EAST LANSING, Mich. - Michigan State volleyball will host a pair of B1G matches inside the Breslin Students Events Center this weekend, first hosting No. 2-ranked Nebraska on Friday, Oct. 6 at 7:00 p.m. before a quick turnaround to face Northwestern on Saturday, Oct. 7 at 7:00 p.m. The Spartans recently faced Northwestern last weekend, defeating the Wildcats, 3-2, at Welsh-Ryan Arena in Evanston, Ill.
Both of this weekend's upcoming matches will be streamed on B1G+. Student broadcasters Owen Oszust, Zach Surdenik and Joe DesVergnes will be calling the action for Big Ten Network StudentU. Fans can listen in live via MSUSpartans.com with Jeremy Otto (vs. Nebraska) and John Kreger (vs. Northwestern) calling the action.
As a team the Cornhuskers rank No. 2 in DI in opponent hitting percentage, holding teams to .124 on the season. Nebraska ranks No. 8 in team hitting percentage as they have hit .300 over 13 matches. The Cornhuskers are No. 19 in kills per set (13.91), No. 16 in assists per set (12.89) and No. 15 in blocks per set (2.71).
Bekka Allick ranks No. 5 nationally in blocks per set averaging 1.54. Andi Jackson is hitting .436 which is No. 11 in DI. Both marks leads the Big Ten. Lexi Rodriguez leads the team in digs with 148 on 3.29 per set.
Bergen Reilly is No. 26 nationally in assists per set at 10.49, which leads the Big Ten. Reilly is a two-time B1G Setter of the Week in 2023.
Merritt Beason leads the Cornhuskers in kills at 165, hitting .281 and averaging 3.67 kills per set along with 2.20 digs per set. Beason is a two-time B1G Player of the Week in 2023. Harper Murray is second on the team in kills with 159, hitting .294 on 3.53 kills per set along with 1.78 digs per set. Murray is a three-time B1G Freshman of the Week in 2023.
Northwestern ranks No. 44 nationally in hitting percentage at .246, but No. 238 in opponent hitting percentage at .222. The Wildcats are No. 111 in blocks per set (2.19), No. 262 in digs per set (12.98) and No. 152 in kills per set (12.50).
Leilani Dodson is hitting .397 which ranks No. 36 nationally. Dodson is second on the team in kills with 19, behind Julia Sangiacomo (161). Maddy Chinn is third with 111. Sangiacomo had 33 kills in the Wildcats' win over Purdue. Dodson also leads the team in blocks with 59 on 1.13 per set.
Alexa Rousseau is back this season for Northwestern and leads the team in assists with 475 on 9.13 per set. Rousseau can attack as well with 52 kills on the season. Ellee Stinson is the team dig leader at 218 on 4.19 digs per set, ranking No. 3 in the B1G.
- Michigan State is 2-24-2 all-time against the Cornhuskers in a series that dates back to 1978.
- Both of Michigan State's wins in the series came at home, where the Spartans are 2-6 all-time.
- MSU last defeated then #9 Nebraska on Oct. 12, 2013 by a score of 3-1. The Spartans, ranked No. 7 at the time, out-hit the Cornhuskers .288 to .258 behind Lauren Wicinski's 20 kills. Chloe Reinig (13) and Allyssah Fitterer (11) also had double-digit kills. Kristen Kelsay led with 27 assists and Kori Moster tallied 20 digs.
Northwestern
- Michigan State is 44-37 all-time against Northwestern and has won seven of the last 10 meetings between the two teams, including three of the last four.
- The Spartans are on a three-match winning streak against the Wildcats, sweeping Northwestern twice during the 2022 season and defeating them in Evanston last weekend, 3-2.
- MSU last defeated Northwestern, 3-2, on Sept. 29, 2023 in Evanston. In a match that took nearly three hours, Michigan State was led by Taylah Holdem's 25 kills and 14 digs. Julia Bishop had a double-double with 28 assists and a career-high 18 digs. Amani McArthur had 12 kills and no errors, hitting .571.
WHO'S UP NEXT?
Michigan State hits the road next weekend for matches at Nebraska and Iowa. The Spartans first head to Lincoln, Neb. for a 7:00 p.m. ET/6:00 p.m. CT match on Friday, Oct. 13 before heading to Coralville, Iowa to face the Hawkeyes at 7:00 p.m. ET/6:00 p.m. CT on Saturday, Oct. 14. MSU next returns to the Breslin Center for a mid-week match against intrastate rival Michigan on Wednesday, Oct. 18.
Both of this weekend's upcoming matches will be streamed on B1G+. Student broadcasters Owen Oszust, Zach Surdenik and Joe DesVergnes will be calling the action for Big Ten Network StudentU. Fans can listen in live via MSUSpartans.com with Jeremy Otto (vs. Nebraska) and John Kreger (vs. Northwestern) calling the action.
ABOUT #2 NEBRASKA
Nebraska is 13-0 (4-0 in road games) and holds the No. 2 ranking in the latest American Volleyball Coaches Association poll with four first place votes.As a team the Cornhuskers rank No. 2 in DI in opponent hitting percentage, holding teams to .124 on the season. Nebraska ranks No. 8 in team hitting percentage as they have hit .300 over 13 matches. The Cornhuskers are No. 19 in kills per set (13.91), No. 16 in assists per set (12.89) and No. 15 in blocks per set (2.71).
Bekka Allick ranks No. 5 nationally in blocks per set averaging 1.54. Andi Jackson is hitting .436 which is No. 11 in DI. Both marks leads the Big Ten. Lexi Rodriguez leads the team in digs with 148 on 3.29 per set.
Bergen Reilly is No. 26 nationally in assists per set at 10.49, which leads the Big Ten. Reilly is a two-time B1G Setter of the Week in 2023.
Merritt Beason leads the Cornhuskers in kills at 165, hitting .281 and averaging 3.67 kills per set along with 2.20 digs per set. Beason is a two-time B1G Player of the Week in 2023. Harper Murray is second on the team in kills with 159, hitting .294 on 3.53 kills per set along with 1.78 digs per set. Murray is a three-time B1G Freshman of the Week in 2023.
ABOUT NORTHWESTERN
Northwestern is 7-7 and 1-3 in the B1G after defeating then No. 17-ranked Purdue last Sunday, 3-2. The Wildcats non-conference slate was highlighted by a 3-1 win over San Diego who reached the NCAA Semifinal in 2022. Michigan State defeated Northwestern in Evanston last weekend in a three hour five-set marathon, 3-2.Northwestern ranks No. 44 nationally in hitting percentage at .246, but No. 238 in opponent hitting percentage at .222. The Wildcats are No. 111 in blocks per set (2.19), No. 262 in digs per set (12.98) and No. 152 in kills per set (12.50).
Leilani Dodson is hitting .397 which ranks No. 36 nationally. Dodson is second on the team in kills with 19, behind Julia Sangiacomo (161). Maddy Chinn is third with 111. Sangiacomo had 33 kills in the Wildcats' win over Purdue. Dodson also leads the team in blocks with 59 on 1.13 per set.
Alexa Rousseau is back this season for Northwestern and leads the team in assists with 475 on 9.13 per set. Rousseau can attack as well with 52 kills on the season. Ellee Stinson is the team dig leader at 218 on 4.19 digs per set, ranking No. 3 in the B1G.
SERIES HISTORY
Nebraska- Michigan State is 2-24-2 all-time against the Cornhuskers in a series that dates back to 1978.
- Both of Michigan State's wins in the series came at home, where the Spartans are 2-6 all-time.
- MSU last defeated then #9 Nebraska on Oct. 12, 2013 by a score of 3-1. The Spartans, ranked No. 7 at the time, out-hit the Cornhuskers .288 to .258 behind Lauren Wicinski's 20 kills. Chloe Reinig (13) and Allyssah Fitterer (11) also had double-digit kills. Kristen Kelsay led with 27 assists and Kori Moster tallied 20 digs.
Northwestern
- Michigan State is 44-37 all-time against Northwestern and has won seven of the last 10 meetings between the two teams, including three of the last four.
- The Spartans are on a three-match winning streak against the Wildcats, sweeping Northwestern twice during the 2022 season and defeating them in Evanston last weekend, 3-2.
- MSU last defeated Northwestern, 3-2, on Sept. 29, 2023 in Evanston. In a match that took nearly three hours, Michigan State was led by Taylah Holdem's 25 kills and 14 digs. Julia Bishop had a double-double with 28 assists and a career-high 18 digs. Amani McArthur had 12 kills and no errors, hitting .571.
HOLDEM AMONG BEST IN B1G
- Freshman outside hitter Taylah Holdem had another B1G weekend against Northwestern and Rutgers with 39 kills, 25 digs, five blocks and two aces.
- Last week Holdem ranked #3 in the conference in kills, #4 in kills per set (4.33), #3 in points (44.0) and #4 in points per set (4.89).
- Holdem had a season-high and career-best 25 kills against Northwestern on Friday, the most single match kills by an MSU freshman since 1998 (Erin Hartley, 28).
- Holdem has double-doubles in three consecutive matches dating back to Illinois (9/24) and had a career-high 14 digs against Northwestern on 9/29.
- If the season ended today, Holdem's 3.59 kills per set would rank third all-time by an MSU freshman behind Veronica Morales (5.06) and Jenna Wrobel (4.59).
- Overall Holdem ranks #7 in the B1G in kills per set (3.59) and #7 in points per set (4.08) in the season-long leaderboard.
LAST WEEK IN SPARTAN VOLLEYBALL
- Michigan State went 2-0 in the second week of B1G action to improve to 3-1. The Spartans sit in fourth in the conference behind undefeated teams Wisconsin, Nebraska and Penn State.
- The Spartans opened the weekend with a 3-2 victory over Northwestern in a three-hour marathon (21-25, 25-20, 27-25, 23-25, 15-13).
- Holdem had 25 kills and Julia Bishop had her third double-double of the season with 28 assists and a career-high 18 digs.
LAST WEEK IN SPARTAN VOLLEYBALL
- Michigan State capped off an unbeaten weekend with a 3-1 win over Rutgers, dropping the first set but bouncing back to win the next three (19-25, 25-17, 25-19, 25-23).
- Aliyah Moore and Holdem had 14 kills, Grace Kelly had 11 and Amani McArthur had 10. McArthur also had eight blocks in the match to just miss a double-double.
- McArthur was second on the team in kills last weekend hitting 22-1-44 for a .477 attacking percentage. She had no errors in a 12 kill effort at Northwestern.
- Nalani Iosia led the team with 26 digs but was closely followed by Holdem and Bishop's 25.
- Bishop led the team in assists with 53, along with 35 from Cameron Berger, 12 from Iosia and 8 from Rachel Muisenga who appeared against Rutgers.
SPARTAN STATISTICAL RANKINGS
- Michigan State ranks No. 43 nationally in team hitting percentage (.256).
- The Spartans have held opponents to .173 hitting, which ranks No. 58 nationally.
- MSU is No. 38 nationally in aces per set at 1.83, ranking No. 3 in the B1G.
- Michigan State is No. 4 in the B1G in assists per set, No. 4 in kills per set and No. 5 in hitting %.
WHO'S UP NEXT?
Michigan State hits the road next weekend for matches at Nebraska and Iowa. The Spartans first head to Lincoln, Neb. for a 7:00 p.m. ET/6:00 p.m. CT match on Friday, Oct. 13 before heading to Coralville, Iowa to face the Hawkeyes at 7:00 p.m. ET/6:00 p.m. CT on Saturday, Oct. 14. MSU next returns to the Breslin Center for a mid-week match against intrastate rival Michigan on Wednesday, Oct. 18.
