Sept. 7, 2007
CLEMSON, S.C. - The Boilermaker volleyball team boosted its record to 4-3 with a three-game sweep of Furman to open the Big Orange Classic on Friday. Purdue won the match 30-28, 30-19, 30-9, marking the first time ever that the Boilermakers had held an opponent to single-digit points in a 30-point game.
Junior Danita Merlau (New Palestine, Ind.) led Purdue with 13 kills, followed by juniors Stephanie Lynch (New Albany, Ind.) and Kelli Miller (Muncie, Ind.), who each tallied 12. Lynch posted a .571 hitting effort in the match with 12 kills in 21 swings, with no errors, while Merlau led the team at the net with six blocks, including four solo efforts. Freshman outside hitter Kristen Arthurs (Newport, Mich.) racked up five blocks, while freshman setter Jaclyn Hart (Palos Hills, Ill.) added four.
Senior Anne Mastandrea (Downers Grove, Ill.) led the Purdue backcourt with 17 digs followed by Merlau and Miller, who each tallied nine. Miller also served up two aces in the contest. Purdue held
The Boilermakers led by as many as four in the early part of Game 1, last at 11-7. Furman narrowed the gap to one at 12-11, but a block and a kill by Merlau put Purdue back up by three at 15-12. The Paladins remained close, eventually turning an 18-15 deficit into a 19-18 lead of their own. Trailing 24-22, Purdue scored five of the next six points to retake the advantage at 27-25. A kill by Mader set up the Boilemakers' first shot at the game at 29-27. A hitting miscue kept the game going, but Merlau put down her seventh kill of the stanza to seal the 30-28 victory.
"Furman played really well in the first game; they believed that they could beat us," head coach Dave Shondell said. "They got a hand on every ball at the net and kept a lot our hits off the ground. We are still trying to figure out if we are a good team or not and we played like it for the first game. After we won that, we relaxed and played awfully good volleyball; they weren't the same team after that.
"Strong serving was the key to the match for us. Miller, Ullrich, and Mastandrea made life tough for Furman with their serves. We forced them to use their outsides when their best hitters are their two middles."
The Boilermakers carried the momentum into Game 2, racing out to a 12-3 advantage including four blocks. The Paladins fought back, however, closing the gap to one at 16-15. The effort sparked a 9-1 run for Purdue, pushing the score to 25-16. Miller served up an ace during the stretch, while Mader, Lynch and Hart posted kills. After a one-point pause, a kill by Merlau and a block by Arthurs and Hart made it a 10-point spread. A kill by Miller made it 29-18 Purdue, then a putdown by Merlau capped the 30-19 win. Arthurs, Hart and Merlau chalked up three blocks each as the Boilermakers outblocked Furman 7-3 in the stanza.
Purdue finished out the quick match with a 30-9 win in Game 3. The Boilermakers took a 12-1 lead out of the gate. Lynch and Merlau racked up kills, while freshman Jessica Ullrich (Winfield, Ill.) served up nine straight points for the team. Furman would not go quietly, cutting the margin to seven at 15-8. From that point, it was all Boilermakers. Mastandrea served up nine points for Purdue, including an ace, and Miller registered four putdowns. A service error stopped the Boilermakers momentarilyat 26-9, but a kill by Lynch kicked off a 5-0 run, which wrapped up the match. Three Paladin hitting miscues made it 29-9, then a kill by redshirt freshman Lisa Pierce (Darien, Ill.) sewed up the win.
The Boilermakers (4-3) continue play at the Big Orange Bash at 1 p.m. Saturday when they take on the Florida A&M Rattlers. Purdue then wraps up the weekend with a 7 p.m. match against the host Clemson Tigers.