Oct. 1, 2005
IOWA CITY – The University of Iowa volleyball team dropped a five-game match to the Michigan State Spartans Friday in Carver-Hawkeye Arena, 18-30, 26-30, 30-27, 30-24, 12-15. Iowa falls to 11-6 (1-3), while Michigan State ups its record to 9-5 (2-2).
Freshman Catherine Smale led the Hawkeyes with another double-double, pounding out a team-high 21 kills and recording a team-best 17 digs. Tiana Costanzo had 11 kills, while Melanie Meister had ten.
Michigan State took game one easily, hitting .310 compared to Iowa’s .024. In game two, the Hawkeyes picked things up and kept the game close the whole way. Iowa led 22-21 before a Megan Wallin kill tied things up. The Spartans began to pull away after that, and an Ashley Schatzle kill ended game two and put Iowa’s collective backs against the wall.
The Hawkeyes began their furious comeback in game three, jumping out to an early 4-1 lead. Michigan State pulled back into the game, but Iowa then ripped off eight consecutive points to take a 19-9 lead behind the serving of Smale.
The Spartans wouldn’t go quietly, and came right back with eight-straight points of their own to make the score 19-17. Iowa ended the run with a kill by Megan Gatens, then held on for the 30-27 win.
The Hawkeyes took that momentum into game four, racing to a 10-2 lead out of the gates. Michigan State managed to bring the game within a point at 18-17, but Iowa continued their strong play and took a 30-24 victory to force a deciding game five.
In the fifth game, the team’s traded points throughout the first half and traded sides with Iowa holding a 8-7 lead. The Spartans then scored four straight and took a lead they would not relinquish. The Hawkeyes managed to fight off three match points before finally falling 15-12.
Iowa returns to action this Wednesday with a mid-week Big Ten contest at No. 9 Minnesota. Gametime is set for 7 p.m.
MATCH SUMMARYMichigan State 30 30 27 24 15IOWA 18 26 30 30 12