No. 4 Nittany Lions upset by Michigan in Wolverines’ first-ever Rec Hall win
The Penn State women’s volleyball team was practically on cruise control, poised for another dominating win.
Then, it seemed a different team took over wearing the blue and white uniforms.
The powerful swings were gone, as was the steady passing and cohesive play.
It’s been like this all season. Some days they are the best in the country, and some days they fall short of their incredibly high standards.
Even when it looked like the Nittany Lions had it all turned around, they lost their way again.
Michigan rallied to beat Penn State 14-25, 25-22, 25-22, 25-22 Wednesday night at Rec Hall, stunning the 2,728 fans on hand.
“The kids lose a little confidence,” coach Russ Rose said, “and all of a sudden it slides away from you.”
It ended a 24-match losing streak for the Wolverines against the Nittany Lions, was just their fourth win all time against the Lions and first ever in Rec Hall.
“What we had last year with leadership and seniors that were a little more competitive and dependable, we struggle with that at times,” Rose said of his defending national championship team. “I think the kids care and they want to do well, but we had a couple of people that didn’t play especially well this evening.”
Gabby Cole’s 17 kills and four blocks, Caroline Knop’s 14 kills, Kelly Murphy’s 10 kills led Michigan (18-10, 8-9 Big Ten). Carly Warner had 44 assists and 19 digs and Krystalyn Goode had five blocks.
Haleigh Washington’s 12 kills and five blocks, 10 kills each for Ali Frantti and Aiyana Whitney, and seven blocks for Whitney, paced Penn State (24-4, 13-4), which has dropped two straight. Bryana Weiskircher had 38 assists, and she, Megan Courtney and Keeton Holcomb each had a dozen digs. Simone Lee posted three aces.
Michigan had the better numbers in kills 58-50, hitting .213 to Penn State’s .210, and also winning in digs 62-56. Penn State won the block 14-8 and was tops from the service line 7-4.
“I’m not going to lie to them and I’m not going to yell at them,” Rose said. “I’m just going to say, ‘Hey, this is how some of you practice, and that’s how you play, and when you act like that out on the court, it always comes back to get you.’ I think a couple people were thinking, after winning the first game the way we did, the match would be easier to handle.”
Penn State blazed through the first set and had a five-point lead at several points in the second, and still held a 21-17 advantage late in the set. But the Wolverines took eight of the last nine points.
The Nittany Lions then looked poised to wrap up the third set when a Washington ace made it 23-22. But when the Wolverines shanked the service into the crowd, officials ruled fan interference in their attempts to chase after the ball that landed two rows up. After heated discussions with coaches of both teams, the officials ruled for the point to be replayed, and instructed the first row of fans to move back a row.
“I would just say it’s the first time I’ve seen it called in 37 years at Penn State,” Rose said. “This is the way Rec Hall’s been for 37 years.”
Rose was frustrated with the call, and knew how it affected the team, but he also knew the match got away from his team long before then.
“It didn’t impact the outcome,” he said. “It impacted that play.”
Even in the fourth set, the Nittany Lions led 14-9 after a Washington kill, but a 6-0 Michigan run turned the tide. Apropos to the plethora of Penn State errors, the final points of each of the last two sets were earned on Nittany Lions touching the net.
‘We didn’t get the job done,” said Rose, the only person available to speak to the media after the match, with the players taking a long team meeting.
Notes: Penn State is home again Saturday, hosting Maryland. The Terrapins are coached by former Nittany Lion assistant coach Steve Aird. … Michigan hadn’t beaten Penn State since 2002.
This story was originally published November 18, 2015 at 9:58 PM with the headline "No. 4 Nittany Lions upset by Michigan in Wolverines’ first-ever Rec Hall win."