No. 20 Michigan Defeats Duke Friday

Friday, September 18

Durham, N.C.

6:30 PM

Duke University

Michigan

No. 20 Michigan Defeats Duke Friday

9/18/2015 8:42:00 PM | Volleyball

By: Duke Sports Information

DURHAM, N.C. – No. 20 Michigan remained unbeaten, handing Duke a 3-0 (25-19, 25-20, 25-21) setback Friday evening in Cameron Indoor Stadium. The Wolverines moved to 10-0 on the year while the Blue Devils fell to 5-4.

Neither team was able to establish a rhythm throughout the match as the two squads combined for a .137 hitting percentage. The Blue Devils posted a season-low .112 clip, committing 23 attack errors for the match. Michigan's hitting percentage of .214 in the third set was the highest for either team in any frame of the contest.

Michigan's Adeja Lambert led all players with 13 kills. Duke's Alyse Whitaker also reached double-digit kills, knocking down a team-high 11 to go along with three blocks.

Three Blue Devils picked up double-digit digs in libero Sasha Karelov, outside hitter Emily Sklar and defensive specialist Kelli Kalinoski. Karelov added a match-high 18, while Sklar and Kalinoski chipped in 13 and 10, respectively.

“Really disappointed, but I thought we did some things well,” said head coach Jolene Nagel. “Then we made errors we can't afford to make. We have to eliminate those errors so we can build on the good things we do. If we could've gotten rid of the net violations and the miscommunications that we normally don't see, it might've been a different story.”

Duke started strong with a 4-2 advantage to open the match. An 14-5 Michigan spurt established a comfortable margin for the Wolverines which the Blue Devils were unable to threaten until a Whitaker and Leah Meyer block made it a 19-18 game. Michigan responded by winning six of the final seven points to seal the set.

Michigan again took control of the second set through the middle portion, building a six-point cushion at 22-16. Duke pulled within striking distance with three-straight tallies, but two Lambert kills and a Duke error brought the stanza to an end.

Tied at 11-11, the Wolverines put together a 7-1 stretch in the third to lead 18-12. Duke came no closer than three points the rest of the way.

The Blue Devils return to Cameron Indoor Stadium Saturday, Sept. 19 at 6:30 p.m., to face Michigan State.

#GoDuke