Earlier this season the Michigan women's volleyball team was able to step up its game and compete against superior opponents.
Last night, it was Toledo who was keeping up with the Wolverines.
Michigan, finally playing a match they were favored to win, survived sloppy play in the opening two games to top the Rockets, 15-12, 13-15, 15-5, 15-8.
"The first two games were long and ugly," Michigan coach Greg Giovanazzi said. "They might look good statistically, but from a coaches standpoint, they were pretty tough."
This is the second win in a row for the Wolverines, raising their record to 2-4. Toledo, which had been victorious in its last three matches entering Tuesday, dropped to 4-4 on the year.
After a dominating performance in recording their first win of the season against Georgia on Saturday, and a coming off a stretch during which four of the five teams they played were ranked, a little letdown by the Wolverines might have been expected.
But Giovanazzi credited the Rockets for playing well.
"Toledo played a really good match against us," he said.
This was the second time Giovanazzi has coached against the Rockets Reed Sunahara, his former player. Sunahara played for UCLA when Giovanazzi was a Bruins assistant.
Last year, the Wolverines beat Toledo in three straight games in Ann Arbor. The Rockets have never beaten Michigan in 10 matches.
Despite not always playing pretty, several Michigan players set new career highs.
Junior middle blocker Sarah Jackson led the Michigan offense with 20 kills (a career high) and a .444 hitting percentage. Senior captain Shareen Luze added 19 kills (tying her career high) and 14 digs and was Michigan's best player all night according to her coach.
"Shareen carried us passing and hitting," Giovanazzi said. "She has been the rock for us this season. Toledo served her a lot of balls, and she hit or passed every ball."
Michigan set a new season high with 84 kills as a team.
Setting up all the Michigan hitters for most of those kills was junior Linnea Mendoza, who had 51 assists. Mendoza needs 347 more assists to break Tarnisha Thompson's career record of 2,619.
Senior Erin McGovern had 12 assists of her own. She is currently fourth on the all-time assist list.
Sophomore middle blocker Linsey Ebert did well disrupting the Toledo attack with a career high six total blocks, with one solo and five block assists.
FILE PHOTO/Daily
Jane Stevens, shown here in action last season, is an outside hitter for the Michigan women's volleyball team.