owns a 216-51 record in his seasons in Madison. He is in his 21st season overall as a head coach

• Adam Hughes is in his fourth season as the Maryland head coach, and owns a 50-52 overall record through three-plus seasons.

• Maryland is off to its best start in program history, going 12-0 in the non-conference portion of the season and knocking off Wisconsin on opening night of the B1G campaign. Three of its four Big Ten losses have come at Minnesota and Ohio State and at home to Penn State.

• MSU leads the all-time series with Maryland by a 13-1 margin, and won both meetings in the spring of 2021. Maryland's last win came in a 3-2 victory in College Park in 2019.

Team Notes
• Michigan State enters 2021 with a 16-man roster, which includes four seniors, four juniors, two sophomores, and six freshmen.

• MSU's average of 1.64 service aces per set on the season ranks third in the Big Ten and 68th among Division I institutions. The Spartans are averaging 1.65 service aces per set in Conference games.

• MSU has limited its opponents to a .184 hitting percentage against, which is eighth in the B1G.

• MSU is averaging 2.45 blocks per set, which ranks seventh in the B1G and 46th nationally. Opponents are averaging just 1.65 blocks against MSU, an average of a +0.80 differential.

• MSU held a commanding 12-5 edge in blocks against Minnesota, and had 10 blocks to Ohio State's 11 on Friday.

• MSU has led in kills in 10 of its 15 matches, and has been tied or led in blocks in 11. The Spartans are 8-2 when leading in hitting percentage, and had just one opponent in non-conference play to hit .200 or better. Michigan hit .255 against the Spartans on Sept. 29, the season best for an opponent.

• The Spartans hit .203 against the Gophers on Saturday - the first time this season the Spartans have hit .200 or better and lost.

• Seven of MSU's eight victories have come by 3-0 scores, and the eighth a 3-1 triumph against Central Michigan. Four of MSU's seven losses are to either a ranked team (No. 13 BYU, No. 12 Nebraska, No. 7 OSU and No. 8 Minnesota) or a team receiving votes in the AVCA poll (Wright State, Michigan).

• Head coach Cathy George picked up her 299th victory as the coach of the Spartans with the 3-0 win at Iowa on Oct. 1. She is 299-222 in her 17th season at Michigan State and 664-446 overall in her 35th season.

• Michigan State completed the non-conference portion of the schedule with a 7-2 record, having won its final three matches. MSU's two losses came in five sets (to RV Wright State) and three sets (to No. 13 BYU).

• MSU has gone 148-30 (.844) in non-conference action in Cathy George's tenure (2005-21), and has never lost more than four games prior to the beginning of the Big Ten season.

• Three schools on MSU's non-conference schedule were NCAA Tournament qualifiers in 2020, while five Big Ten teams were selected. As a result of Covid-19, the NCAA Tournament consisted of just 48 teams in 2020, compared to the usual 64. A 64-team event returns in 2021.

• MSU currently ranks eighth in overall attendance this season, a list which features six B1G teams among the top 15 attendance draws. The Spartans are 11th nationally in average attendance through seven weeks of the 2021 campaign (2,457).

• Cathy George is one of four Big Ten head coaches to enter the 2021 season with 600+ career wins (656), along with Penn State's Russ Rose (1,309), Nebraska's John Cook (765), and Michigan's Mark Rosen (642). Through the 2020-21 season, she ranks 13th among active coaches in coaching victories with a 663-443 overall record. She also ranks 45th all-time in head coaching victories.

Player Notes
• Three players have appeared in all 13 matches for MSU thus far: Naya Gros, Cecilee Max-Brown, and Talia Edmonds. Max-Brown and Edmonds have started all 15.

• MSU returned a trio of middle blockers which includes two, three-year starters in Gros and Rebecka Poljan, as well as junior Emma Monks. It has proven to be MSU's deepest and most prolific position.

• Naya Gros ranks third in the Big Ten and sixth nationally with 1.57 blocks per set on the season, and her 72 total blocks is fourth in the B1G and 64th among Division I players. She is hitting .273 and averaging 1.41 kills per frame.

• Gros has a pair of single-match performances which both rank among the top 10 in the Big Ten this season. She put up 10 blocks against Dixie State (second), and had seven block assists in the game against Central Michigan, which ranks in a tie for 10th.

• Gros' five solo blocks vs. Dixie State (Sept. 3) tied the record for solo stuffs in a three-set match, last accomplished by Alyssa Garvelink vs. Michigan in 2015. Her 10 total blocks in the contest tied for the fifth-highest total in a three-set match, last posted by Sarah Gustin vs. Northwestern in 1998. The school record of 12 total blocks in a three-setter is held by Alexis Matthews vs. Michigan (November 2010).

• Gros' career average of 1.22 blocks per set ranks fifth on MSU's career list, and is just ahead of the career average of most recent two-time All-American Alyssa Garvelink, who averaged 1.21 blocks per set from 2014-17. Gros' 344 career block assists ranks ninth all-time at MSU in that category, and her 404 total blocks ranks 10th in the MSU annals.

• Gros' 1.22 blocks per set average for her career ranks 10th among active Division I players this season.

• Poljan ranks third in the Big Ten in hitting percentage (.421), which ranks 11th nationally. The senior had seven kills and three blocks in her last match Iowa (10/1), with three digs and an ace. Poljan has missed the last three matches.

• Poljan is fourth on the team in blocks (0.76) and points (3.26) per set, and is also contributing 2.49 kills per frame (third) on the year.

• Poljan delivered seven kills or more in eight of her 12 matches, and has hit .300 or better in eight of 12 matches as well.

• Monks made her first Big Ten start of the season at Nebraska (10/3), and delivered a team-best four blocks and added five kills. Last weekend she started both matches, delivering a career-best seven stuffs against Minnesota a night after posting five against Ohio State.

• Monks is averaging 1.05 blocks per frame, good for second on the team. She also adding 1.57 kills per set while hitting .348, good for the second-highest hitting percentage on the team.

• Sarah Franklin led the Spartans with 3.71 kills per set in the two matches last weekend, adding 1.43 blocks and 1.71 digs per set.

• A six-rotation player, Franklin delivered a double-double against Minnesota (her fourth of the season) with 16 kills, 11 digs, and a pair of aces. She added 10 kills in the match against Ohio State, while posting a career-best five blocks in each of the two contests.

• Franklin's 25 kills vs. Michigan (Sept. 29) is the third-most by a B1G player this season, and the second-most in a Conference contest.

• Franklin is ranked third in the Big Ten in both kills per set (3.94), and points per frame (4.54) - both numbers which rank in the top 55 among Division I players. . Her 2.21 digs per set is third on the team, and she is also chipping in 0.77 blocks, fourth among Spartans.

• In Big Ten matches only, Franklin is contributing 4.45 kills, 2.05 digs, 1.00 blocks, and 0.25 aces per set.

• Cecilee Max-Brown also plays six rotations for the Spartans. She shared the team lead with 10 kills against Ohio State while adding three digs and a season-best three blocks, hitting .292. In the match against Minnesota, she posted 13 kills (one shy of her season best), six digs, and two stuffs.

• In 15 starts, Max-Brown is averaging 2.86 kills, 2.14 digs, and 0.42 blocks. She is tied for second on the team with three double-doubles.

• Junior Biamba Kabengele is near career bests in both kills (2.29) and digs (2.03) this season. She tied her season best of 11 kills last Saturday against Minnesota, a match in which she added seven digs. The night prior vs. Ohio State, she delivered seven kills.

• Kabengele recorded her second career five-ace game against Michigan (Sept. 29), a mark she originally set last February against Maryland. She is seventh in the Big Ten with 0.37 aces per set this season.

• Molly Johnson appeared in both matches last weekend and in 11 overall on the season. She is averaging 0.9 kills, 1.52 digs, and 0.38 blocks per set.

• MSU's most youthful position is at setter, but both sophomore incumbent Celia Cullen and freshman Julia Bishop have seen significant action.

• Cullen ranks third in the Big Ten with 10.57 assists per frame (30th nationally), and is averaging 0.31 aces, 2.33 digs, and 0.55 blocks as well.

• Cullen has three double-doubles this season (most recently 10/3 at Nebraska). She averaged 10.0 assists, 1.86 digs, and 0.57 blocks per set in the matches against Ohio State and Minnesota.

• Kabengele and Cullen each have one of the Big Ten's most prolific performances from the service line this season. Kabengele's five aces at Michigan is the second-most overall and tied for the lead in a B1G game, while Cullen's four service aces against Dixie State (Sept. 3) is fourth.

• Bishop made her first career start at Brigham Young, delivering 26 assists, seven digs, and two blocks; she also recorded four kills on seven attempts without an error. Overall on the year, she has started three of the nine matches in which she has appeared, and is averaging 3.59 assists and 0.91 digs.

• Redshirt junior and captain Talia Edmonds earned the libero jersey this season, and has responded with a team-best 3.78 digs per set, which is good for 10th in the Big Ten. She is adding 0.82 assists per set.

• Edmonds led MSU in digs in each of the two matches last weekend, contributing eight and 14 digs, respectively, vs. OSU and Minnesota.

• Senior Lauryn Gibbs returned to the lineup last weekend after missing the first six weeks with injury. She had nine digs in her second game back against Minnesota after contributing three in her season debut against Ohio State.

• Gibbs had seen a significant increase in her defensive role for MSU, and in 2020-21 averaged 0.36 assists and 1.28 digs per frame. She had the third-most service aces and boasted a .934 percentage. She has played in 65 matches (186 sets) in her career.

• First-year DS Grace Danziger has appeared in five of six B1G matches for the Spartans She is averaging 0.70 digs per set and has three aces.

• Freshman outside Eleanor Stothoff saw her first action in a Green & White jersey in the match against BYU, and her first career kill came as match point in the win over Central Michigan.

• Abby Olin, Aubrey O'Gorman and Lia Moore have not yet appeared in any matches in 2021. Olin will miss the entire season with injury.

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Julia Bishop

Celia Cullen

Grace Danziger

Talia Edmonds

Sarah Franklin

Lauryn Gibbs

Naya Gros

Molly Johnson

Biamba Kabengele

Cecilee Max-Brown

Emma Monks

Lia Moore

Aubrey O'Gorman

Abby Olin

Rebecka Poljan

Eleanor Stothoff