Friday, September 20
Durham, N.C.
6:30 PM
Michigan State University
7-3,0-0Big Ten
3
at
2
Duke
4-6,0-0ACC
1
2
3
4
5
F
Michigan St.
25
25
20
21
15
3
Duke
22
21
25
25
10
2
Photo by: Brittney Kimball
Volleyball Shows Grit in Five Set Victory at Duke
9/20/2024 11:20:00 PM | Volleyball
DURHAM, N.C. – Playing in its first five set match of the season, Michigan State took down Duke, 3-2 (25-22, 25-21, 20-25, 21-25, 15-10), inside historic Cameron Indoor Stadium on Friday night. MSU dug deep to control set five from the onset after the Blue Devils charged back to take sets three and four.
"I loved the resilience," said Michigan State head coach Leah Johnson. "We had the 2-0 lead and kept fighting, I never felt like caved. We stayed in control. We were hungry in that fifth set and willed ourselves to win."
Michigan State improves to 7-3 overall ahead of Sunday afternoon's match in Chapel Hill, N.C. at University of North Carolina.
The Spartans were led by an 11-block effort from sophomore middle blocker Zuzanna Kulig. Kulig's 11 blocks are the most by an MSU student-athlete since Alyssa Garvelink's 11 against Northwestern on November 19, 2014. Kulig also contributed nine kills of 18 swings, hitting .500 with no errors and a service ace.
Junior outside hitter Akasha Anderson's 13 kills paced the Michigan State offense, followed by a 10 kill, eight dig effort from sophomore outside hitter Taylah Holdem. Senior opposite Aliyah Moore posted a season-high nine kills. Alongside Kulig, junior middle blocker Evie Doezema hit .857 with six kills on seven attempts to give the Spartan middles a .600 hitting night (15-0-25).
Senior setter Rachel Muisenga led MSU with 28 assists and fifth year libero Nalani Iosia's 25 digs matched her season high.
As a team Michigan State out-hit Duke .268 to .246 and out-blocked the Blue Devils 16 to six. MSU's 16 blocks were a season best as a team to top the previous mark of 11.
A Muisenga service ace sparked a 7-0 run in set one to give MSU a 16-9 advantage out of the media timeout. Two Spartan blocks and two Anderson kills put Michigan State ahead 20-12 late in the first, but Duke charged back on an 8-2 run to cut MSU's lead to two at 22-20. A Blue Devil service error, one of 17 for Duke on the night, put Michigan State on set point before Kulig found the set clinching kill.
Duke led 15-11 mid-way through the second before a 6-0 Spartan run forced it's first timeout. MSU got kills from Holdem and junior outside hitter Taylor Preston during the run, along with two blocks and a Iosia service ace. Duke responded with a 4-1 run of its own, with a Rylie Kadel ace putting them ahead 19-18. After a four kill first set, Moore heated up once again to give MSU a 23-20 lead late in set two. Moore contributed three kills and a block during a 5-1 Spartan run. Once again, a Blue Devil service error put MSU on set point before Anderson's kill ended the frame.
A back-and-forth third stanza saw 12 tied scores despite just two lead changes. Holdem tied the set at 17-17 before Duke ended it on an 8-3 run.
Doezema and Preston brought the Spartans back within one mid-way through the fourth, 16-15, but the Blue Devils would take a 23-17 lead on a 7-2 stretch. MSU rattled off four straight points to bring themselves back within a pair, 23-21, and force a Duke timeout, but the Blue Devils gathered energy from the home crowd to force a fifth set.
Michigan State controlled set five from the jump taking a 4-1 lead on a Kulig kill. Service errors continued to plague Duke, with its third of the set and final of the match giving MSU a 12-9 lead. Blue Devil outside hitter Kerry Keefe's 27th kill of the night pulled Duke within two points of the Spartans, 12-10, but Holdem took over late for MSU. Holdem's 10th and final kill put Michigan State ahead 13-10 and her first ace of the night ended the mach.
Up Next
Michigan State will have a day to recuperate before taking on North Carolina (7-1) at 1:00 p.m. on Sunday, September 22 inside Carmichael Arena. The Tar Heels defeated Michigan in five sets, 3-2, on Friday night.
"I loved the resilience," said Michigan State head coach Leah Johnson. "We had the 2-0 lead and kept fighting, I never felt like caved. We stayed in control. We were hungry in that fifth set and willed ourselves to win."
Michigan State improves to 7-3 overall ahead of Sunday afternoon's match in Chapel Hill, N.C. at University of North Carolina.
The Spartans were led by an 11-block effort from sophomore middle blocker Zuzanna Kulig. Kulig's 11 blocks are the most by an MSU student-athlete since Alyssa Garvelink's 11 against Northwestern on November 19, 2014. Kulig also contributed nine kills of 18 swings, hitting .500 with no errors and a service ace.
Junior outside hitter Akasha Anderson's 13 kills paced the Michigan State offense, followed by a 10 kill, eight dig effort from sophomore outside hitter Taylah Holdem. Senior opposite Aliyah Moore posted a season-high nine kills. Alongside Kulig, junior middle blocker Evie Doezema hit .857 with six kills on seven attempts to give the Spartan middles a .600 hitting night (15-0-25).
Senior setter Rachel Muisenga led MSU with 28 assists and fifth year libero Nalani Iosia's 25 digs matched her season high.
As a team Michigan State out-hit Duke .268 to .246 and out-blocked the Blue Devils 16 to six. MSU's 16 blocks were a season best as a team to top the previous mark of 11.
A Muisenga service ace sparked a 7-0 run in set one to give MSU a 16-9 advantage out of the media timeout. Two Spartan blocks and two Anderson kills put Michigan State ahead 20-12 late in the first, but Duke charged back on an 8-2 run to cut MSU's lead to two at 22-20. A Blue Devil service error, one of 17 for Duke on the night, put Michigan State on set point before Kulig found the set clinching kill.
Duke led 15-11 mid-way through the second before a 6-0 Spartan run forced it's first timeout. MSU got kills from Holdem and junior outside hitter Taylor Preston during the run, along with two blocks and a Iosia service ace. Duke responded with a 4-1 run of its own, with a Rylie Kadel ace putting them ahead 19-18. After a four kill first set, Moore heated up once again to give MSU a 23-20 lead late in set two. Moore contributed three kills and a block during a 5-1 Spartan run. Once again, a Blue Devil service error put MSU on set point before Anderson's kill ended the frame.
A back-and-forth third stanza saw 12 tied scores despite just two lead changes. Holdem tied the set at 17-17 before Duke ended it on an 8-3 run.
Doezema and Preston brought the Spartans back within one mid-way through the fourth, 16-15, but the Blue Devils would take a 23-17 lead on a 7-2 stretch. MSU rattled off four straight points to bring themselves back within a pair, 23-21, and force a Duke timeout, but the Blue Devils gathered energy from the home crowd to force a fifth set.
Michigan State controlled set five from the jump taking a 4-1 lead on a Kulig kill. Service errors continued to plague Duke, with its third of the set and final of the match giving MSU a 12-9 lead. Blue Devil outside hitter Kerry Keefe's 27th kill of the night pulled Duke within two points of the Spartans, 12-10, but Holdem took over late for MSU. Holdem's 10th and final kill put Michigan State ahead 13-10 and her first ace of the night ended the mach.
Up Next
Michigan State will have a day to recuperate before taking on North Carolina (7-1) at 1:00 p.m. on Sunday, September 22 inside Carmichael Arena. The Tar Heels defeated Michigan in five sets, 3-2, on Friday night.
Team Stats
MSU
DU
Kills
56
67
Errors
19
26
Attempts
138
167
Hitting %
.268
.246
Points
77.0
81.0
Assists
53
63
Aces
5
8
Blocks
16
6
Game Leaders
Kills-Aces-Blocks
Kills
13
Aces
0
Blocks
2
Kills
10
Aces
1
Blocks
2
Kills
9
Aces
0
Blocks
4
Kills
9
Aces
1
Blocks
11
Players Mentioned
OH
/ Volleyball
MB
/ VolleyballOH
/ Volleyball
DS/L
/ VolleyballMB
/ VolleyballOH
/ Volleyball
S
/ Volleyball
OH
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