Sept. 16, 2016
By Robby Hamman
EAST LANSING, Mich. — Notre Dame fell to No. 22 Michigan State on Friday evening in East Lansing by a final score of 3-0. The loss snaps a season-best four match win streak and moves the team’s record to 8-3 on the season.
HOW IT HAPPENED
The Irish struggled to find their rhythm from the opening serve on Friday evening, as Michigan State jumped out to an early lead to take control of the match. The Spartans recorded a 25-17 first set victory and then used their momentum to take the second set by a final of 25-13 to go up 2-0 in the contest.
Notre Dame gained an early advantage in the third set at 8-5 but was unable to sustain the success, as Michigan State scored the next four points to force a timeout from the Irish. Notre Dame battled the Spartans for the remainder of the stanza but came up short, falling by a final of 25-19.
PLAYER OF THE MATCH
Caroline Holt handed out 23 assists and recorded five digs and a kill in the contest. The junior notched assists on 23 of Notre Dame’s 25 kills.
THE TURNING POINT
A Jemma Yeadon kill knotted the second set score at 6-6 after the Irish dropped the opening set. Michigan State immediately responded by reeling off six straight points of its own to take control of the second set and put the Spartans in the driver’s seat for the victory.
NOTES OF THE MATCH
- The Irish win streak ends at four matches.
- Notre Dame is now 4-8 against the Spartans in the all-time series.
- Maddie Plumlee recorded her first ace of the season.
For complete coverage of the tournament, visit Spartan Classic Tournament Central.
UP NEXT
The Irish wrap up their stay in East Lansing against DePaul on Saturday at 1 p.m.
Notre Dame then returns to the Joyce Center on Friday, Sept. 23 for the ACC opener against Louisville at 7 p.m.
Tickets are available by visiting UND.com/BuyTickets.
— ND —
Robby Hamman joined Fighting Irish Media as athletics communications assistant director in September 2016, coordinating efforts for the volleyball and men’s lacrosse program. Hamman is a 2010 graduate of Bethel College, where he earned bachelor’s degrees in sport management and business administration, and earned his master’s degree in business administration from Defiance College in 2013.