Sept. 29, 2002
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind.- The Northwestern Wildcats moved to 2-0 in Big Ten play with a 3-2 victory over Purdue (9-5, 0-2) in the IAF Sunday. NU won 30-23, 33-31, 28-30, 20-30 and 15-9.
The Wildcats (9-5, 2-0) dominated the deciding fifth game, out-hitting Purdue .667 to .188, in a 15-9 win to clinch the match. Northwestern jumped out to an early 4-1 lead, but Purdue tied it at five all after a 4-1 run including a Kim McConaha (So., Centerville, IN) service ace. After a knot-up at six all, NU scored five of six points including three on Iwona Lodzik kills, to take a 11-7 lead. A kill by Jen Bova (Jr., Milwaukee, Wis.) ended the Wildcat run, but three NU kills, two by Kelli Meyer, gave Northwestern the match at 15-9.
"I thought the difference in the game was which team was going to pass," head coach Jeff Hulsmeyer said. "When they ran their offense and passed the ball on target, we had a very difficult time stopping it and trying to slow them down. When we passed to target and got in system and in rhythm, I don't think that they did a very good job of stopping us. I think really it was a matter of who was going to control the ball on their side. For a couple of games, we did a nice job of it, but coming out in that fifth game, we didn't take care of the ball and you can't win unless you do."
Game one was one of ups and downs for the Boilermakers. The Boilermakers led early but Northwestern tied it up at eight all and then extended its lead to 16-12. A pair of McConaha kills, part of a 4-0 run, helped Purdue knot it up again at 16 all. Northwestern took back over for the remainder of the game, finishing it out at 30-23 despite several Boilermaker pushes. The Wildcats out-hit Purdue .361 to .175 in game one and also recorded three blocks to Purdue's one.
The second stanza was a battle from the beginning as neither team owned more than a three-point advantage the entire game. The game featured nine ties up to the 10-10 mark, then Northwestern took a 13-10 lead. The teams traded scoring strings to tie it up at 18 all, then exchanged three-point runs to knot up again at 21-21. With the game tied at 26-26, Purdue went on a 3-2 run to set up a game-point attempt, but a kill and a block by Erika Lange made it 29 all. The teams again tied at 30 and 31, but a Iwona Lodzik kill helped the Wildcats finish it at 33-31. McConaha tallied seven kills in the game, while freshman setter Renata Dargan (New Lenox, IL) pulled up nine digs.
The Boilermakers' determination brought the squad a 30-28 win in game three. The Old Gold and Black brought a early Wildcat lead to an end with a 3-0 run capitalizing on NU miscues. After a tie-up at 14 all, the game was a back-and-forth battle. Purdue led 27-25 before a pair of Northwestern kills tied it at 27 all. Kills by Joanna Lowry (Jr., Glen Ellyn, IL) and Eryn Leach (Jr., Saratoga, Calif.) secured the game at 30-28 for Purdue.
Game four was all Boilermakers. The Old Gold and Black took a 3-2 lead and never looked back, extending its advantage to as many as eight at 14-6 on a Tiffany Yoskey (Sr., Canal Fulton, OH) service ace. The Wildcats cut the lead to three at 18-15, but the Boilermakers raised it to seven at 25-18 with a 7-3 run. Purdue finished the game at 30-20 on three McConaha kills and a Kim Cappa (So., Lafayette, IN) service ace. Northwestern hit just .075 in the game to Purdue's .250 effort.
"I think the one of the best things that we could say out of it is that we can still win when we are not playing our best," Hulsmeyer said. "I don't think that we played really well this afternoon but we still found ways to win in the third and fourth games. That is a step in the right direction but we have to have that consistency if we want to compete in the Big Ten and win."
Lowry led Purdue with 20 kills, while McConaha added 18. Dargan led the Boilermakers with 17 digs. Lodzik led all hitters, posting 26 kills and 22 digs. Northwestern also posted a 13.0 to 4.5 block advantage in the match.
Next up, the Boilermakers is a Wednesday contest at Illinois, before returning home for a Saturday match with Penn State.
"I think with a young team, taking them on the road, the thing that we have to do is be prepared to build some energy within our team and stay focused on the fundamentals and executing on our side," Hulsmeyer said. "It really doesn't matter what opponent we play right now in the season. We just have to stay on focused on how we take care of the ball and what we are doing with it and we will do our best to slow them down."