Oct. 13, 2007
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - The Boilermaker volleyball team played its third match in six days on Saturday night and walked out of the gym with its third straight victory. Purdue topped Michigan State 30-28, 34-32, 30-28 on Dig For A Cure night, during which more than $1,200 were raised for the Susan G. Komen Foundation and fans covered the IAF in pink.
Juniors Stephanie Lynch and Danita Merlau led the Purdue offense with 10 kills apiece, while sophomore Carrie Gurnell added eight putdowns. Defensively, junior Kelli Miller posted a team-best 15 digs, while freshman Kristen Arthurs led the Boilermakers at the net with seven blocks.
"In the Big Ten, you try to look at how you perform, but it is all about winning matches," head coach Dave Shondell said. "In the past, we have struggled to win on our home court, but we were able to gut it out in several close games this weekend to do it. What I am most impressed with is that our team won three matches this week. It was tough, but they held up well, especially in terms of their mental toughness."
The Boilermakers took the early lead in Game 1, going up 6-3 to start the stanza as Merlau served up an ace and Purdue capitalized on three MSU miscues. The Spartans tied the score at eight and nine, but Purdue maintained control. A block by Merlau and Arthurs and a putdown by Gurnell made it 19-16 Boilermakers and prompted a Michigan State timeout. The Spartans charged back after the break, outscoring Purdue 9-5, to take the lead at 25-24. Kills by Arthurs and Merlau and a pair of MSU hitting errors put the Boilermakers back on top 28-25. Another Merlau putdown set up Purdue's first chance at the game at 29-26, but a service error and a kill by Katie Johnson kept the Spartans alive. An MSU service error, however, clinched the 30-28 win for the Boilermakers. Gurnell and Merlau each tallied four kills in the stanza, while Lynch added three.
"I think we have a really balanced attack," Shondell said. "Gurnell is getting much tougher to defend. Arthurs is beginning to grow as a middle hitter in the Big Ten. Danita is very versatile for us right now and Lynch continues to be very good. We are a hard team to defend right now and we beat two very good teams this weekend."
Game 2 was a battle. The teams combined for five game-point attempts, tied 20 times and neither led by more than three at any point during the stanza. Purdue led 9-6, but the Spartans fought back to knot the score at 13-13, sparking a string of seven ties, last at 19-19. A kill by Mader and an MSU hitting error put Purdue up two at 21-19, but Michigan State answered with 5-1 run to go ahead 24-22. The Boilermakers tied it up at 26 after back-to-back Spartan errors. The teams tied at 27 and 28, before a kill by Vanessa King gave MSU its first chance at the game. A block by Arthurs and freshman Jaclyn Hart kept the game going. Another kill by King put the Spartans on the hill yet again. Merlau then tallied a kill and combined with Arthurs on a block to make it 31-30 Purdue, marking the first of three Boilermaker game-point attempts. MSU thwarted the first two efforts with kills by Ashley Schatzle, but kill by Merlau and a Spartan hitting error capped the 34-32 win for Purdue. Arthurs chalked up four blocks in the game.
Purdue led 5-3 to start Game 3, but then the Spartans took control. Michigan State took the lead at 7-6 and maintained the advantage, leading by as many as four at 21-17. The Boilermakers chipped away at the margin, eventually tying the score at 26 after blocks by Arthurs and Mader and five MSU miscues. Purdue scored four of the next five points, including a block by Lynch and Gurnell, to set up match point. The Spartans were called for an overlap error on the ensuing serve to give the Boilermakers the 30-28 win and the match. Lynch tallied six kills in the stanza.
The Boilermakers (12-7, 5-3 Big Ten) return to action on Wednesday, Oct. 17, when they travel to Bloomington, Ind., to take on the Indiana Hoosiers. The winner of the match, which will air live on the Big Ten Network, will take home the annual Monon Spike traveling trophy.