For just the third time in program history, the Miami women’s volleyball team traveled to East Lansing to take on the Michigan State Spartans.
After a hard-fought affair which marked the season-opener for Miami, the Canes ultimately fell to the Spartans in five sets.
The match was a back-and-forth affair throughout, but Michigan State rode the momentum from its fourth set win into the fifth set to clinch.
To start, the Spartans took an early lead with a 25-19 first set win. But the Hurricanes quickly struck back.
Filled with new faces, Miami evened up the match with a 26-24 victory in the second set thanks to a 5-0 run, and took the lead in the third set with another narrow 25-23 set win.
Offensively, Asia Harvey led the charge for the Canes, racking up 17 kills for a .263 hitting percentage and a .447 hitting percentage in her debut with the Hurricanes. Sonja Danilovic also recorded double-digit kills with 11 and Billie Reiter dropped 38 assists.
Reiter also led the team with 11 blocks on the night, followed by Danilovic with nine.
The remaining two sets of the match were all Spartans as Michigan State rallied with their backs against the wall in a commanding 25-19 set win. Their momentum continued, demonstrated in a 9-0 run which essentially put the game in their hands in the fifth set, winning 15-6.
Miami will continue their road trip with a test against the Michigan Wolverines Saturday, Aug. 29.