Final Stats

NEW BRUNSWICK, N.J. (August 8, 2016) - Despite a strong defensive presence at the front of the net, the Rutgers women's volleyball team was edged by No. 22 Michigan on Friday night at the College Ave Gym. UM (13-2, 2-1 Big Ten) claimed the match over RU (4-12, 0-3 Big Ten) by set scores of 25-9, 25-22, and 25-21.

Tiaja McKnight led the Scarlet Knights with a career-best nine blocks, posting five in the second set alone, as RU topped UM in the team blocks category, 15.5-9.0. Lauren Cloyd and Cole Trimble followed with five blocks each, while Mikaela Matthews posted four blocks of her own.

Abby Cole paced Michigan with a .552 hitting percentage, including a match-best 17 kills. Adeja Lambert followed with 15 kills of her own and a hitting clip of .257.

Rutgers quickly shook off a loss in the opening set by keeping the score balanced, 4-4, to start the second frame. The teams continued trade points as kills for Meme Fletcher (1) and Trimble (2) held the score tied at 6-6. A block by the duo of McKnight and Trimble would inch RU into the lead, 9-8. After three more ties on the board, Michigan managed to sneak in front 16-13. However, not for long as Rutgers tied it back up 20-20 on a solo block for Fletcher. A Karysa Swackenberg ace held the Wolverines at set point, 24-22, for the second straight serve, but it was not enough as UM outlasted RU for its second set win.

Despite trailing, 7-5, to start set three Rutgers rallied five unanswered points fueled by three blocks by the duo of Matthews and Trimble to establish a 10-7 lead. Although the Wolverines tied up the frame at 11-11, the Scarlet Knights held an edge as a block for McKnight and Cloyd grew the RU lead to 15-12. Michigan responded with a 5-0 run to move back in front 17-15. Following a Wolverine error, Cloyd rejuvenated RU with back-to-back kills to reclaim the lead 18-17. The battle continued as UM took another advantage at 20-18. The Scarlet Knights kept the margin as close as one across the final serves, but was unable to stay alive in the match.

KNIGHT NOTES

• Rutgers has competed in three consecutive matches against a ranked foe or opponent receiving votes, including Penn State (No. 18), Illinois (RV) and Michigan (22).
• Tiaja McKnight posted a career-high nine blocks, registering five in the second set alone. Five blocks marked her previous career-best set in 2015.
• Rutgers posted a team season-best 15.5 blocks, finishing with four Scarlet Knights posting three or more blocks in the match.

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