Michigan State University
8-0,0-0Big Ten
Binghamton
4-7,0-0America East
Spartans Sweep Bearcats in Kathy DeBoer Invitational Opener
9/18/2025 10:20:00 PM | Volleyball
EAST LANSING, Mich. - Michigan State volleyball earned a hard-fought three-set win over Binghamton (32-30, 25-12, 25-23) on the first day of the Kathy DeBoer Invitational Thursday night inside Jenison Field House.
MSU moves to 8-0 with the win, while Binghamton drops to 4-7. The Spartans' 8-0 start is the best start for a head coach in their first season at MSU, with head coach Kristen Kelsay topping Annelies Knoppers' 7-0 start from the 1974 season.
8-0.
— Michigan State Volleyball (@MSU_Volleyball) September 19, 2025
The best start for a first-year head coach at Michigan State. pic.twitter.com/xuH3aELPec
The Spartans hit .307 for the match and held the Bearcats to .168 hitting. MSU led Binghamton in kills (51-to-37), service aces (6-2) and digs (40-36), while Binghamton out-blocked MSU, 9-7.
In just her second appearance of the season and first start of 2025, sophomore middle blocker Carmen Waye had a career night, posting a career and team-high 14 kills on a match-best .524 hitting. She also tied a career-high in total blocks with a team-high four and added one service ace. Junior outside hitter Karolina Stansiszewska posted her first double-double of the season with 11 kills and a season-high and team-high 11 digs, marking her fourth-straight match with double-digit kills. Freshman opposite Caroline Formankova also had a double-digit night for the Spartans in kills, tallying a career-high 10 on .381 hitting.
Redshirt freshman setter Malayah Long led the Spartans in assists with 35, while sophomore middle blocker Mia Hood led MSU at the service line with a career-high three aces.
A service ace from Hood and a block from Formankova and Waye got the Spartans out to a 5-3 start in the first set. MSU extended its lead to 9-5 after a kill from Staniszewska and continued to maintain the lead early until a 6-0 run from the Bearcats gave Binghamton its first lead at 13-12. MSU retook the lead at 14-13 following a second service ace from Hood, but Binghamton fought back with a 3-1 run to take a three-point lead at 18-15. The Spartans tied the match at 19-19 with another kill from Staniszewska and again at 20-20 with a kill from freshman outside hitter Bianca Mumcular. A Formankova kill got the Spartans to set point first at 25-24, but an attacking error from the Spartans helped the Bearcats tie the match again at 24-24. The Bearcats then got to their own set point with a block at 25-24, but a Waye kill evened the frame again at 25-25. The Spartans and Bearcats then traded set points back-and-forth in extra points until a kill from Staniszewska gave the Spartans a 31-30 advantage and a service ace from graduate outside hitter Danyle Courtley sealed the set, 32-30.
MSU made quick work of the Bearcats and hit a match-best .480 in the second set. An 8-1 run from the Spartans capped off by a kill from Mumcular forced a Binghamton timeout early in the set at 10-3. Binghamton got within three at 12-9, but a pair of Bearcat errors extended the Spartan lead back to five at 14-9. MSU forced another Bearcat timeout at 19-11 after Waye's 11th kill of the night and scored four-straight points out of the timeout with a kill from Long and three-consecutive Binghamton attacking errors to make it 23-11. A Binghamton kill made it 23-12, but back-to-back kills to follow from Courtley and Long helped the Spartans put away the second set, 25-12.
Binghamton started the final set on a 4-1 run and continued to maintain the lead throughout the third frame. Coming off the bench for the first time in the match, senior opposite Evie Doezema provided a spark in the third set, cutting the Binghamton lead to 12-8 after three kills.
The Bearcats took their largest lead of the set to force an MSU timeout at 19-12. A fourth kill from Doezema and a service ace from Waye followed by another kill from Doezema and a kill from Formankova then cut the Bearcats' lead to four, forcing a Binghamton timeout. MSU scored three-straight points out of the timeout with a block from sophomore Breccan Scheck and Formankova, a service ace from junior Cam Berger and a kill from Formankova to get within one at 21-19. The Spartans took their first lead of the set at 23-22 after a kill from Waye and sealed the match at 25-23 with kills from Formankova and Staniszewska to complete the third-set comeback.
MSU continues action in the Kathy DeBoer Invitational on Friday, Sept. 19 against Bowling Green at 6 p.m. inside Jenison Field House. The Spartans will celebrate the 50th anniversary of the 1975 volleyball team during the match.
