We’re at Memorial Coliseum for the first-round of the NCAA Volleyball Tournament, pitting 10th-ranked Kentucky against Michigan State.
- Kentucky wins 25-20 and sweeps the Spartans to advance to Saturday’s second-round match against Oregon. That’s a 7 p.m. start at Memorial Coliseum.
- Match point. UK up 24-19.
- Michigan State scores four straight and cuts Kentucky lead to 21-18. This would be the first time Kentucky has advanced to the second round since 2006.
- Kentucky can feel it now, up 16-12 17-12 in third set.
- Kentucky leads 10-8 11-8 in third set.
- Kentucky wins second set 25-23. UK up 2-0. The Cats need one more set to advance to Saturday night’s second round against Oregon.
- Kentucky had set point at 24-20, but now Michigan State has scored three straight points. Craig Skinner calls time. Still set point.
- Kentucky could be on the way to closing out the second set, up 22-19. Mendoza has a couple of key kills this set. Michigan State asks for time.
- Sarah Mendoza’s nice kill ends a long rally and Kentucky leads 19-17 in set No. 2. The Cats are on a 4-0 run. They’ve already won the first set.
- Michigan State is up 15-14 in the second set. The Spartans made a 4-0 run to take a 9-8 lead and it’s been back-and-forth since.
- We’re tied 10-10 in second set.
- Sarah Mendoza, Gretchen Geisler and Lauren Rapp each were credited with six points in that first set. Rapp had six kills. Mendoza and Geisler each had five.
- Kentucky wins first set 25-23. Last point was very close. Michigan State kill apparently landed just beyone the line.
- Down 23-20, Michigan State scores three straight, the last one after a great dig. Almost appeared the ball hit the court. We’re tied at 23-23 in first set.
- Great, if lucky tip by Sarah Mendoza gives Kentucky a 21-20 lead in first set, as the Spartans ask for time. Michigan State has never led by more than one point this set.
- Just when it looked like Kentucky was going to take charge of the first set, Michigan State has stormed back for a 19-18 lead.
- Kentucky scored four straight points to take a 13-10 lead, and is now up 15-12 as we have a timeout here in the first set.
- Michigan State leads 10-9 in first set. Neither team has had more than a one-point lead to this point.
- We’re ready to get under way.
- Michigan State swept UK in the NCAA Tournament two years ago, winning 3-0 in Dayton.
- Michigan State is 17-15 overall, but finished 15-5 in the Big 10.
- Kentucky enters this match on a two-match losing streak. The Cats (27-4) lost at home in four sets to Florida on Nov. 22, then lost at Tennessee in five sets on Nov. 25.
- We’re expected to start at 7 p.m.
- No. 14 Oregon swept Clemson 3-0 in tonight’s first match. Oregon advances to Saturday night’s second-round match, 7 o’clock at Memorial.
