Spartans Head East for Matches at Rutgers, Penn State


B1G Week Seven- Spartans at Rutgers, at [15] Penn State
at Rutgers	Friday Nov. 5 - 7 pm College Ave. Gym, Piscataway, NJ
at Penn State	Sunday, Oct 31 - 1 pm R ec Hall, State College, Penn.
Radio	none
Television	none
Webstreams (B1G+/$)	a t Rutgers \| at Penn State
Live Statistics	at Rutgers \| at Penn State
Game Notes	Michigan State \| Rutgers \| Penn State
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THE WEEKEND AHEAD
• The Spartans have their final two-game trip on the schedule, traveling to Rutgers and Penn State. These teams will meet again next weekend in East Lansing, with Rutgers visiting on Friday and PSU on Saturday.

• MSU has eight games remaining on the schedule, and five of them will be played at Jenison Field House.

• Both matches will have live video webstream on B1G+. MSUSpartans.com has links to all live statistics and webstreams.

• MSU dropped a pair of 3-1 decisions in its two matches last weekend - MSU fell to Iowa at home last Friday, and at Ohio State on the road in a Sunday matinee.

• MSU's win at Purdue (10/20) was Cathy George's 300th at Michigan State, an epic 3-2 upset victory and a memorable way for the mentor to celebrate a milestone victory. She is 300-227 in her 17th season at Michigan State and 665-451 overall in her 35th season.

• Rutgers enters the weekend at 8-15 overall and 0-12 in Big Ten play, most recently a difficult 3-2 setback at Indiana last Saturday. Caitlin Schweihofer is in her second season as the mentor for the Scarlet Knights.

• MSU leads the all-time series with Rutgers by an 11-2 margin, with just one of those matches played prior to the Scarlet Knights joining the league. Rutgers earned their first-ever victories over MSU last year in East Lansing, 3-2 and 3-1.

• Penn State comes into the weekend series with a 15-7 overall record and is 8-4 in the Big Ten. The Nittany Lions have split each of their last four weekends, most recently falling to unranked Illinois after losses to Wisconsin, Purdue, and Nebraska. . MSU trails the all-time series with the Nittany Lions 7-50, and Penn State has won 13 straight between the teams.

• Russ Rose is in his 43rd season as the head coach of the Penn State program, and is the sport's all-time winningest coach with more than 1,300 career victories.

TEAM NOTES

• MSU has been without the services of at least one starter in every match this season. Senior DS/L Lauryn Gibbs missed the first 13 matches of the season,MB Rebecka Poljan has missed nine of the last 10 contests (and saw limited action in last Sunday's match at Ohio State) and Cecilee Max-Brown did not play in either match last week vs. Iowa or Ohio State.

• Michigan State put up a season high 14 blocks at Ohio State on Sunday, out-blocking their hosts 14-9 after being tied with the Hawkeyes 9-9 in the Friday match.

• MSU's average of 1.53 service aces per set on the season ranks fourth in the Big Ten. The Spartans are averaging 1.50 service aces per set in Conference games, which ranks second behind Nebraska (1.91).

• MSU's 11.95 assists per set is good for sixth in the Big Ten.

• After posting back-to-back season bests in kills against Maryland (Oct. 16, 58) and Purdue (Oct. 20, 67), MSU is averaging 12.68 per frame, which ranks ninth in the Big Ten. The 67 kills is the sixth-highest total for any team in a conference game this season.

• The Spartans are 9-2 when hitting .200 or better (7-0 when terminating at .300 or better). MSU is 0-10 if it hits below .200 in a match. The Spartans hit .203 against Minnesota (10/9) and then hit .201 vs. Maryland (10/16) - the only times this season the Spartans have hit .200 or better and lost.

• Seven of MSU's nine victories have come by 3-0 scores, with one in four (Central Michigan) and one in five (at Purdue). Eight of MSU's 12 losses are to either a ranked team (No. 13 BYU, No. 12 Nebraska, No. 7 OSU, No. 8 Minnesota, No. 3 Wisconsin) or a team receiving votes in the AVCA poll (Wright State, Michigan). The Spartans have lost to Maryland twice.

• The Spartans have played six top-15 teams over its last eight matches, and gets another on Saturday at No. 5 Penn State.

• 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).

• 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.

• 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 seventh in overall attendance this season (25.196), a list which features eight B1G teams among the top 15 attendance draws. The Spartans are eighth nationally in average attendance through nine weeks of the 2021 campaign (2,520).

• 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

• Sarah Franklin is averaging 3.99 kills per set (third, B1G) and 4.52 points per frame (second, B1G). In Conference games only, she ranks second in the Big Ten with 4.81 points per set and 4.25 kills per frame. She is also averaging 2.28 digs (third on the team) and 0.63 blocks per set, which ranks fourth behind MSU's three middles.

• A six-rotation player, Franklin delivered a double-double (12k, 11a) at Ohio State last Sunday. She has seven double-doubles on the season, and five of them have come in Big Ten contests.

• Franklin's 25 kills in matches against vs. Michigan (Sept. 29) and Purdue (Oct. 20) is the third-most by a B1G player in a Conference contest this year.

• Cecilee Max-Brown also plays six rotations for the Spartans, but has missed the last two matches. . She has five double-doubles on the year: she had MSU career bests in both kills (17) and digs (18) at Purdue (10/20), and then delivered 14 kills and 15 digs at Maryland (10/23).

• In 19 starts, Max-Brown is averaging 2.86 kills, 2.39 digs, and 0.33 blocks. She is contributing 2.83 kills, 2.53 digs, and 0.44 aces in Conference games.

• Junior Biamba Kabengele is near career bests in both kills (2.12) and digs (1.74) this season.

• Kabengele recorded 11 kills last Friday against Iowa to tie her career best in a match, and then on Sunday she established new career highs in both digs (14) and blocks (5).

• Kabengele recorded her second career five-ace game against Michigan (Sept. 29), a mark she originally set last February against Maryland. That is tied for the most aces in a Big Ten game this season. She is fourth in the Big Ten and 43rd nationally with 0.43 aces per set this season.

• Molly Johnson has started each of the last two matches. She had season bests of seven kills, three aces, and five blocks last Friday vs. Iowa. On the year, she is averaging 0.94 kills, 1.27 digs, and 0.55 blocks per set.

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

• Poljan missed nine straight matches, and saw very limited duty last Sunday at Ohio State, where she was on the court for just three points.

• Naya Gros ranks fifth in the Big Ten and 30th nationally with her career best of 1.31 blocks per set on the season, and her 92 total blocks is sixth in the B1G. She is hitting a career-best .329 (10th, B1G), and averaging 1.63 kills per frame.

• 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 1.19 blocks per set ranks sixth on MSU's career list, and is just behind the career average of most recent two-time All-American Alyssa Garvelink, who averaged 1.21 blocks per set from 2014-17. Gros' 361 career block assists ranks seventh all-time at MSU in that category, and her 424 total blocks ranks eighth in the MSU annals.

• Gros' 1.19 blocks per set average for her career ranks 12th among active Division I players this season.

• Emma Monks had a big week, posting a career-best 10 blocks and nine kills at Ohio State, hitting a season-best .600 (9-0-15), and on Friday had seven kills and four blocks against Iowa.

• Monks averages 1.51 kills and 1.02 blocks per set, hititng .276 on the season.

• Both Gros and Monks have 10-block performances this season. Gros' came against Dixie State (Sept. 3), with five solo and five block assists. Monks had one solo and nine block assists at Ohio State. Ten blocks is the fourth highest total in a game overall this season, and the third highest in a Big Ten game.

• Poljan ranks third in the Big Ten in hitting percentage (.421). 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 nine matches, but remains fourth on the team in blocks (0.76) and points (3.26) per set, and was also contributing 2.49 kills per frame (third) on the year before missing extended time.

• 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. She has two top-10 hitting performances in the Big Ten this season: her .778 (14-0-18) vs. Weber State (9/3) is still the best percentage by a player in the Big Ten this season.

• MSU's most youthful position is at setter, but both sophomore incumbent Celia Cullen and freshman Julia Bishop have seen significant action. MSU has utilized both as setters over the last five matches after Bishop saw some time in early B1G games in a defensive role.

• Cullen ranks 11th in the Big Ten with 8.91 assists per frame, and is averaging 0.20 aces, 1.82 digs, and 0.48 blocks as well.

• Cullen has four double-doubles this season , with her most recent a 18-assist, 11-dig performance vs. Wisconsin (10/15).

• Bishop had a career-best 28 assists, two aces, and 10 digs for her first career double-double at Purdue (10/20), and bettered that with 29 assists and nine digs against Iowa last Friday.

• Bishop is averaging 4.23 assists per set splitting time between setter and DS, and is adding 1.19 digs per frame.

• The two setters are MSU's most reliable at the service line. Cullen has just eight service errors in 209 chances (.962), while Bishop has three miscues in 101 serves (.970).

• Senior Lauryn Gibbs returned to the lineup against Ohio State and Minnesota (10/8-9) after missing the first six weeks with injury. She has worn the libero jersey over the last five matches. She had a season-best 14 digs in the most recent match at 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 69 matches (201 sets) in her career.

• Redshirt junior and captain Talia Edmonds wore the libero jersey in the first 16 matches of the season, and has responded with a team-best 2.92 digs per set. She is adding 0.62 assists and 0.18 aces per frame as well.

• First-year DS Grace Danziger has appeared in 10 of 12 B1G matches for the Spartans She is averaging 0.54 digs per set and has four 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 and Moore 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