Oct. 9, 1999
By DaVida Smith
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. ? Light rain may have been falling outside of the Indiana University Gym, but the storm was inside, as the Hoosiers reclaimed the Monon Spike trophy with a 15-7, 15-7, 10-15, 15-11 decision against the Purdue volleyball team. The loss drops Purdue to 10-5 (2-4 Big Ten), while Indiana improved to 11-4 (2-4 Big Ten) with the victory.
The Boilers struggled, hitting just .160, while Indiana hit at a .276 clip. Purdue senior Aneska Arosarena, who has recorded 20 or more kills six times this season, was held to 19 kills for the night to lead the Boilers. Senior Sarah Emke and junior Julie Doud both contributed 12 kills for Purdue.
Game 1 was an uphill battle for the Boilers, who managed a .000 hitting percentage with nine kills and nine errors on 34 attempts. The lead went back and forth for the game?s first points, but the Hoosiers would eventually grab the momentum to jump out to an eight-point lead. The Boilers edged in two more points, but fell 15-7. The Hoosiers outhit the Boilers .250-.000.
The battle continued for Purdue in Game 2. The Boilermakers ran out to a 3-0 lead. Indiana came back from the deficit, and took the lead at 9-4. Purdue rallied but could not get closer than five, as the Hoosiers went on to win 15-7.
Purdue fought hard to get back into the match in Game3. After losing the initial lead, the Boilers rallied to tie the score at 8-all. Kills by sophomore Meagan Petersen, senior Connie Paul and Emke brought the Boiler lead up to 11-9. The Hoosiers scored one more point, but Purdue closed out the game on a 4-1 run to win 15-10.
For Purdue to stay alive, it had to pull out Game 4. The Old Gold and Black began with a difficult start, trailing by five. But the Boilers would come within two, as they narrowed the deficit at 10-8, 11-9, 12-10 and 13-11. Unfortunately, Purdue would get no closer, as the Hoosiers scored their last two points unanswered to emerge with the 15-11 victory.
First-year Purdue head coach Jeff Hulsmeyer was not pleased with Purdue?s effort in the intrastate rivalry match.
?I felt bad about our performance because we didn?t come out ready to play,? Hulsmeyer said. ?We had a chance to do a better job and just didn?t. We should have done better, especially in a match against in state rivals.?
The Monon Spike match series, which is led by Purdue 17-9, was developed in 1981 by Purdue seniors Donna Hardesty and Anne McMenamy. The trophy symbolizes the rivalry between the two schools. Purdue also leads the overall series with the Hoosiers 38-26.
Purdue has one week to regroup before it hosts No. 1 Penn State and Ohio State next weekend in the IAF. Both matches will begin at 7 p.m.