EAST LANSING, Mich. – In the opening match of the Auto-Owners Insurance Spartan Invitational, Indiana State fell to tourney host Michigan State in three sets.
 
The Spartans started strong, but the Sycamores didn't go away and pushed MSU in the second set before falling in the match, 3-0 [25-9, 25-18, 25-10].
 
Defensively Indiana State recorded more digs than the Spartans, 31-30, but Michigan State finished with 11 blocks to ISU's three. Melina Tedrow was the lone Sycamore to finish with double-digit digs at 10. The hosts were led by Jamye Cox with 11 digs.
 
On the offensive side of the net, the Trees were led by Nikkie White who finished with seven kills, but as a team they struggled, hitting just .073 for the match. On the other side, the Spartans hit .376 with Rebecka Poljan tallying 10 digs.
 
Set One - Michigan State 25, Indiana State 9

• Michigan State came out firing on all cylinders, hitting .459 while the Trees hit .154.
• Gretchen Kuckkan led the offensive effort in the first set with three kills and Mary Hannah Lewis earned three assists.
• The Trees tallied 11 digs in the first set with Tedrow claiming three of her own.

 
Set Two - Michigan State 25, Indiana State 18

• The Trees battled for most of the set, taking a 17-15 lead, but Michigan State ended the frame on a 10-1 run to win, 25-18.
• ISU hit .174 in the set and gathered 10 kills compared to the Spartans who hit .214 with 11 kills.
• Cassie Kawa had a strong frame for the blue and white, registering four kills and hitting .833.
• Tedrow once again led the team in digs, adding four more to her total to give her seven.

 
Set Three - Michigan State 25, Indiana State 10

• Indiana State struggled on the offensive side during the final frame, hitting -.064 while the Spartans had their best set offensively, hitting .450.
• White ended the set with four kills to lead ISU and Lewis helped with five assists.
• Defensively, MSU earned seven blocks to Indiana State's one.
• Tedrow managed to hit 10 digs for the match, leading the defensive effort for ISU.

 
Up Next: The blue and white will play two matches tomorrow, starting with Miami (OH) at 10:30 a.m. and then Cincinnati at 3:30 p.m.
 
For the latest information on the Sycamore Volleyball team, make sure to check out GoSycamores.com. You can also find the team on social media including Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.