Oct. 21, 2005
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - The No. 17 Boilermaker volleyball team maintained possession of the Monon Spike traveling trophy for the third straight season by marching out of Bloomington with a 3-0 sweep of the Indiana Hoosiers Friday night. Purdue moved to 18-3 overall, its highest win tally since the 1990 season, with the 31-29, 30-20, 30-19 victory.
The Hoosiers took a 5-3 lead to begin Game 1. The Boilermakers posted a 5-1 run to turn the deficit into an 8-6 advantage. Freshman Stephanie Lynch (New Albany, Ind.) chalked up a pair of kills and sophomore Sam Mader (Algonquin, Ill.) added one in the rally. The Hoosiers tied it at eight and nine, before taking an 11-10 lead. Purdue used a kill by sophomore Lizzie Jacques (Winfield, Ind.) and an ace by senior Renata Dargan (New Lenox, Ill.)to go up 12-11. Indiana regained the advantage at 13-12 and pushed the point margin to three at 18-15. The Boilermakers then put together a 7-0 run, including blocks by Dargan, Lynch and freshman Danita Merlau (New Palestine, Ind.) and an ace and a kill by freshman Kelli Miller (Muncie, Ind.). Facing a 22-18 deficit, the Hoosiers scored four straight to tie the score. An IU hitting error and a block by Dargan and Jacques put Purdue up 24-22. Indiana would not go away, instead tying the score at 25, 26, and 27 before taking a 28-27 lead. A service error evened the score at 28, then a kill by Lynch set up the Boilermakers' first game-point attempt at 29-28. A service error thwarted the effort, but a kill by Lynch and a Hoosier hitting error gave Purdue the 31-29 win. Mader tallied five kills in the stanza.
Purdue carried the momentum into Game 2, kicking off the stanza with an 8-2 run. Merlau tallied to kills in the run, while Mader and Jacques chalked up a block. The Boilermakers pushed the point margin to 10 at 15-5, behind kills by Jacques, Lynch and Merlau and an ace by Mader. Indiana closed the gap to five at 18-13 and again at 20-15. Purdue scored seven of the next nine points to extend its lead back to 10 at 27-17. The Hoosiers scored the next two points to make it 27-19, but the Boilermakers closed the game with a 3-1 run, including kills by Miller and Dargan and capped by a block by Jacques and Merlau. Lynch put down five kills as Purdue hit .412 in the stanza, while holding the Hoosiers to a .162 effort.
The Boilermakers jumped out to a 4-0 lead in Game 3. A Mader kill made it 6-2 and a pair by Miller boosted the score to 8-4. The Hoosiers then countered with a 6-1 run to take a 10-9 lead. Purdue tied the score at 10-10 on a kill by Lynch and took a one-point lead on an IU hitting miscue. Indiana scored three of the next four points to take a 13-12 advantage. Purdue went up 14-13 after a pair of Hoosier errors, but Indiana regained the lead at 15-14 and 16-15. An IU service error and kills by Lynch and Miller off of serves by redshirt freshman Meghan McCormick (Modoc, Ind.) put Purdue back on top 18-16. The Boilermakers scored four of the next five points to push the lead to four at 22-18 on a kill by Merlau. A hitting error made it 22-19, prompting an 8-0 Purdue run to end the game and seal the sweep. The Hoosiers committed five errors down the stretch, while the Boilermakers recorded points on a pair of Merlau kills and a block by Jacques and Merlau. An IU hitting error sealed the 30-19 win. Lynch had five kills in the stanza as Purdue outhit the Hoosiers .306 to -.023.
Lynch led all hitters with 14 kills, while Merlau added nine. Dargan served up a pair of aces, while Jacques added seven blocks. Mastandrea tallied 11 digs to lead the Boilermaker defense.
Purdue (18-3, 7-3 Big Ten) returns to action on Friday when it takes on Michigan in the IAF.