Rockets stun No. 12 Michigan

The Rockets upset No. 12 Michigan Saturday night at Savage Arena en route to their second-straight Rocket Classic Championship.

“This is one of the best feelings in the world,” junior captain Kassie Kadera said. “After we beat Louisville last year, all the returning players had the feeling we could do anything. Coming in here we had nothing to lose and everything to gain so we just went out balls to the wall and we killed them. It is an amazing feeling. Anything is possible now.”

Kadera was named the tournament’s Most Valuable Player after dishing out 45 assists and 10 digs against the Wolverines.

“I couldn’t do it without my teammates,” Kadera said. “I couldn’t do it without my passers. I couldn’t do it without my attackers. Our blocking was phenomenal, better than it has been all season. I guess it is well deserved, I don’t really criticize my game very well but thanks to my teammates we were able to make it through and I was able to win this award.”

Freshmen outside hitter Lauren Rafdal and middle blocker Dakota Harkins led the Rockets with 13 and 10 kills, respectively, while senior libero Katie Westerfeld notched 30 digs.

Michigan owned set one never relinquishing the lead after grabbing a 10-4 advantage. The second set was a different story as Toledo pulled away from the Wolverines mid-way through the set to take a 17-13 lead. After two aces from junior captain Amber DeWeerdt, the Rockets posted a 20-15 lead and took the set 25-20.

The third set was back and forth scoring for each team until Michigan held a two point advantage at 24-22. Toledo rallied to tie the match, but UM scored on back-to-back possessions to take the set.

Michigan started the fourth set strong taking an early 14-8 lead. Toledo outscored the Wolverines 9-3 to tie the game at 17-17 but once again, Michigan answered with back-to-back points.

The Rockets would not be denied as they rallied off five-straight points and took the set 25-22. Toledo looked like they would cruise to an easy victory in the fifth and final set with three-straight match-points, but Michigan battled to take a 15-14 lead. The persistent Rocket team beared down to take the next three points to win the match.

Toledo posted a perfect 3-0 record in the tournament defeating Binghamton and Loyola (MD) in their previous weekend matches. The victory clinches their sixth Rocket Classic title in nine years.

“You have three very strong teams and of course Michigan went to the elite eight last season ranked 12th coming into this year,” Toledo Head Coach Greg Smith said. “It’s a great win for us, it’s a great tournament win for us. Binghamton, who made the NCAA tournament last year, the competition was really strong and it’s a great start for the season. It was a great statement to us as a program as far as belief in ourselves. We needed that type of victory to realize that we have the potential to be good. When you win matches like that it means a lot.”