Final Stats

EAST LANSING, MICH. - In a rematch on the road, the Rutgers women's volleyball team was swept by No. 11 Michigan State on Wednesday night at Jenison Field House. The Spartans (17-4, 6-3 Big Ten) topped the Scarlet Knights (4-18, 0-9 Big Ten) by set scores of 25-15, 25-13, and 25-16.

Junior outside hitter Meme Fletcher led RU with 10 kills in the match, along with two blocks. Senior right side Lauren Cloyd followed with five kills of her own.

The Spartans were led by Holly Toliver with 10 kills to go with a .533 hitting percentage. Chloe Reinig also added in 10 kills and a .500 hitting clip to guide MSU.

Rutgers and Michigan State opened set one trading points with neither team generating a margin larger than one point. After nine ties on the board, an ace for sophomore middle blocker Tiaja McKnight put the Scarlet Knights in front, 10-9. The score would be tied on three more occasions before the Spartans tacked on three consecutive points to generate a 16-12 edge, the largest for either side during the span. Although a Cole Trimble kill ended the run, MSU held a lead for the remainder of the set en route to a 1-0 advantage.

Although Rutgers kept the margin within one at 5-4 at the start of the second frame, it was as close as the Scarlet Knights would come. From there, Michigan State never let up control of the scoreboard, claiming its second consecutive set win in the contest. Moving into the third, MSU's momentum kept RU out of its groove. The teams traded points late in stanza, but the margin was too large for the Scarlet Knights to overcome as the Spartans picked up the victory in the third and final set to close the match.

UP NEXT
Rutgers welcomes Maryland to the College Ave Gym on Saturday, Oct. 22 for its annual PINK OUT for Breast Cancer Awareness. First serve is set for 7 p.m. on BTN Plus.

KNIGHT NOTES

• Rutgers made its second appearance on the Big Ten Network this season. The Scarlet Knights made their season debut on the network at No. 22 Purdue on Saturday, Oct. 15.
• RU competed in its seventh match of the year that featured a ranked opponent and its second match of the season against a ranked Michigan State squad. All ranked matches have come against a conference foe.
• Rutgers matched is team-high in a conference match with five aces, having two Scarlet Knights finish with two aces. RU last posted five aces against No. 22 Purdue.
• Tiaja McKnight matched her career-high for the second time this season with two service aces.

Follow Rutgers Volleyball on Twitter and Instagram (@RUvball) for all of the latest news and updates. The team is also on Facebook (www.facebook.com/RutgersVolleyball). For all Rutgers Athletics news follow us on Twitter(@RUAthletics), Instagram (@RUAthletics), Snapchat (@RUAthletics) and Facebook (www.facebook.com/RutgersAthletics).

-RU-