Oct. 27, 2001
ANN ARBOR, Mich. - In the first five game match of the season, the Purdue volleyball team fell 27-30, 31-29, 18-30, 30-24, 11-15 at Michigan. The Boilermakers fell to 3-17 (1-11 Big Ten), while the Wolverines improved to 11-8 (6-6 Big Ten).
"This team was out there battling and giving their all," head coach Jeff Hulsmeyer said. "They have a lot of character and class and we are going to make our luck. Momentum plays such a huge part of this game and it sometimes gets away from you. That's what happened tonight."
After getting out to a 7-1 lead in Game 1, things went south for the Boilermakers as Michigan went on to win 30-27. In Game 2 Purdue overcame 14 ties to tie the game 27-all before the Wolverines got in two kills to take a 29-27 lead and game point. But, the Boilermakers scored four points to take the 31-29 victory.
The Old Gold and Black hit at a mere clip of .083 (12-9-36) in an 18-30 loss in Game 3. Momentum switched back to the Boilers in Game 4 as they got out to a 7-2 lead en route to a 30-24 win. After getting out to an 8-5 advantage in Game 5, the pendulum once again swung towards the Wolverines with a 15-11 victory.
Rookie Leah Wischmeier led the team with 18 kills, while both senior Maegan Petersen and sophomore Joanna Lowry recorded 17. The Wischmeier and Lowry both recorded double-doubles, recorded 15 and 20 digs, respectively. Sophomore Eryn Leach who recorded 14 kills and hit at a clip of .500 (14-1-26), while senior Lori Knicker tied her career-high 17 digs. Sophomore Jen Bova was five shy of her career-best 65 kills with 60. She also notched a double-double with 16 digs.
Purdue will host Ohio State and Penn State next weekend.