Oct. 2, 2009
Northwestern at Michigan Box Score 
2009 Northwestern Volleyball Statistics
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- Northwestern's trip to the Wolverine state got off to a rocky start as the Wildcats dropped a 17-25, 17-25, 12-25 decision to sixth-ranked Michigan at Cliff Keen Arena. NU drops to 9-6 on the year as its quest for its first Big Ten victory will be put on hold for another day.
Senior Ariel Baxterbeck (Menlo Park, Calif./Castilleja) led the offensive attack for Northwestern, knocking down six kills with three digs. Juniors Sabel Moffett (Temecula, Calif./Chapparal) and Brittani Gray (Cincinnati, Ohio/Sycamore) added five for the 'Cats, with junior Elyse Glab (Chicago, Ill./Resurrection) dishing out 19 assists.
Defensively, Moffett and Johnson each had a pair of blocks for NU, with sophomore Alexandra Ayers (Playa del Rey, Calif./Marymount) adding a team-high seven digs. Glab and senior Kate Nobilio (Johnsburg, Ill./Johnsburg) each had four on the night.
Michigan (15-1, 3-0 Big Ten) came out strong on its home court, building an early 10-4 lead. The Wolverines pushed that advantage to eight at 15-7, but behind a pair of service aces from freshman Susan Oxnard (Yorba Linda, Calif./Esperanza), the Wildcats cut the deficit to four at 15-11. But Michigan pulled away using a late 10-6 run, taking set one 25-17.
Moffett had four of the Wildcats' nine first-set kills, with Johnson adding a pair as well. Glab dished out seven assists while Ayers had a set-best five digs.
Set two started out in similar fashion to set one, with the Wolverines jumping out to an 8-2 lead. Northwestern trimmed the deficit to two a handful of times, the latest coming at 15-13. But Michigan used a 10-4 run to once again pull away, taking a 2-0 lead with another 25-17 victory.
Baxterbeck had a pair of kills, with Moffett, Gray and freshman Kathryn Chrystal (Crystal Lake, Ill./Central) adding another as NU could muster only five kills in set two. Moffett and Johnson also added a pair of blocks defensively, with Nobilio digging three Michigan attacks.
Set three was the most competitive early on, but again it was the Wolverines that started to pull away, using a 7-1 run to build their advantage to 14-8. Michigan wouldn't let up, outscoring the 'Cats 11-4 to seal the match.
Northwestern had a number of great attacks, but the Michigan defense always seemed to be in the right place at the right time to keep play alive. The Wolverines had 44 kills on the night (twice as many as Northwestern's 22) and had a 47-26 advantage in digs.
Juliana Paz and Alex Hunt each had a match-high nine kills for the Wolverines, with Megan Bower adding eight to go along with a match-high 12 digs. Lexi Zimmerman was a thorn in the Wildcats' side all night, recording 31 assists and six kills.
Northwestern continues its search for its first Big Ten victory of the season, heading up the road to East Lansing for a showdown with 23rd-ranked Michigan State. Opening serve against the Spartans is set for 5:30 p.m. CT, and don't forget to follow along with live in-match Twitter updates @NU_SportsLIVE.