Oct. 28, 2003
INDIANAPOLIS - Butler overcame a 2-0 deficit to top the Boilermaker volleyball team 3-2 Tuesday night at Hinkle Fieldhouse. The first two games were all Purdue, but the Bulldogs were resilient taking the match 28-30, 19-30, 34-32, 30-19 and 15-11.
The deciding fifth game saw Butler take a 5-1 lead. The Boilermakers clawed their way back to within one at 9-8 on a block by Marie Franke, Kim Cappa and Kim McConaha. The McConaha kill kept the lead at one at 10-9. Butler then scored three straight including a Kali Carter service ace to go up by four at 13-9. A Bulldog error stopped the run, but three points later a kill by Candice Washington gave Butler the intrastate win.
McConaha led Purdue with 19 kills, followed by 16 by Leah Wischmeier and 11 by Franke and Cappa. Carter led all hitters with 20 kills. Poe was the night's defensive star with a career-high 25 digs.
The Boilermakers found themselves down 6-1 early in the first game and faced a six-point deficit at 13-7. Purdue scored seven of the next eight points to tie it up at 18 on the second of back-to-back service aces by freshman Brittany Dildine. The Boilermakers took the lead at 17-16 on a block by McConaha and Cappa. The teams traded points until Purdue went up by a three at 26-23 on an ace by freshman Katie Dobson, who was playing in front her hometown crowd. The Boilermakers led at 28-25 forcing a Bulldog timeout. Purdue had its first game-point attempt at 29-26, but Butler held the Boilermakers at bay for two more serves, before a Leah Wischmeier kill ended it at 30-28. Dildine had three aces in the game, while McConaha led all hitters with five kills on seven swings for a .714 percentage. Franke also was efficient for the Boilermakers making good on four of seven swings with no errors.
Purdue took a 3-1 lead to begin the second game and led from then on, allowing Butler no closer than two points the rest of the game. The Purdue lead swelled to seven at 13-6 after a 5-1 run including a Renata Dargan service ace and kills by Dargan and Franke. The point margin raised to 13 at 22-9 on a Bulldog ball handling error. The Boilermakers made it a 14-point game capitalizing on a pair of Butler errors and a kill by Wischmeier. Butler made a small run, but a Franke kill set up game point for Purdue at 29-16. Again, the Bulldogs held the Boilermakers off, this time for three points, before Cappa sealed the game at 30-19. Purdue hit .324 to Butler's .026 effort in the game.
Game three was nearly a reversal of the second and Purdue trailed for the majority of the game. Down 7-2, the Boilermakers fought their way into a tie at eight and stayed close until a four-point Bulldog run made it 15-11. Purdue pulled within two at 18-16, but Butler expanded the lead to five at 25-20. The Boilermakers bounced back to take a 29-28 lead after four McConaha kills and a pair of blocks. Butler stopped Purdue's effort at match point, but Purdue had another at 30-29, but were again thwarted by the Bulldogs, who went on to have a game-point try at 31-30. The Boilermakers played spoiler on that one and yet again on Butler's second attempt at 32-31, but the Bulldogs scored two straight to end the game at 34-32.
The Bulldogs maintained momentum in game four, jumping out to a 9-3 start. The lead swelled to nine at 18-10 and the team traded points putting Butler in position with a 29-17 lead. A Wischmeier kill and a block by Dobson and Dargan kept the game going, but a Boilermaker service error gave Butler the game at 30-19 and forced the deciding fifth game. The Bulldogs were on fire in the game with four aces and a .410 hitting effort, while Purdue hit just .209.
Purdue returns to action Friday night at Michigan before continuing on to Michigan State on Saturday night.