EAST LANSING, Mich. – The Michigan State volleyball team rallied back from a 2-0 set deficit to earn a reverse sweep victory over Louisiana, (23-25, 23-25, 25-23, 25-22, 15-11), on Friday night in the Breslin Center.
Michigan State battled throughout the evening, weathering a storm of 15 lead changes in the match to pull off the come-from-behind victory. The Spartans hit .218 as a team overall and were at their best when it mattered most, hitting .300 in the decisive set five. Michigan State's defense stepped up in the final two sets of the match, holding the Ragin' Cajuns to attacking percentages of .079 and .074.
"We played good team volleyball in sets one and two, but a number of individual errors prevented us from finding our groove," Michigan State head volleyball coach Leah Johnson said. "We made some lineup adjustments in set two, and again in set three that I think relieved some pressure from a few players and didn't expose our arms as much in the passing lines. I think that's where the team found some confidence feeling like they could take some risks in different ways."
Freshman Maradith O'Gorman led the team with a match-high 20 kills in her collegiate debut, hitting .267 for the match. Sophomore Aliyah Moore followed closely behind with 18 kills in her Spartan introduction, which included the match-winning kill in the fifth set. Fifth-year Rebecka Poljan also ended the night with double-digit kills, finishing the match with 10 in addition to her five blocks.
Freshman Maradith O'Gorman finished the match with 20 kills
Junior Nalani Iosia and fifth-year Zoe Nunez each registered double-doubles in their Michigan State debuts, with Nunez posting a match-high 53 assists and 22 digs. Iosia set the bar for digs with 23 and added 10 assists.
"I thought Nalani Iosia was our linchpin," Johnson said. "She studied our serve receive and everyone fed off her confidence and competitiveness no matter the score. She was unwavering and I give her a lot of credit for the way the match transpired."
Nunez surpassed a significant career milestone on Friday night, earning her 4,000th career assist in the first set. With 53 assists on Friday, Nunez is just the fourth player to don the Green and White to surpass that monumental total, though 3,997 of her now 4,050 career assists came during her four years at Notre Dame.
Senior Emma Monks had a strong night in the middle, posting eight total blocks, marking the second-highest single-game block total of her career. Monks added nine kills for the Spartans, including four in the fourth set. Freshman Jayhlin Swain had 10 digs in her debut, while sophomore Avery Horejsi had five. Sophomore Abby Olin had three kills for the Spartans and freshman Evie Doezema posted eight.
Set 1: Scoring was back-and-forth through the first set as it featured 15 ties and seven lead changes. An O'Gorman kill tied the set at 22-22 late, but Louisiana used kills from Celeste Darling and Coco Gillett to take a 24-22 lead. A Gillett attacking error cut that advantage in half, but a kill by Mya Wilson locked in set one for the Ragin' Cajuns.
Set 2: Teams jockeyed for position throughout the set before Louisiana mounted a 17-12 lead following a Moore attacking error. Michigan State rallied back however, tying the set at 19-19 after a pair of O'Gorman kills. A kill by Poljan brought the score to 24-23 in favor of Louisiana, but Wilson once against closed the door with a set-ending kill.
Set 3: Michigan State controlled the early portion of the third set, leading by as many as five points (13-8) which forced a Louisiana timeout. Four consecutive points in favor of Louisiana looked to have swung the momentum, but kills from Moore, Doezema kept the Spartans alive. A Louisiana service error tied the match at 23-23 before a Nunez ace and an O'Gorman kill sent the match to a fourth set.
Set 4: The fourth set was the only set of the night to feature zero lead changes as the Spartans held control through the entire set. After an attacking error tied the set at 7-7, MSU never looked back as it forced a fifth and final set. Monks and Nunez came up big in the final point of the set, blocking a Kelsey Bennett attack. The Spartan defense held Louisiana to a .079 attacking percentage in the fourth.
— Michigan State Volleyball (@MSU_Volleyball) August 27, 2022
Set 5: With the match tied at two sets apiece, the Michigan State student section swung momentum even further in the direction of the Spartans.
"It was awesome," Johnson said. "They were so engaged in every point. We're so lucky at Michigan State with the school spirit that our student body has."
Kills from O'Gorman and Doezema sent the students into a frenzy as it forced Louisiana to call timeout late. Poljan almost single-handedly forced a timeout later in the set following a kill and a block which gave MSU a 12-8 lead. Moore put down each of the final two kills for Michigan State to send the Spartan fans home happy.
THAT'S A DUB.
Michigan State rallies back from down 2-0 to win its home opener, 3-2 over Louisiana!
Nunez and Nalani Iosia each record double-doubles with assists/digs in season opener
UP NEXT: Michigan State continues its opening weekend with matches against Eastern Michigan and Fairfield at the 2022 Auto-Owners Insurance Spartan Invitational, held Saturday, August 27 in the Breslin Center.
