MSU VOLLEYBALL: Spartans Sweep No. 24 Arkansas State in NCAA First Round
SPARTAN SYNOPSIS
Michigan State opened the 2015 NCAA Tournament with a 3-0 victory (25-23, 25-17, 25-12) over No. 24 Arkansas State on Friday night in Seattle, Wash. Juniors Chloe Reinig (11 kills, hit .429) and Allyssah Fitterer (10 kills, five digs, three blocks) and sophomore Holly Toliver added 10 kills, four service aces, and a dig in her NCAA Tournament debut.
Michigan State has won at least one match in each of its last five years in the NCAA Tournament. MSU is now 7-4 in NCAA Tournament contests in the last five seasons, reaching the Sweet 16 in 2012 and 2013.
MSU hit .281 in the match, which included a scorching .609 (16-2-23) in the deciding third set. Each team posted four blocks, with MSU holding the edge in kills (43-33), assists (39-33) digs (35-29), and service aces (7-2).
The Spartans now await the winner of the No. 1 Washington/Denver match. The game will be played Saturday at 7 pm PT (10 pm ET).
SET ONE: There was not much wiggle room for either team in the opening set, as neither team could pull ahead by more than a point as the teams stayed close. A 20-19 MSU lead after a service ace by Holly Toliver turned into a 21-20 ASU lead agfter back-to-back errors by the Spartans. MSU tied it up on a Red Wolf shot that sailed long, then got a big block by Megan Tompkins and Allyssah Fitterer to regain the lead. Tied at 23, Tompkins and Toliver closed it out with back-to-back kills, sealing a 1-0 lead. Toliver had five kills and an ace in the set, while both Tompkins and Fitterer had two blocks. MSU hit a woeful .088 in the frame (11-8-34), but would commit just eight errors combined in the next two sets - and just two in the final frame.
SET TWO:Â The second frame started much like the first, but with MSU holding a one-point edge at 9-8, Toliver stepped in and delivered back-to-back aces to force the Red Wolves into a timeout. Toliver aced ASU a third straight time out of the break to make it 12-8, and MSU went up by five, 13-8, on a Fitterer kill. The Red Wolves cut into the Spartan lead on an ace and a sharp kill down the left line by Carlisa May, but three points is as close as ASU would get. The Spartans built their lead to as many as seven at 20-13, and closed out the set on a 4-1 run to win 25-17 and take a 2-0 lead. Fitterer had six kills and five digs in the second frame, while Reinig had four kills.
SET THREE: Tied 3-3, MSU used a kill from Garvelink and two straight from Reinig to take a 6-3 lead. Leading 11-8, MSU used a 4-0 run, helped by a Minarick ace and Toliver kill, to force Arkansas State into a timeout at 15-8. A 8-2 run brought MSU to a 23-12 advantage, with Reinig tacking on another six kills in the frame. An attacking error by the Red Wolves brought MSU to set point, and sophomore Abby Monson served up an ace to close it out. Toliver added four kills, while Megan Tompkins had three kills, an ace, and three digs.
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“I thought both teams started a little slow - be it nerves, butterflies, or just getting used to being out on the court in this setting. We settled in and got better as the match went on. We became more efficient and overcame some of our early struggles to finish the match strong.“
  -- Head Coach Cathy George
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