Offense and defense can't stand alone in any sport. But especially in volleyball, the two are inevitably intertwined. It's often the transition between the two that propels a team to victory.

That's where sophomore libero Stesha Selsky comes in, using her defensive prowess to make way for Michigan's outside hitters such as junior Danielle Pflum.

"(Stesha) gives us opportunities to do what we need to do to put the ball away," Pflum said. "If we didn't have her defense, we wouldn't have that transition to go into (offense). Her impact is huge. And no one really sees that, except people on the court."

As a freshman, Selsky was a defensive specialist for the Wolverines before taking over for injured senior Sarah Allen late in the season. Now, Selsky is called on in each rotation to serve, receive, pass and play defense from the back row.

"She's amazing," Pflum said. "It's like having an angel over your shoulder. She's over my right shoulder all the time. I never have any hesitations with letting a ball go that's between us because I'm always like, 'Stesha! Stesha!' ... I'd hate to have her on any other side but mine."

Making the change from defensive specialist to libero wasn't easy for Selsky, who's had to work a lot on her passing and focus, playing six rotations instead of three. But lately, she seems to have everything together, recording double-digit digs in 16 consecutive matches. She needs only 16 more digs to move into 10th place in all-time digs for Michigan.

"Stesha is the heart and soul of our defense," coach Mark Rosen said. "Systematically, we try and channel balls toward her. And she makes your whole defense run. She's very good at it; there's no question she's an elite-level libero who's making a great impact on our team."

Selsky's strong play from the back row has allowed Michigan's offense to take control of recent games, especially in sweeps over Michigan State and Indiana. Pflum is just one of the attackers that has benefited from Selsky's digs. At Michigan State, Pflum had 14 kills and just three errors in 37 swings.

"Dani's always up and ready to hit the ball, especially on transition digs," Selsky said. "Digs aren't really going to be perfect; they're basically just to get it off the floor. The setter has to set it to someone - and most of the time it's going to be her."

Pflum's also getting the moniker as Michigan's clutch player. Against Michigan State, she had four kills in Michigan's last five points, and against Indiana, she terminated seven balls in the third game.

"She will win the game for you when you need her to," Selsky said. "It's like, 'Set the ball to Dani, and she'll put it away.' She's a phenomenal outside hitter."

Both Selsky and Pflum have been integral parts of Michigan's late push to make the NCAA Tournament. The Wolverines won three straight matches against Iowa, Michigan State and Indiana.

Michigan (7-9 Big Ten, 13-12 overall) needs to win two of its next four matches to clinch a spot in the Tournament, and it faces two tough road tests against No. 15 Wisconsin on Friday and Northwestern on Saturday. The Wolverines pulled out a huge upset earlier in the season over the Badgers, knocking off the then-No. 7 ranked team.

The Wolverines will undoubtedly look to Selsky and Pflum to help them make the final transition from an average team to a legitimate NCAA Tournament squad.

"We're playing our best volleyball now, which is what we've always talked about - not playing our best volleyball in September or October, but more in November and December, so then we could go far in the NCAA Tournament," Pflum said.