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Washington State Uses 3 Double-Digit Kill Efforts to Get Past Tennessee to First Sweet 16 Since 2002

Washington State def. Tennessee 3-1 (30-28, 25-18, 19-25, 25-13)

  • Washington State moves to 23-9; Tennessee ends the season at 26-6
  • Washington State advances to the Sweet 16
  • Pullman, Washington
  • Box Score

Courtesy: Washington State Athletics

PULLMAN, Wash. – The No. 16 seeded Washington State Cougars (23-9) defeated the Volunteers of Tennessee (26-6) Saturday evening to advance to the NCAA Tournament Sweet Sixteen for the first time since 2002.

Set scores from the match were: 30-28, 25-18, 19-25, and 25-13 in favor of the Cougars..

The Volunteers of Tennessee saw early control of this matchup after a quick 3-0 scoring run over the Cougars put them out in front at 10-7. Washington State came fully prepared, and this opening set turned into a battle after a 6-0 run gave WSU a 14-11 advantage courtesy of back-to-back aces from Taylor Mims, and kills from Jocelyn Urias, and McKenna Woodford. The Vols countered with a 6-0 scoring run of their own to regain the lead at 21-18. The Cougars continued to fight, generating a pair of 3-0 scoring runs after crucial kills from both Woodford, and Urias, and ultimately capped off set one with an Ella Lajos, and Claire Martin block for the 30-28 win.

Washington State continued to ride the opening set momentum with a 5-1 run after an Alexis Dirige ace, and a Martin kill to surge ahead of the Volunteers. The Cougars kept the pressure on Tennessee with scoring runs of 3-0, and 4-0 with multiple kills from Mims, and an additional from Woodford to put the home lead out to 18-9 overall. WSU sealed the second set off with an Ashley Brown kill, and winning the set after a service error from the Vols. Roles were reversed in the third set of play in this match, as Tennessee took control of the game with a pair of scoring runs at 3-0, and a 5-0 run as well that put the Vols up 20-10 over Washington State. The Cougars did cut down the opposing lead a bit with a 7-1 run featuring multiple blocks from Urias, and a Penny Tusa ace. UT would end up claiming the set over WSU however, scoring back-to-back points for the 25-19 set victory.

The Cougars and the Volunteers were locked in an intense battle early on in set number four, until Washington State began to find its’ rhythm, totaling six straight points to jump out to a 16-9 advantage. The offensive attack was clicking in this final set as kills from Mims, Woodford, Brown, and Urias continued to fuel WSU ahead to a late 20-12 lead. WSU finished Tennessee off with a 4-0 run from kills by Woodford, and Mims, along with a service ace from Taylor, and a block from Brown and Urias to win it 25-13 and advance.

STAT OF THE MATCH
Tonight’s state of the match features the last time the Cougars advanced to the Sweet Sixteen in 2002, when Washington State defeated Kansas State in Manhattan, Kansas to continue on in the NCAA Championship Tournament.

NOTES

  • McKenna Woodford continued to lead the offensive attack as she totaled 19 kills, while hitting .261 during the contest.
  • Claire Martin record seven blocks on the night, five of which were block assists, and two solo blocks
  • Taylor Mims, and Jocelyn Urias each notched double-digit kills with 17, and 14 respectively.
  • Ashley Brown posted her 17th double-double of the year as she recorded 43 assists, and 10 digs in the win.

Courtesy: Tennessee Athletics

PULLMAN, Wash. – No. 19 University of Tennessee fell in the second round of the NCAA Tournament to Washington State in four sets.

The Lady Vols (26-6, 16-2 Southeastern Conference) season ends after making their first NCAA Tournament appearance since 2012 and their first appearance in the second round since the 2011 campaign.

In the loss, junior Tessa Grubbs finished with 21 kills while hitting .306 for the match. In her final match as a Lady Vol, senior Erica Treiber finished with 13 kills (.435 hitting percentage) to go along with a team-high five blocks

After dropping the first two sets of the match, Tennessee rallied back to take the third set, leading nearly the entire way. Up 8-6, the Lady Vols went on a 7-1 run to increase their lead out to eight points. Tennessee was able to force Washington State (22-10, 12-8 PAC-12) to hit negative in the set with nine hitting errors.

The Lady Vols had five blocks in the frame including four from freshman Raquel Perinar who came in along the front row to start the frame.

In the opening frame, Grubbs helped pace the Lady Vol offense with seven kills. Tennessee dropped a close opening set in extra points 30-28. Defensively, the team was able to limit the effectiveness of Cougar senior Taylor Mims who lead the team in kills/set.

The Lady Vols held her to a negative hitting percentage and just four kills at the midway point of the second set. Grubbs added seven more kills to her name in the second set as the junior hit the ball at a .321 clip through two sets.

Washington State took the second set to take a 2-0 advantage heading into the break.

From Coach Adams:
On the match and season:
“I’m proud of our team. Throughout the year, this team has found a way to win to get us to this point. Washington State played great. They were able to get in a lot of one-on-one situations and execute.” – Coach Adams

On final timeout in the four set:
“I told them that we were just going to keep fighting. We were going to keep playing our game no matter what the score is we are going to play our brand and style of volleyball.” – Coach Adams

From Erica Treiber and Tessa Grubbs:
On what worked in the third set:
“We were playing a lot cleaner and really playing true Tennessee volleyball compared to what we did in the other sets. Our mentality was great going into the third set because we knew we had the grit and we were trying to give it all we had.” – Erica Treiber

On feelings in her final match:
“There were lots of emotions. It stinks to lose this way but, we have a lot to be proud of over our four years. I’m excited to see where Tennessee volleyball goes next year and into the future because they are going to runs. They have so much to be proud of.” –Erica Treiber

On mindset after the second set:
“What we were thinking was that we have been in this situation before and we have done this before. We have the grit to do it and it was just a matter of execution is what it really came down to.” – Tessa Grubbs

On what was learned in the tournament for next season:
“This whole process has been a learning experience for us. Not a single person on this roster has been to the NCAA Tournament so, making it here was huge for us. Everything was a learning experience to us from the trip, to playing, to the level that you have to maintain to beat teams at this point of the season. What we have learned both yesterday and today is going to have to convert next year. We are going to come back with a vengeance.” – Tessa Grubbs

Standout Stat

  • Tennessee’s 14 game win increase from a year ago is tied for the most in program history and is the most in the NCAA era. The Lady Vols 26 wins mark the most since the 2011 season and is the third most in the rally-scoring era.

Match Notables

  • In the match, Brooke Schumacher moved into fourth all-time in the Tennessee digs list. The senior finishes tied with Kylie Marshall (2006-09) for fourth all-time with 1,374 career digs.
  • Erica Treiber finished the season with 46 services ace which ties the second most by any Tennessee player in the rally scoring era and is the most since the 2002 season.
  • Overall on the season, the Lady Vols finish 4-4 vs. ranked opponents, giving them the most wins by an SEC team over ranked opponents and making them the only team with a winning record vs. top-25 teams.

San Diego def. USC 3-0 (27-25, 25-21, 25-19)

  • San Diego moves to 18-12; USC ends the season at 22-11
  • San Diego advances to the Sweet 16
  • Los Angeles, California
  • Box Score

Courtesy: San Diego Athletics

LOS ANGELES— San Diego took down No. 17 USC in straight sets, 3-0, on Saturday evening at the Galen Center in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.

The Toreros (18-12) defeated the Trojans 27-25, 25-21, 25-19 to advance to the NCAA Regional Semifinals for the first time since 2013.

Katie Lukes led the Toreros with 12 kills and a .348 hitting percentage, while Roxie Wiblin chipped in eight kills and Hannah Patrick added seven. Addie Picha dominated at the net, registering seven blocks and Lauren Fuller and Kelli Barry anchored the back row with 12 digs and 10 digs respectively.

The Trojans (22-11) came out aggressive from the service line to start the match, putting USD out of system and giving USC a comfortable eight-point lead, 17-9, in set one.

With the Trojans leading 18-11, the Toreros put together a 6-1 run behind two kills from Lukes and two from Picha. The Toreros pulled even at 22-22 but an attack error and a block gave USC set point. After a San Diego timeout, the Toreros fought off two set points and battled all the way back to take the first set, 27-25.

The Toreros then picked up right where they left off, storming out to a 9-3 lead to start the second set. The Trojans pulled even at 11-11 before USD stepped on the gas, hitting .300 in the set and cruising to a 25-21 victory and a two-set lead.

USC jumped in front quickly out of the intermission, leading the third set 7-3, before San Diego began to find its rhythm again. The Toreros went on a 7-1 run to pull ahead 10-8. The Trojans called a timeout but it did little to slow San Diego’s momentum. USD never relinquished the lead again and won the third set 25-19 to secure the sweep over the tournament’s No. 11 seed.

With the win, the Toreros advance to the Illinois regional semifinal where they will face the 6-seeded Wisconsin Badgers next Friday.

Courtesy: USC Athletics

LOS ANGELES – The 11th-seeded USC women’s volleyball team (22-11) was defeated in three sets (27-25, 25-21, 25-19) by San Diego (18-12) in the second round of the 2018 NCAA Division I Volleyball Championship at Galen Center on Saturday, Dec. 1.

KEY PLAYERS

Jr. OPP Emily Baptista led all players with 13 kills (3e, 26att) and hit .385 to go with two blocks.

Jr. OH Khalia Lanier had 12 kills and So. OH Brooke Botkin posted eight.

Fr. setter Raquel Lázaro dished out 30 assists and had three digs and two blocks.

Defensively, Jr. MB Jasmine Gross led the Trojans with five blocks and Sr. libero Victoria Garrick led all players with 19 digs.

For the Toreros, Katie Lukes collected 12 kills (4e, 23att) and hit .348. Lauren Fuller had six kills and led USD with 12 digs. Anna Newsome had 25 assists and four digs to go with a service ace and a block.

HOW IT HAPPENED

The Trojans allowed an eight-point lead (17-9) to slip away in the first set. Despite having set point at 24-22, USC couldn’t hold off the Toreros who came all the way back to claim a 27-25 win in the opening frame.

San Diego created a sizeable early lead in set two but were caught at 11-all by the Trojans. USC stepped in front for a lead momentarily before USD seized control and wrapped up a .300 hitting set with a 25-21 win.

USC raced out to a 7-3 lead to open the third, but San Diego used a 7-1 run to claim a 10-8 lead and forced the first USC timeout. The Trojans closed to within a point at 13-12, but Toreros were never threatened again after that as USD built several six-point leads before sealing a six-point win, 25-19, for the sweep.

MATCH NOTES

USC fell to San Diego for just the second time in 14 meetings. The other loss came in 2013 at Jenny Craig Pavilion when the Toreros upended a No. 1-ranked Trojan squad. USC falls to 12-2 all-time against USD.

The Trojans fell to 80-33 all-time in the NCAA tournament and to 126-40 in all postseason matches.

USC moves to 161-37 all-time at Galen Center and to 20-4 in NCAA tournament matches played in the arena (since 2006).

The Women of Troy faced San Diego in the second round of the NCAA tournament for the second consecutive season and for the fourth time since 2010 (2010, ’15, ’17, ’18). USC fell to 7-1 all-time against the Toreros in NCAA matches.

Stanford def. Loyola Marymount 3-0 (25-20, 25-15, 25-17)

  • Stanford moves to 30-1; Loyola Marymount ends the season at 21-10
  • Stanford advances to Sweet 16
  • Palo Alto, California
  • Box Score

Courtesy: Stanford Athletics

STANFORD, Calif. – For the second straight night, top-seeded Stanford women’s volleyball swept its way to victory in the NCAA Tournament. The Cardinal advanced to the Sweet 16 with a 25-20, 25-15, 25-17 victory over Loyola Marymount on Saturday at Maples Pavilion.

Stanford (30-1) extended the nation’s longest home winning streak with its 34th straight victory on The Farm, and will host the NCAA Regional semifinals and finals, Dec. 7-8. The Cardinal has now reached the 30-win plateau for the 19th time in program history and pushed its season win streak to 28 matches, tying the school record.

Junior Kathryn Plummer posted her eight double-double of the season with a match-high 16 kills on .519 hitting to go with 10 digs and three blocks. Sophomore outside hitter Meghan McClure added 12 kills on .440 hitting and six digs, while opposite Audriana Fitzmorris turned in eight kills on 17 swings with just one error to hit .412. The junior also put up four blocks for the Cardinal.

Stanford recorded its second-highest hitting percentage of the season as a team at .438, while holding LMU to a .144 clip. The Cardinal defense was on display as it racked up 11.0 blocks and 33 digs in the sweep. Stanford finished with just one ace, registered by Fitzmorris on match-point.

Junior Jenna Gray dished out 33 assists to go with two kills and two blocks while running the offense. Senior Tami Alade led the team with five blocks, while freshman Holly Campbell added four. Junior libero Morgan Hentz finished with a match-high 13 digs along with seven assists.

Loyola Marymount, which is the last team to sweep Stanford at home back in the second round of the 2015 NCAA Tournament, was led by senior opposite Sara Kovac‘s 12 kills. Junior outside hitter Savannah Slattery added seven kills for the Lions.

Stanford will face a familiar foe in No. 16 Washington State – the Cardinal swept the Cougars in Pac-12 play this season – on Dec. 7 at a time to be determined. The winner will then take on the winner of No. 8 seed Penn State and Washington in the regional final on Dec. 8.

Courtesy: Loyola Marymount Athletics

PALO ALTO, Calif. – The Loyola Marymount University women’s volleyball team (21-10) played a competitive final match of the season, but the top-ranked Stanford Cardinal (30-1) proved to be too much, winning in straight sets, 25-20, 25-15, 25-17.

“There’s always a game plan,” said Head Coach Aaron Mansfield. “Just like with any other match, some times that game plan works initially and sometimes it doesn’t. You want to adapt as you go. It just seems like they have a couple athletes and players that we didn’t necessary have an answer for, but there were numerous opportunities to dig some balls that didn’t and execute our floor defense better, but it is a testament to them. They did a lot of different shots at a lot of different paces. It’s more hats off to them, then what we could have done differently.”

The game opened with 10 ties and three lead changes in the opening set. The Lions led 9-6 early on, before Stanford came back to even the score. The game was tied as late as 14-14 before the Cardinal built up their lead.

Stanford never trailed in the second set, but LMU did lead 1-0 and 2-1 to begin the third. With the Cardinal ahead later in the set, the Lions scored four straight with Meredith Teague serving to make it a 11-12 Stanford lead. LMU continued to fight, but Stanford pulled away late.

Sara Kovac led the attack for the Lions in her final contest, recording 12 kills. LMU’s junior setter Tess Reid totaled 30 assists, all while hitting an efficient 75 percent with three kills. Bo Culo finished with a team-high seven digs.

The Lions recorded three service aces, and only allowed one to the Cardinal.

“The BYU match obviously turned everything around for us,” said Mansfield. “Our team played so free and so confident and didn’t seem to get rattled by anything BYU through at us. That win and then the selection show was a really cool moment for our team. I was just talking to our team in the locker room about our younger players understanding what it takes to get here. We played a really good Duke team last night that we were able to beat, then we ran into a team that is better than us right now. There are so many lessons to take away, and we are so proud of this group for the resiliency to bounce back from four matches in six days. It’s a special group, and I’m going to miss them a ton.”

In their 14thNCAA Championship, the Lions improve their total record to 9-14 in the Tournament. Including this year, LMU has advanced past the first round in half of their NCAA Tournament appearances.

Illinois def. Louisville 3-1 (25-22, 26-28, 25-17, 25-18)

  • Illinois moves to 30-3; Louisville ends the season at 22-9
  • Illinois advances to Sweet 16
  • Champaign, Illinois
  • Box Score

Courtesy: Illinois Athletics

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – In front a boisterous crowd of over 3,700 Illini fans, the No. 3 seeded and ranked Illinois volleyball team earned its second-straight trip to the NCAA Sweet 16 and ninth in the last 11 seasons with a hard-fought 3-1 (25-22, 28-26, 25-17, 25-18) victory over Louisville on Saturday (December 1) night in Huff Hall.

The Illini improve to 30-3 on the season and push its winning streak a season-best 15 matches, while making their 18th NCAA Regional appearance in program history and the second in two seasons for head coach Chris Tamas.

As the No. 3 seeded team in the 2018 NCAA Volleyball Tournament, the Illini will host the Regional next Friday and Saturday (December 7-8) in Huff Hall, taking on No. 15 Marquette in the Regional Semifinal on Friday. No. 6 Wisconsin and San Diego will face off in the other semifinal, with the two Friday winners playing for a spot in the Final Four on Saturday. Match times are to be announced.

Junior Jacqueline Quade led the Illini with her 12th career double-double and eighth of the season with a team-high 14 kills to go along with 12 digs, while redshirt-junior Beth Prince added 10 kills on the night.

As a team, the Illini hit at a .281 attack percentage as senior Jordyn Poulter came within three blocks of a triple-double with 44 assists, 10 digs and equaled a season-high with seven blocks – including a career-high three solo stuffs.

The Illini block was dominate at the net as UI registered a season-high 19 blocks to Louisville’s (22-9) five, with senior Ali Bastianelli posting a season-high 10 stuffs in the win, with junior Ashlyn Fleming adding six blocks and sophomore Megan Cooney contributing five on the night.

Sophomore Morgan O’Brien led the Illini floor defense with a match-high 25 digs as the Cardinals were held to a .075 team hitting percentage.

The Illini jumped out to an early 7-3 edge in the opening set as a one-handed O’Brien dig turned into a Poulter setter dump, before an ace from freshman Taylor Kuper pushed the score to 12-8. Four-straight Cardinal scores knotted things at 12-12, but back-to-back errors from the visitors gave the Illini a 17-14 advantage midway through the first. UL again tied the score at 19-19, but UI responded with a 4-1 run to pull ahead at 23-20. Back-to-back Cardinal points cut the edge to one at 23-22, but a Poulter solo block, followed by a Prince kill finished off the first, 25-22.

Following an early 4-4 tie in the second, the Cardinals grabbed a 9-5 lead on a service ace and continued to lead throughout much of the period. The Illini closed the deficit to two on five occasions, before taking an 18-17 lead on four-straight points following a Quade and Bastianelli block. UL answered back with a 4-1 run to retake a 21-19 advantage, but the Illini fought back to knot the score at 22-22 on a Poulter ace. The Illini earned a pair of set points, but the Cardinals scored four of the final five points to even the match with the 28-26 set win.

In another back-and-forth start, the Illini broke a 6-6 tie in the third with eight-unanswered points – including three Prince kills and seven points on the Poulter serve – to take control at 14-6. The Cardinals responded with a 4-0 run of their own to close within 15-11, but four-straight Illini scores stalled the rally, capped by a Bastianelli and Cooney stuff for the 19-11 Illini lead. The two teams then traded scores before Fleming combined with Prince for the set-winning block at 25-17.

Looking to shut the door on the visitors, the Illini raced out to a 10-4 advantage in the fourth following a Bastianelli kill. Louisville responded to close within 13-9 with back-to-back kills, but a 7-2 run propelled the home team to a 20-11 lead. Leading by eight at 22-14 after a UL attack error, the Cardinals notched three-straight points to cut the deficit to 23-17, but back-to-back Illini scores set up match point at 24-17 as a Cooney kill sent the Orange and Blue to the Sweet 16 with the 25-18 fourth set victory.

Courtesy: Louisville Athletics

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — Outside hitters Melanie McHenry and Amanda Green each had 17 kills but it was not enough as the University of Louisville fell 25-22, 26-28, 25-17, 25-18 to Illinois in the second round of the NCAA Volleyball Championship Saturday night in Champaign, Ill.

UofL, making its 27th NCAA tournament appearance, finishes their season at 22-9. The Cardinals hit .075 with five aces and five blocks. The Cardinals got nine kills from Jasmine Bennett, who also had three blocks. Wilma Rivera had 42 assists and 21 digs, adding an ace to her stat column.  Illinois was led by Jacqueline Quade‘s 14 kills and 12 digs.  The Illini hit .281 with three aces and 19 blocks.  Ali Bastianelli led with 10 blocks

In the first set, Illinois ran out to a 5-2 lead, before the Cards were able to tie at 12 after a 4-0 run.  The Illini answered, going up 19-17 on a Cardinal service error.  But a kill on the next play by Amanda Green sparked a 3-0 run that gave the Cardinals a 20-19 lead.  UI had a 4-0 run of its own to go up 23-20.  UofL scored twice, one point coming on a solo block by Marijke Van Dyke before Illinois scored again and then got set point when a tip fell just over the net for the 25-22 win.

The Cardinals took the lead early in the second set, going up 10-7 on a kill by Melanie McHenry.  UofL kept the Illini at bay and led 15-12 at the media timeout on a kill by Amanda Green.  The teams traded points but Louisville kept the lead, going up 17-14 on another kill by Green.  Illinois answered with a 4-0 run and the Cards called timeout when the Illini took the lead at 18-17 on a ball handling error.  Louisville retook the lead at 20-19 on an Illini hitting error and a kill by Melanie McHenry sparked a timeout by UI.  The Illini got to set point at 24-22 on a Cardinal hitting error but Amanda Green went on a tear that saw her rip three straight kills to give UofL set point at 26-25.  The Cards were blocked to allow Illinois to tie at 26.  A critical service error by Illinois was followed up by a McHenry kill for set point and the 28-26 win which evened the set score at one apiece. Green had seven kills and Jasmine Bennett added two blocks to the winning effort.

The Illini used an 8-0 run early in the third set to take a 14-6 lead over the Cardinals.  UofL managed a 5-1 run to get within four at 15-11 but the Illini countered immediately with a 5-1 run to go up 20-12.  UofL scored on a block by Amanda Green to pull to 22-16 but would score just twice more as the Illini used .355 hitting to finish out the 25-17 win.

In the fourth set, UofL struggled with the Illinois block after falling behind 10-4 early. The Cards were trailing 15-9 and could not gain their footing against .350 hitting by the Illini.  Down 20-11, UofL showed grit with a 6-2 run with Melanie McHenry with four kills during that stretch. Illinois called timeout and then cruised to the 25-18 win.

Minnesota def. South Carolina 3-0 (25-12, 25-15, 25-15)

  • Minnesota moves to 27-3; South Carolina ends the season at 20-10
  • Minnesota advances to Sweet 16
  • Minneapolis, Minnesota
  • Box Score

Courtesy: Minnesota Athletics

The No. 2 seed University of Minnesota volleyball team advanced to the Regional Semifinal after topping South Carolina in three sets, 25-12, 25-15, 25-15, tonight at Maturi Pavilion. With the win, the Gophers improve to 27-3 overall and are one of 16 teams remaining in the NCAA Championship.

Stephanie Samedy led the offense with 12 kills (hit .345) and added seven digs. Regan Pittman hit .600 with nine kills, six digs and a team-high four blocks. Adanna Rollins posted eight kills and 11 digs, while Taylor Morgan chipped in six kills. Samantha Seliger-Swenson put up 31 assists, and contributed four kills and three aces. In the back row, CC McGraw recorded 11 digs and was followed by Lauren Barnes who had eight. As a team, the Gophers outhit South Carolina .384 to .147 and held a 46-29 kill advantage. They finished with 52 digs and six blocks while the Gamecocks had 37 digs and two blocks.

With the win, Minnesota will host the Regional Semifinal and Final. The Gophers will take on No. 15 seed Oregon, while No. 7 seed Nebraska takes on No. 10 seed Kentucky. Both matches will take place on Dec. 7, times will be announced at a later date. Winners of the Regional Semifinal will play in the Regional Final, and a trip to the Final Four, on Dec. 8.

Set Breakdown:

Set 1: Minnesota hit .542 to open the match as the Gophers won the first, 25-12. Pittman added a kill for a 7-4 lead, but the Gamecocks pulled within one at 10-9 on a block. The Gophers, however, went on a 5-0 run and a 15-9 lead at the media timeout. The Gophers went up 17-9 on an overpass kill from Morgan and a Barnes ace as SC called a timeout. The Gophers got six points on Barnes’ service rotation and a 17-9 lead. Minnesota went up 19-10 off a Samedy/Pittman block, which caused SC to use its second timeout. Seliger-Swenson won the joust for a 22-11 lead, and the Gophers closed out the set with an ace from Rollins for a 1-0 lead.

Set 2: With a one-point Minnesota lead at 6-5, the Gophers went on a 10-1 run to solidify a 25-15 second set win. The Gophers went up 11-6 off back-to-back kills from Samedy that forced South Carolina to call a timeout. SC called another timeout as Minnesota led, 14-6. The Gophers went up, 17-10 and 21-14, both on Samedy kills. A block by Pittman and Hart gave the Gophers set point, while Minnesota went up, 2-0, on a Hart kill.

Set 3: The Gophers hit .472 en route to a 25-15 set win. Minnesota went on a 6-0 run to take a 9-4 lead off a Samedy ace. Minnesota pushed the lead to 12-6 on a Pittman kill and 13-6 on a Morgan kill, which caused South Carolina to call a timeout. Minnesota pushed the lead to 17-9 on a Seliger-Swenson kill, as the Gamecocks used their second timeout of the set. The Gophers closed out the set with a kill by Samedy at 23-14, a Hart kill for match point, while Seliger-Swenson added a service ace for the win.

Courtesy: South Carolina Athletics

MINNEAPOLIS, MINN. – A season to remember for South Carolina volleyball came to a close Saturday night, as the Gamecocks lost in straight sets to No. 2 Minnesota. The team ends the year with a 20-10 overall record, the Gophers improve to 27-3 and move on to their ninth Sweet 16 in the last ten years.

SET 1: A big run for Minnesota broke the opening game open, and the Gophers took the match lead with a 25-12 win. The Gamecocks trailed 10-6 but got within 10-9 before Minnesota ran off nine of the next ten points to comfortably take the set win. The Gamecocks were out-hit .542 to .040, with the Gophers committing just one unforced attack error on 24 swings. The Carolina offense was led by Courtney Furlong‘s three kills.

SET 2: Set two would be a similar theme, the Gamecocks got within one, 7-6, but another big Minnesota run broke it open again. The Gophers reeled off nine unanswered points from there to extend the lead out to ten, and won the set 25-15. The Carolina offense was able to match the Gophers kill-for-kill, but were not able to get the runs needed to account for the early deficit. Both back lines of the defense would put up big numbers in the game, with 21 digs for the Gamecocks and 24 for Minnesota. Aubrey Ezell led the defense with seven of those 21 digs.

SET 3: South Carolina would enjoy its best offensive performance in the third set, but couldn’t limit Minnesota’s attack in a 25-15 decision that clinched the match. The Gamecocks started 4-for-4 on its swings to open the set, but Minnesota was also lights out early and had six kills on seven swings to power a 6-0 run that put it ahead 9-4. The Gophers totaled 19 kills in the third, and committed just two errors on their 36 total swings. Mikayla Shields led the offense with four kills, and the team would hit .281, but Minnesota finished at .472.

NOTABLE

  • With the Gophers ranked No. 2 in the country, Saturday night featured the highest-ranked opponent the Gamecocks have faced since 2010, when they matched up with No. 1 Florida on Nov. 26.
  • Mikayla Shields led the team with eight kills, she finishes her junior season with 1,132 for her career to date. That is the second-highest total through three seasons by any Gamecock in the program’s 46 seasons.
  • Shields also finished with 425.5 points scored for the year, good for eighth-most in the program’s rally-scoring era.
  • Aubrey Ezell’s 12 digs led the team, she finishes her career at South Carolina with 1,460 digs, just four shy of matching the program’s all-time record.
  • Courtney Koehler‘s 1,121 total assists this season are the fifth most in the rally-scoring era.
  • The service game would be a key factor in the match, Minnesota finished with six aces and just four errors while the Gamecocks had one ace and seven errors.

STAT OF THE MATCH: Minnesota’s offense entered the tournament ranked fifth in the nation in both kills per set and hitting percentage, and lived up to the hype Saturday night. The Gophers hit .384 for the match as a team, the second-highest allowed by South Carolina this season.

UP NEXT: With the season complete, the Gamecocks say goodbye to their five seniors – Callie Brown, Aubrey Ezell, Courtney Furlong, Emma Lock and Jesse Turner. Heading into the spring training season, the team returns all six starters from tonight’s match but will lose Ezell and Furlong from the team’s main rotation.

BYU def. Utah 3-0 (25-16, 25-21, 25-18)

  • BYU moves to 29-1; Utah ends the season at 19-14
  • BYU advances to Sweet 16
  • Provo, Utah
  • Box Score

Courtesy: BYU Athletics

PROVO, Utah – Fifty-four team kills led No. 4 seed BYU to a dominating 3-0 match win (25-16, 25-21, 25-18) over in-state rival Utah on Saturday in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.

With the victory, BYU (29-1) advanced to a seventh-straight Sweet 16 and extended a home match NCAA Tournament win streak to 19 games dating back to 1994.

“What a great match to be a part of,” BYU head coach Heather Olmstead said. “Utah played well and I want to congratulate them on a great season. I’m really proud of the entire team effort and the energy they brought.”

Senior Roni Jones-Perry contributed 20 kills on a .471 hit percentage while freshman Heather Gneiting had 12 kills hitting .688. Freshman Madelyn Robinson and junior Kennedy Eschenberg each had seven kills. Coming into the tournament as the top hitting team in the nation with a .318 average, the Cougars hit .410 as a team against the Utes (19-14).

Senior Lyndie Haddock-Eppich notched 45 assists, eight digs and two aces while senior Danelle Stetler provided crucial defense with 12 digs.

“Lyndie set a great match and offensively we were so smart with our swings,” Olmstead said. “I’m so impressed by Roni and how she works to get better; she was so fun to watch tonight. We are thrilled to be able to advance and get back in the gym on Monday.”

BYU came out swinging in the first set and took its first two points off of Jones-Perry kills on the outside. Utah took a slim 11-10 lead midway through the set, but BYU took off on a 7-0 run to jump ahead 17-11. The run included three kills by Jones-Perry and one by Eschenberg. A dump kill by Haddock-Eppich finished off the set, 25-16.

BYU and Utah stayed within five points throughout the second set until back-to-back aces by Haddock-Eppich put the Cougars up, 16-10. The Utes brought the score within three at 18-15, but BYU maintained distance and finished off the set at 25-21.

Utah began the third set with an ace, and took a 2-0 lead but BYU came back with an 8-0 run to pull ahead 9-3, including two kills each from Eschenberg and Jones-Perry. The Cougars maintained the lead, ultimately claiming the set and the match on a block by Haddock and Eschenberg, 25-18.

The Cougars win came before a crowd of 5,183, the second-largest home crowd in program history behind the Utah game earlier this year.

BYU will next play Florida on Friday, Dec. 7. No. 5 Texas and Michigan will play in the other Provo Regional game. The Cougars are hosting a regional for the first time since 1986 when the tournament had only 32 teams. Times and broadcast information will be announced Sunday afternoon.

Courtesy: Utah Athletics

PROVO – Utah fell in the second round of the NCAA Tournament to the No. 4 BYU Cougars in Smith Field House in straight sets (16-25, 21-25, 18-25) on Saturday, December 1.

“It was a tough loss,” head coach Beth Launiere said. “We had the kind of season, as of late, where we really didn’t want it to end. We’ve had such a nice run here at the end and we’ve been playing such great volleyball, doing a lot of winning, just a great team chemistry. From that perspective, I didn’t want it to come to an end. Unfortunately, we came up against a really good BYU team tonight.”

The Utes season comes to an end with a record of 19-14 overall. The team won six of its last seven matches coming into the match tonight against BYU.

Dani Drews led the team with 13 kills hitting .345 on the night. Kenzie Koerber was right behind her with nine kills hitting .368.

The Utes had a great start to the match jumping out to an 8-5 lead. BYU hung around though and eventually took the advantage using a 7-0 run to go up 17-11 that the Utes couldn’t recover from. The Cougars rode the home crowd to the first-set win.

BYU took an early lead in the second, but Utah still hung around. Unfortunately, the Utes couldn’t get closer than three and BYU took a 2-0 lead after winning the second set.

The Cougars took charge early in the third set building a 9-3 lead. Utah ran off a few points to try and tighten the set back up, but with the win in its grasp, BYU closed out the match.

This was the first meeting between BYU and Utah in the NCAA Tournament.

Bailey Choy led the team with 24 assists finishing off a great season. The junior setter eclipsed the 1,000-assist mark for the second straight season and led the team in aces with 48. She was two aces away from tying the single-season record for aces in a season.

Brianna Doehrmann led the team in digs with eight.

Marquette def. Cincinnati 3-0 (25-19, 25-21, 25-16)

  • Marquette moves to 27-6; Cincinnati ends the season at 26-7
  • Marquette advances to Sweet 16
  • Milwaukee, Wisconsin
  • Box Score

Courtesy: Marquette Athletics

MILWAUKEE — It was a history making night for the No. 14 seed Marquette University volleyball team as the Golden Eagles swept Cincinnati (25-19, 25-21, 25-16) to reach the round of 16 in the 2018 NCAA Championship for the first time in program history.

Junior Allie Barber led with a match-high 18 kills and a .400 hitting percentage, while sophomore Hope Werch connected for eight kills.  Junior Lauren Speckman and sophomore Sarah Rose handed out 21 and 12 assists in the match, while senior Anna Haak collected 12 digs.

Marquette (28-6) went back and forth with the Bearcats (26-8) in the opening set, trading the lead twice and seeing the score tied eight times before the Golden Eagles used a 6-2 run to close out the frame.  The Bearcats did not go quietly in the second set holding off MU’s set point twice before an attack error gave the Golden Eagles a win behind a .310 combined hitting percentage in that set. In the third, Marquette led in its entirety as a kill from Haak closed out the match for the history-making victory.

The Golden Eagles collected 11 team blocks as senior Jenna Rosenthal and freshman Ellie Koontz turned in six, often teaming up for the point. Sophomore Elizabeth Orf was also a strong presence at the net, turning in four blocks in the victory.

Marquette will travel to No. 3 Illinois and face the Illini in the round of 16 on Dec. 7 in Champaign.

Courtesy: Cincinnati Athletics

MILWAUKEE, Wis. – The University of Cincinnati volleyball team saw its historic season come to an end Saturday night as the Bearcats fell to No. 14 seed Marquette 3-0 in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.

The 2018 team will go down as one of the best in program history. 26 wins on the season is the fifth-most in the rally scoring era. Also in the rally scoring era, a .274 hitting percentage and 1,750 total assists both rank second all-time while 1,860 kills ranks third. Since the start of the UC volleyball program, the team’s attack percentage ranks as the third best ever. 1,860 total kills and 1,750 total assists are also American Athletic Conference single-season team records. The 2018 Bearcats were just the fifth UC volleyball team to ever advance to the second round of the NCAA Tournament.

NOTES
• UC ends the season at 26-8 while Marquette advances to the final 16 with a 28-6 record
• Jordan Thompson led the team with 16 kills and added in seven digs
• Jade Tingelhoff ended her career with a double-double, totaling 27 assists, 11 digs and four blocks, all team-highs in the match
• Erica Kostelac finished with eight kills
• Abby Williams and Maria Mallon both had nine digs
• The quartet of Tingelhoff, Williams, Carly Nolan and Jasmine Jones close out their UC careers with 84 wins and two NCAA postseason appearances along with numerous AAC individual career records

SET BREAKDOWN

Set 1: MU, 25-19
Neither team was able to get out ahead early on in the opening set. Dasha Cabarkapa and Maria Mallon scored the Bearcats’ first point on a block. Two Thompson kills helped keep UC close and an ace by Chrysanthi Stamatiou tied the set at six. Errors by the Golden Eagles tied the set at eight and nine later on. Up one, 13-12, Marquette went on a 4-0 run, but UC kept it close by answering with a 3-0 run, as Kostelac had back-to-back kills and Cabarkapa and Tingelhoff had a block to keep the lead within two. Marquette was able to string points together late to pull off the set victory.

Set 2: MU, 25-21
The Golden Eagles took 4-1 lead to start the second set, but the Bearcats continued to battle to the end. A 3-0 run thanks to two Marquette errors and a Kostelac kill had UC trailing by one, 9-8. Down by four, 14-10, Mallon closed the gap with a kill. With Marquette leading by six late, Mallon and Thompson had kills and Tingelhoff had a block to give UC some momentum. Facing set-point, UC stayed alive on a kill by Jones and a Marquette attack error, putting the score at 24-21. Marquette called a timeout and regrouped and was able to take the first point out of the huddle to take a 2-0 match lead.

Set 3: MU 25-16
A 4-0 run started the set for Marquette, but UC once again had a late surge to keep it close. Down 8-2, the Bearcats scored three-straight on a Tingelhoff and Jones block and two attack errors. Later on facing a 12-6 deficit, a MU service error, kill by Cabarkapa, back-to-back kills by Kostelac and another Golden Eagles error made it a one-point set, 12-11. Marquette then called a timeout, and unfortunately put together a run of their own out of the break. A 6-0 scoring spurt put the lead at 18-11. Late kills by Jones, Thompson and Tingelhoff kept the Bearcats in it, but a UC attack error and Marquette kill ended the match.

Washington def. Creighton 3-0 (25-19, 25-21, 25-23)

  • Washington moves to 20-12; Creighton ends the season at 29-5
  • Washington advances to Sweet 16
  • Omaha, Nebraska
  • Box Score

Courtesy: Washington Athletics

OMAHA, Neb. – It all came together for the young Husky volleyball team tonight, and a stunning 3-0 sweep of No. 9 Creighton put Washington back into the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Championships for the sixth time in seven seasons — but this one might feel the sweetest. Washington rode a dominant blocking effort to snap Creighton’s 21-match win streak and sweep the Bluejays, 25-19, 25-21, 25-23, in front of 2,509 fans at D.J. Sokol Arena.

The unseeded Dawgs endured a five-match losing streak during Pac-12 play and finished at just .500 in conference play, but Washington’s willingness to remain positive and continue to work day-in, day-out, paid off with their best performance when they needed it most.

The Huskies (20-12) are now off to the Regional round for the 14th time in school history. The Dawgs had a five-year run of reaching the Round of 16 from 2012-16 before falling in the second round last year. Despite losing seven seniors from that squad, the Huskies now find themselves one round farther. They will face eighth-seeded Penn State next Friday, Dec. 7, in Palo Alto, Calif. as the Cardinal will host the regional.

Head Coach Keegan Cook, reaching the Round of 16 for the third time in his four years, said, “We knew Creighton was an outstanding team, and I walk away even more impressed than I was watching them on film. Just the number of times they fought back, especially in that third set, and put pressure on us, really impressed with the program here.

“Happy for our kids,” Cook said. “We’ve had our ups and downs this year. Ten-and-ten in Pac-12, losing our last three matches, two of them in five (sets), and I liked what I saw from our group drawing upon those experiences and getting better. I told them it always felt like we should be practicing next week. Sometimes you get to this point in the season and you feel like maybe you’re a little tired and you’re done, but with this group I really wanted to see them on Monday, so I’m excited to have that opportunity.”

Washington hit .240 against the Bluejays but held Creighton to a .113 percentage thanks in large part to 14.5 team blocks. Sophomore Lauren Sanders had eight of those including two solo, and she also put away seven kills on a .600 attack percentage. Sophomore Samantha Drechsel also was in on six blocks, and she led the offense with 14 kills while hitting .312.

Junior Shayne McPherson had 20 digs including 14 in the third set alone, and she served the crucial end of the third set, when the Huskies were down 20-23 but then reeled off five points in a row to suddenly close out the victory.

All-Pac-12 junior Kara Bajema had nine kills, nine digs, and three blocks, and freshman Ella May Powell set 35 assists and added six digs and three blocks.

“It is super exciting,” said Drechsel. “I’ve grown up watching college volleyball and watching the tournament every single year. It is kind of surreal to be here and to know that we’ve earned it, we’ve gotten here, we’re in the Sweet 16.”

SET 1: Claire Hoffman hit down an overpass for UW’s first kill of the match to make it 1-1. Sanders put a slide away from Powell as the Dawgs trailed by one, 4-5. Bajema ended a nice rally with a solo rejection for 5-all, and then Powell poked a rebound through the block for a 6-5 lead. Samantha Drechsel hammered her first two kills as the teams were even at 9-9. A 3-0 Husky run put them back up, 12-11, on a Destiny Julye ace. Julye had a kill out of the back row for 14-14. Creighton served its fourth ace of the set to take a two-point lead, 15-17, and the Huskies called their first timeout. Out of the break, Niece tipped for a kill and then Drechsel and Niece met up for a rejection to tie it at 17. Hoffman then tooled the block for a third-straight point and Creighton took time at 18-17 Dawgs. Hoffman put another down for a 20-19 lead. Sanders then ended a scrambled rally with a big solo stuff in the middle and on the next Creighton swing, she and Drechsel teamed up to stuff another for 22-19 and the Bluejays used their last timeout. McPherson’s serving run wouldn’t be stopped, however, as Sanders and Drechsel stuffed a third in a row out of the timeout, then McPherson floated an ace to the back line to reach set point. McPherson’s next serve was shanked for another ace as the Dawgs closed the set on a 6-0 run to win it, 25-19. The Huskies hit .333 in the set and held Creighton to just .067 thanks to the five big blocks, three from Sanders and three from Drechsel.

SET 2: The Huskies opened set two with a Drechsel kill and then another block, this one by Hoffman and Niece. Drechsel and Hoffman put away big swings for a 5-3 Husky lead. Sanders added two more kills on the slide and then had a booming rejection for a 10-5 Husky lead and Creighton took time. Washington got its next three points all on blocks as they maintained a 13-9 lead. The Bluejays got a couple back and UW took timeout up 13-10. Drechsel had a finish from the left out of the break and after a Creighton point, she had another on the right for 15-11. McPherson dug a blast and then Sanders and Drechsel roofed another for 16-11. Sanders buried another slide and then Powell got the most of a stuff for 19-14 and Creighton used its last timeout. Creighton posted three straight points out of the break and forced the Huskies into a timeout leading 19-17. Creighton got one more, before Sanders snapped the 4-0 run with a kill for 20-18. Bogomolova then dropped in an ace for a three-point edge. Bajema got on track with a crosscourt kill for 22-19 and then Creighton missed one wide for 23-19. Drechsel broke through the block for set point at 24-20. On the second set point chance, Powell back set to Drechsel who slammed it through the block for the set, 25-21. The Huskies hit .216 in the set and again held Creighton in check to a .079 percentage, with another huge blocking effort of 7.5 stuffs. Drechsel had seven kills in the set on 12 swings and Sanders put away four of five swings.

SET 3: Bajema went off the block from the right pin for a kill and 1-1 to start the third. UW seemed to have a block and started to celebrate, but refs ruled the Bluejays kept it alive and they sent it back over for a kill for 1-3. Hoffman took a tough set off the net and found the far corner for 4-5. McPherson then had a pancake dig and Bajema blasted one into the seats for 5-all. Bajema cranked another off the block for a 7-6 edge. Washington won one of the points of the season to fire up the bench and the few fans in purple as Bajema crushed a kill from the right after an incredible rally, making it 10-8. Drechsel pummeled a Powell backset to the floor for 13-11 Dawgs, but Creighton tied it at 13-13 with a service ace. But UW got a sharp-angled kill from Bajema to take a 15-13 lead to the media timeout. A 3-0 run from the Bluejays tied things up again at 17-17 and the Huskies called their first timeout. Creighton got one more to move ahead, but Niece snapped it with a big kill on the slide for 18-18. But Creighton scored three more in a row, suddenly digging every Husky swing, and UW needed timeout again at 18-21. Drechsel got one inside the block to snap that streak, and then after a McPherson dig, she connected from the right for 20-21 and Creighton took time. Two Creighton points put the Huskies in a 20-23 hole, but Niece got a kill after a touch call was found on a replay challenge by Coach Cook. Creighton missed one wide, and then Sanders got UW’s first block of the set to tie it up at 23-23 and force the Bluejays timeout. On the next point out of the break, it was Sanders who again hunted down a rejection and suddenly the Huskies had match point at 24-23. Another tough serve from McPherson got an easy swing that the Huskies dug, and McPherson then bump set to Drechsel who let fly from the right and put it down to finish it, 25-23, as the Dawgs completed the sweep with a stunning 5-0 run. The Huskies hit .200 in the final set compared to .170 for the Bluejays and Bajema got going with seven kills in the set while McPherson had a huge 14 digs in just the third set.

Courtesy: Creighton Athletics

OMAHA, Neb. — The No. 9 Creighton Volleyball team saw its memorable 2018 season come to a close on Saturday night, falling in straight sets in the Second Round of the NCAA Tournament to No. 22 Washington.

Scores in favor of the Huskies (20-12) were 25-19, 25-21, 25-23. With the win, Washington advances to play the No. 8 national seed, Penn State, next Friday. Match times and a site will be announced in the next 24 hours by the NCAA.

Creighton ends its season with a 29-5 record, tying the program record for wins in a season. The Bluejays had a 21-match win streak, as well as their school-record 15-match home win streak, snapped with the loss.

Washington trailed 17-15 in the first set after Madelyn Cole‘s 50th ace of the season, only to respond with a 4-0 run. After the Jays worked to tie the score at 19, Washington closed the set on a 6-0 run that started with a kill by Claire Hoffman, was followed by three consecutive blocks by Lauren Sanders, and concluded with consecutive aces by Shayne McPherson. The Huskies hit .333 in the first set and outblocked CU 5-0.

Washington rode the momentum of its opening set win to take control early in the second set. The Huskies got consecutive blocks by Avie Niece to move ahead 13-8 and kept a five-point edge to lead 19-14 before Kirsten Bernthal Booth‘s second timeout of the frame. The Bluejays went to their senior All-American outside hitters to attempt a rally. Two kills from Taryn Kloth and another by Jaali Winters brought CU within two and prompt a UW timeout. A Huskies attack error gave CU a chance to tie before a Bluejay block error  and ace from Maria Bogomolova gave the UW a three-point cushion once again at 21-18. Creighton saved one set point before a kill from Samantha Drechsel closed out UW’s 25-21 set two triumph.  Drechsel had seven kills and two of UW’s 7.5 blocks in the second set win as the Huskies held CU’s potent offense to .079 hitting.

The third set saw Creighton leave it all on the line in an attempt to extend its season. The Huskies led 17-14 before four straight Bluejay points capped by a Kloth kill gave Creighton an 18-17 lead and brought the crowd to its feet. Kloth’s 10th and 11th kills came on consecutive points as CU’s lead stretched to 21-18. UW forced CU’s final timeout after narrowing the margin to one at 21-20, but Naomi Hickman and Kloth closed on a block to make it 22-20 and UW hit long as CU’s lead grew to 23-20. Washington got a reversal on a challenge, then Sanders had a solo stuff to even the score at 23-all. Another block by Sanders, and a kill by Dreschel saw the Huskies end the match on a 5-0 run.

Drechsel finished with a match-high 14 kills, while Sanders had a hand in eight blocks to pace UW. The Huskies hit .240 and had 41 kills, four aces, 48 digs and 14.5 blocks.

Creighton had 36 kills, seven aces, 39 digs and eight blocks on .113 hitting. Kloth led CU with 11 kills, and Brittany Witt finished with 15 digs.

The match marked the final contest for Bluejay seniors Samantha Bohnet, Taryn Kloth, Kelsey O’Connell and Jaali Winters. The quartet helped CU win four BIG EAST regular-season titles, four BIG EAST Tournaments, and 111 matches over a four-year span while helping the Jays to the program’s first Sweet 16 (2015) and Elite Eight (2016).

NOTES: Taryn Kloth finished with 490 kills in 2018, third-most in Creighton single-season history and the most ever by a Creighton senior … Kloth’s 1,427 career kills rank fourth-most in Creighton history  … Jaali Winters finished with a school-record 1,843 kills and 5,093 career attacks among more than 80 school records. Winters tied Creighton records for matches started and matches played in a career on Saturday, and also (along with Kloth) has played in more NCAA Tournament sets (44) and matches (11) than any players in program history … Brittany Witt finished 2018 with 510 digs, making her the first player in CU history with three straight seasons of 500 or more digs … Madelyn Cole‘s 51 aces are second-most in Creighton single-season history … Each of Creighton’s three longest home win streaks in program history have been snapped by Pac-12 teams … Creighton finished the season with a school-record 204 aces … Creighton’s 29 wins tied a school-record first done in 2012 and 2016 … Creighton is now 10-8 all-time in eight NCAA Tournament appearances, including a 2-2 mark at home and a 2-5 record in the Second Round … Creighton’s 21-match win streak was snapped. It was second-longest in program history and the third-longest active streak nationally.

Michigan def. Pittsburgh 3-2 (19-25, 25-22, 25-17, 21-25, 15-9)

  • Michigan moves to 24-9; Pittsburgh ends the season at 30-2
  • Michigan advances to Sweet 16
  • Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
  • Box Score

Courtesy: Michigan Athletics

PITTSBURGH, Pa. — With the match tied at 2, and the season on the line, the University of Michigan volleyball team pulled off a gritty win over host Pittsburgh (19-25, 25-22, 25-17, 21-25,15-9) on Saturday evening (Dec. 1) inside the Petersen Events Center.

The Wolverines advance to the round of 16 in the NCAA Tournament for the sixth time in program history, and the first time since 2016. U-M will face off against Texas on Friday (Dec. 7) in Provo, Utah, the home of No. 4-seeded Brigham Young.

The five-set match marked Michigan’s fifth of the season and first since a 3-2 loss to Wisconsin on Oct. 27. With the win, the Wolverines are now 3-2 in five-set matches this season.

Pitt took the first point of the fifth frame on a Panther kill, but Michigan was steady at the net and worked to come from behind with three blocks for a 5-3 lead and a Panther timeout. Following the stoppage in play, another block and a kill from senior Carly Skjodt pushed the Wolverines ahead to a four-point edge. Michigan totaled six blocks and took advantage of nine Pitt errors in the set to maintain a lead, and though the Panthers rallied late, the Wolverines took the set, 15-9, and the match.

The teams traded points to begin the first set, but a Pitt block followed by a Panther kill put the home team up early, 6-3. Pittsburgh extended its lead to five, 13-8, with a service ace that Michigan answered with a timeout, but a Panther kill followed and pushed the lead to six. With just 10 kills at an .065 team hitting percentage, the Wolverines never regained the lead and dropped the first set, 25-19.

Michigan regrouped and began the second set on a 5-1 run before Pitt worked from behind to tie the score at 7. Neither team took a significant edge again until back-to-back Panther kills put Pittsburgh ahead, 17-15, but Michigan responded with a 3-0 run that included consecutive aces from freshman Paige Jones to regain a lead, 18-17. A tie score at 19 forced a Michigan timeout before a kill from Skjodt and a double-block from sophomore Kiara Shannon and junior Katarina Glavinic put the Wolverines back on top once more. The Panthers eventually fought off one set point with an overturned call on a Pitt challenge, but a 25-22 second-set victory allowed Michigan to even the match. Skjodt posted seven kills in the second frame alone as the Wolverines hit for a .286 clip.

A 5-2 run that featured back-to-back aces from sophomore Natalie Smith jumpstarted the Wolverine third set, and they rode the momentum to a 14-8 lead which forced Pittsburgh’s second and final timeout. Michigan was firing on all cylinders in the third set, posting a .458 team attack average behind six kills from Skjodt and four from Jones to maintain a lead and rally for a 25-17 set victory.

With Michigan leading the match, 2-1, neither team gained more than a two-point lead in the fourth set until Pitt used a 3-0 scoring spurt halfway through and went ahead, 17-14. Michigan trailed by as many as four, 20-16, but closed the gap and came within one, 21-20, on a Panther attack error. Despite the late surge and six kills in the frame from Skjodt, Pitt used a late 4-1 scoring run to clinch set four, 25-21.

Skjodt finished with a match-high 20 kills, which marked her 11th 20-kill performance of the season, and Jones added 11 kills for her 20th double-digit kill effort of the year. Redshirt junior Cori Crocker also posted nine kills at a .615 hitting percentage, while junior setter MacKenzi Welsh tied her career high with seven kills at a match-high .778 attack percentage. Welsh also totaled 47 assists in the effort.

Led by a career-high eight blocks from Shannon, the Wolverines combined for 12 blocks in the win. Skjodt added a career-high six block assists, while Glavinic posted five to mark a Michigan best.

Michigan had four players total digs in double figures for the first time since Nov. 10, including a team-high 20 from senior libero Jenna Lerg. Smith and Skjodt both registered 13 digs, and Jones added 10. Both Skjodt and Jones finished with a kill-dig double-double.

The Maize and Blue totaled seven service aces, including three from Smith to tie her career high. Welsh and Jones each added two.

Courtesy: Pittsburgh Athletics

PITTSBURGH – A historic year for back-to-back ACC Champion No. 11 Pitt (30-2) ended with the Panthers’ only five-set loss of the season, falling 3-2 in a battle with No. 18 Michigan (24-9) in the NCAA Volleyball Tournament Second Round Saturday at Petersen Events Center.

After the Panthers won the first set, 25-19, the Wolverines responded by winning the next two frames, 25-22 and 25-17. Pitt forced a fifth set with a 25-21 win in the fourth, but could not hold on and fell, 15-9, in the final frame.

Pitt finished the year with its highest single-season winning percentage (.938, 30-2) and its most wins since going 32-6 in 1990, in addition to the Panthers’ second consecutive ACC Championship – its first outright.

Playing in what would be her final match as a Panther, senior setter Kamalani Akeo secured sole possession of third place in the Pitt record book with 3,956 career assists. She posted 28 against the Wolverines.

Redshirt senior libero Angela Seman completed her Pitt career with the second-most digs of any Panther in program history with 1,851. She dug Michigan 23 times.

Junior right side Nika Markovic led the Panthers with 19 kills against Michigan, pacing the team in the statistic for the fifth consecutive match. In a starting role for the Panthers, redshirt sophomore outside Zoi Faki had career highs of 12 kills and 23 digs.

Michigan had the upper hand in hitting percentage (.221 to .181), despite Pitt having the advantage in kills (62-58), assists (62-57), digs (76-72) and blocks (13.0-12.0).

This marks the third consecutive year with a season-ending loss in the NCAA Tournament Second Round for Pitt.

Set One: No. 11 Pitt 25, No. 18 Michigan 19

The set saw three early ties, until a 3-0 run gave the Panthers a 6-3 lead. Pitt extended its lead to 14-8 following a 4-0 run, capped by a Faki kill. A 3-0 run made it 22-15 for Pitt, and the Panthers sealed the deal with a kill from Williams with a 25-19 win.

Pitt hit just .152 in the set, behind three kills apiece from Layne Van Buskirk, Markovic and Faki.

Set Two: No. 18 Michigan 25, No. 11 Pitt 22

A 5-1 Michigan run gave the Wolverines an early advantage, but Pitt was able to tie the set (7-7) using a 6-2 run of its own. The Panthers took their first lead of the frame (12-11), following back-to-back Markovic kills. They kept the lead until a 4-0 Michigan run put the Wolverines back in front, 19-17, but kills from Williams and Markovic knotted the score again (19-19). Another 3-0 surge put Michigan ahead, 22-19, and then a 3-1 run ended the set with the Wolverines on top, 25-22.

Michigan had the slight advantage in hitting percentage, .286 to .256.

Set Three: No. 18 Michigan 25, No. 11 Pitt 17

Michigan used a 5-0 run to reach a 6-2 lead, and extended it to 10-4 following a 4-1 run. The Wolverines kept the momentum and reached a 23-15 lead after a 3-0 run and claimed the set decisively, 25-17.

The Wolverines hit a blistering .480 in the fourth set with 16 kills on 25 attempts with just four errors. Pitt could not find footing on offense, with just 10 kills and four errors to hit .222.

Set Four: No. 11 Pitt 25, No. 18 Michigan 21

Pitt retained its composure and used a 3-0 run to gain a 5-3 lead early in the fourth. Despite a 4-0 Michigan run and ties at 7, 10 and 12, a 4-0 run put the Panthers back in front, 14-12. Pit used runs of 3-0 and 3-1 to reach a 20-16 lead, and stayed in front for the remainder of the set, winning 25-21.

The Panthers had their best set in terms of hitting percentage, posting .275 with 15 kills, four errors on 40 attempts. Markovic led the way with six kills.

Set Five: No. 18 Michigan 15, No. 11 Pitt 9

Although the Panthers were able to gain a 3-2 lead, the deciding blow came in the form of a 9-0 run by the Wolverines, who ultimately gained an 11-3 advantage. Pitt was able to cut its deficit to 13-9 following a 7-2 surge, but could not overcome the margin and fell, 15-9.

Nebraska def. Missouri 3-0 (25-14, 25-22, 25-18)

  • Nebraska moves to 25-6; Missouri ends the season at 24-7
  • Nebraska advances to the Sweet 16
  • Lincoln, Nebraska
  • Box Score

Courtesy: Nebraska Athletics

LINCOLN, Neb. – In her final home match, senior All-American Mikaela Foecke had 16 kills without an error to lead the No. 6 Nebraska volleyball team to a 25-14, 25-22, 25-18 sweep of No. 24 Missouri in a second-round NCAA Tournament match in front of a sold-out crowd of 8,382 at the Bob Devaney Sports Center. With the win, Nebraska advances to the NCAA Regional Semifinal, where the Huskers will face No. 10 Kentucky on Friday.

Foecke was brilliant for Nebraska, which won its 10th straight match to improve to 26-6 on the season. She had 16 kills on 24 error-free swings, hitting a season-high .667. The senior from West Point, Iowa, moved from sixth to fourth on Nebraska’s all-time kills list on the night, passing Husker legends Jordan Larson and Nancy Metcalf (Meendering). Foecke also had a pair of aces for the second straight night and added four digs and seven blocks. Including Friday’s sweep of Hofstra, Foecke totaled 25 kills without an error in the first two rounds of the NCAA Tournament, hitting .543 while chipping in four aces, 13 digs and 10 blocks.

While Foecke had a match-high 16 kills – her highest total in any of her 10 NCAA Tournament matches at the Devaney Center – sophomore Lexi Sun totaled 11 kills on a .333 attack percentage, while classmates Jazz Sweet and Lauren Stivrins had eight kills apiece, with Stivrins matching Foecke with a .667 attack percentage. Behind Foecke and Stivrins, who combined for 24 kills on 36 error-free swings, Nebraska hit .384 in the match. The total was the Huskers’ sixth-highest of the season and top mark against a ranked opponent, as Nebraska hit over .350 for the fifth straight match. Freshman Nicklin Hames set the efficient and balanced Husker attack, nearly missing a double-double with 37 assists and nine digs. Senior Kenzie Maloney paced the Husker defense with 12 digs, while Stivrins had a match-high six blocks.

Nebraska out-hit Missouri by .168, as the Tigers were limited to a .216 attack percentage one night after hitting a season-best .412 against Arizona. Leketor Member-Meneh and Kylie Deberg both finished in double-figure kills with 11 and 10 kills, respectively. Riley Sents had a match-high 16 digs, but the Huskers out-dug the Tigers 41-38 and out-blocked Missouri 8-4. With the loss, Missouri finished its season with a 24-8 record.

Set 1: After falling behind 3-0, Nebraska rattled off four straight points, keyed by a Sun kill and ace, and a Foecke kill. The run became 8-1 after Foecke and Stivrins stuffed a Mizzou attack, and Stivrins terminated a kill to make it 8-4. Stivrins added another kill before a Megan Miller ace, and Hames posted blocks on back-to-back plays to put NU up 12-5. A kill by Sweet made the lead eight at 16-8, and Foecke put the Huskers up by nine, 19-10, with her fourth kill. A pair of Missouri attacking errors increased the Husker lead to 23-13, and NU closed it out with a kill by Sun and ace by Hames for the 25-14 win. The Huskers hit .333 and held Missouri to .061. Foecke had five kills on six swings, and the Huskers had four blocks and three aces.

Set 2: The beginning of the second set played out almost exactly as set one did. Missouri took a 3-0 lead before the Huskers went on an 8-1 run to take an 8-4 lead, and Missouri called timeout. Foecke had three kills, while Sun, Stivrins and Sweet all added one. Stivrins and Foecke also combined for a block for the Big Red. Missouri responded better this time around, however, coming back to tie the score at 10-10 with a solo block and back-to-back kills by Deberg. Kills by Sweet, Sun and Foecke kept the Huskers in the lead, and Sweet hammered an overdig before a Missouri hitting error made it 17-13 Huskers. Missouri scored three of four points to get within 18-17, but Foecke recorded another kill and an ace on back-to-back rallies to restore a four-point lead at 21-17. Sun gave Nebraska set point at 24-21 with a pair of kills down the stretch, and Schwarzenbach clinched the 25-22 win with her first kill of the night. Nebraska scored 17 of its 25 points on kills with Foecke and Sun each posting six while hitting .545 and .500, respectively.

Set 3: Foecke and Stivrins continued their dominance, combining for three early kills and a block to put the Huskers up 5-2. After a Missouri kill, Nebraska ran off four straight points with kills by Foecke and Hames and a block by Foecke and Stivrins, and the Huskers led 9-3. Foecke and Hames tacked on the Huskers’ sixth and seventh aces of the night to put the Huskers up 14-6. Missouri went on a 4-0 run, which Schwarzenbach ended with a kill. The Huskers led 18-14 before taking control of the match with a 5-1 spurt to go up 23-15. Stivrins, Foecke and Sun combined for kills on four consecutive rallies, and the Huskers closed out their fifth sweep in a row, 25-18.

Up Next: The Huskers move on to face 10th-seeded Kentucky in an NCAA Regional Semifinal match next Friday in Minneapolis, Minnesota. No. 2 Minnesota will play 15th-seeded Oregon in the other match.

Nebraska Post-Match Notes

  • Nebraska won its 10th straight match and fifth in a row by sweep.
  • The Huskers moved to 72-3-1 all-time against Missouri, including 16 straight wins and wins in 60 of the last 61 meetings.
  • Nebraska is now 110-31 all-time in the postseason after winning its eighth straight postseason match.
  • The Huskers are 75-7 all-time at home in the NCAA Tournament, including a 20-2 record at the Devaney Center. Nebraska has won 12 straight home matches and 52 of the last 55.
  • The Huskers will make their 34th NCAA regional appearance in 37 trips to the NCAA Tournament. That is tied with Stanford for the most all-time regional appearances.
  • The Huskers have advanced to a regional in 24 of the last 25 seasons and in 18 of John Cook‘s 19 seasons as head coach.
  • Mikaela Foecke and Kenzie Maloney are 18-1 in their NCAA Tournament careers.
  • Mikaela Foecke had 16 kills in the match on a season-high .667 attack percentage. With her 16 kills, Foecke now ranks fourth in school history with 1,604 kills, as she passed Jordan Larson (1,600) and Nancy Metcalf Meendering (1,603) during the match. Foecke’s 1,604 career kills are the second-most by a Husker in the rally scoring era, trailing only Sarah Pavan’s school-record 2,0008 career kills.
  • With her 16 kills against Missouri, Mikaela Foecke now has 233 kills in her NCAA Tournament career. Foecke passed Cris Hall (219) and Allison Weston (227) during the match to move up to fourth on Nebraska’s postseason career kills list, five shy of Jordan Larson (238) for third place.
  • Mikaela Foecke‘s 16 kills were her most in a home NCAA Tournament match, eclipsing the 13 kills she had in a first-round matchup with New Hampshire in 2016.
  • Foecke also added two services aces to pass Annie Adamczak (130) for eighth on the all-time career aces chart at Nebraska with 131.

Courtesy: Missouri Athletics

LINCOLN, Neb. – No. 24 Mizzou Volleyball (24-8) saw its 2018 campaign conclude Saturday evening, as No. 7 Nebraska proved to be too much in a sweep (25-14, 25-22, 25-18) inside the Devaney Center.

Despite the Tigers’ offense improving each set, the Cornhuskers were that much better throughout the night. Nebraska hit .333 or higher in each set played, including a match-best .469 hitting mark in set three.

#ShowMe Top Performers at No. 7 Nebraska
Leketor Member-Meneh: 11 kills, 3 digs
Kylie Deberg: 10 kills, 5 digs, 2 total blocks
Alyssa Munlyn: 7 kills on .400 hitting, 2 total blocks
Riley Sents: 16 digs, 2 assists
Andrea Fuentes: 30 assists 6 digs

Hear From Head Coach Wayne Kreklow
On Saturday’s matchup against the Cornhuskers…

“Obviously we’re disappointed with the outcome. We felt going in that it was going to be a tough match. Obviously it was as they’re (Nebraska) a good team and they’re here for a reason. I thought they did a really good job of putting pressure on us with their serve. It got us out of system and didn’t allow us to get in a flow. That was tough for us. I was really proud of our group and how they continued to battle. From a coaching standpoint, that’s all I can ask from our players.”

#MIZ Takeaways

  • Mizzou dropped its all-time NCAA Tournament record to 15-15.
    Despite the loss Saturday, the Tigers advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament in their fifth straight visit to the big dance (2013, ’15-18).
  • Overall, Mizzou has advanced to the second round in 10 of its 15 all-time NCAA Tournament trips.
  • Early in the second set, Sents produced her seventh dig of the match and the 1,000th digs in her career at Mizzou.
  • Sents enjoyed another strong campaign defensively as the Tigers’ starting libero, finishing with 400-plus digs for the second consecutive season.
  • Deberg tallied 10-plus kills in each NCAA Tournament match this weekend. Overall this year, she posted double-digit kills in an impressive 28 of 32 matches played.
  • Munlyn was fantastic on offense in both matches this weekend, posting 17 kills (one error) on .593 hitting.
  • Munlyn closes her legendary career at Mizzou as the program’s all-time leader in total blocks (634), block assists (516), blocks per set (1.27) and hitting percentage (.388). Additionally, she ranks second all-time in career solo blocks (118).
  • This year, Munlyn’s 143 total blocks (fourth), .394 hitting percentage (fourth), 116 block assists (fifth) and 1.20 blocks per set (10th) all ranked top 10 in the Mizzou individual single-season record book.
  • Deberg’s 59 service aces ranked third all-time in single-season Mizzou history. It stood as the most aces by a Tiger in a single season since 2002.
  • Deberg finished the 2018 campaign with 522 points, the most by a Tiger since 2016 (Melanie Crow – 532).
  • Collectively this season, Mizzou’s .263 hitting percentage (sixth), 428 block assists (seventh) and 298 total blocks (tied for ninth) all ranked top 10 in single-season team history

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