Sept. 16, 2007
ANN ARBOR, Mich. – Tournament MVP Katie Bruzdzinski recorded a match-high 23 kills and posted 12 digs to lead No. 10 Michigan back from a 2-1 deficit to stop Georgia Tech, 3-2 (17-30, 30-24, 30-32, 30-25, 15-12), Saturday evening in the championship match of the Michigan/Nike Invitational, which was being held at the Cliff Keen Arena on the campus of the University of Michigan.
With the win, the Wolverines remained perfect on the season with a 12-0 record, while Tech dropped to 6-4.
Four Yellow Jackets recorded double-doubles on a night when five Tech players posted double-figures in digs. Overall, there were 199 digs total between the two teams.
“We played so well tonight, but faded at the end,” said Georgia Tech head coach Bond Shymansky. “We are very excited about the prospect of our season.
“Michigan asserted themselves at the end of the match and we lost our nerve at the service line at the end. Our fans are going to enjoy an explosive team this season.”
After tying the fifth game at 11-11 on a kill by Bruzdzinski, Michigan went on a 4-1 run with a pair of kills from Veronica Rood and another by Beth Karpiak to close out the match, 15-12.
“We had a balanced attack and got contributions from every player during the match,” Shymansky said. “I was impressed with the play of our young setter and know that we will become a great team when we get healthy.”
Lindsey Gray led Tech’s offense with 20 kills and 17 digs to go along with a pair of blocks, while Talisa Kellogg added 19 kills, 12 digs and four block assists on the night.
Ulrike Stegemann had 15 kills, 16 digs, three block assists, four assists and two service aces while Mary Ashley Tippins ran the Yellow Jacket offense with 52 assists while posting 18 digs, three block assists and a pair of service aces in her seventh start of the season.
Gray, Kellogg and Stegemann all earned all-tournament honors after leading Tech to a 2-1 mark and a runner-up finish in the two-day event.
Michelle Kandell showed her leadership on the backrow, contributing a team-high 28 digs for Tech, while Nikki Kaminskas’ blocking defense was unmatched, as she posted a match-high 11 block assists on the night.
Leading 17-14 in the opening game of the tournament finale, the Yellow Jackets went on a 7-0 run, which included kills by Lindsey Gray, Callie Miller, Mary Ashley Tippins and Talisa Kellogg to extend their lead to 10 points. Tech then held on for a 30-17 victory by hitting .410, while the Wolverines managed just a .159 hitting clip.
Michigan tied the match in the second game by hitting .302 to the Yellow Jackets’ .111. With a one-point edge, the Wolverines used a 7-1 run to take a 22-16 lead and matched the Jackets down the stretch, winning 30-24.
With Michigan leading 30-29 and serving, Kellogg posted back-to-back kills to give the Jackets the 31-30 edge before Tech won the game and took a 2-1 lead in the match on a ball handling error by Michigan’s Stesha Selsky.
The Wolverines tied the match with a 30-25 win in the fourth game by closing the frame on a 6-0 run. Tech led 25-24, but the home team capitalized on a trio of errors by the Jackets, a pair of kills by Sarah Draves and Lyndsay Miller, as well as a service ace by Beth Karpiak to tie the match at 2-2.
The Yellow Jackets will return to action next weekend when they open Atlantic Coast Conference play on the road, facing North Carolina in Chapel Hill Friday at 7 p.m. before meeting NC State Sunday at 2 p.m. in Raleigh. Live stats for Friday’s match will be available at www.ramblinwreck.com, and can be found on www.gopack.com on Sunday.
