Sept. 17, 2004
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - Purdue used efficient hitting and stellar serving en route to a 30-18, 30-15, 30-24 sweep of Central Michigan Friday night. The Boilermakers hit .410 to CMU's .185 effort, while also serving up 12 aces, including six by sophomore Brittany Dildine (West Lafayette, Ind.), to the Chippewas' three.
Purdue started Game 1 with a 3-0 run, and boosted their lead to seven at 11-4 after kills by senior Kim McConaha (Centerville, Ind.) and freshman Lizzie Jacques (Winfield, Ill.) and an ace by junior Renata Dargan (New Lenox, Ill.). CMU cut the point margin to four at 15-11 on a kill by Emily Lovejoy. The Boilermakers responded with a 7-1 run including aces by McConaha and Dargan, to make it 22-12. The Chippewas countered with a 5-2 rally, but it was not enough as Purdue finished the match with six of the last sever points, including two on aces by Dildine. Purdue had five total aces in the 30-18 win.
The Boilermakers caught fire in Game 2, racing off to an 18-9 lead, behind four kills each by redshirt junior Leah Wischmeier (Brownstown, Ind.) and Jacques and an ace by Dildine. Aces by Dargan and Wischmeier helped expand the point margin to 12 at 24-12. A block by senior Kim Cappa (West Lafayette, Ind.) and freshman Emily Williams (Mishawaka, Ind.) capped a 5-2 run and set up Purdue's first game-point attempt. A Lovejoy kill thwarted the effort, but a Chippewa service error clinched the Boilermakers the 30-15 win. Wischmeier had six kills, while Jacques added five in the game.
Central Michigan scored the first point of Game 3 and kept it close, despite falling behind 9-6 on another Dildine ace. The Chippewas then rattled off five of the next six points to take an 11-10 lead. Back-to-back kills by Cappa and Williams helped Purdue regain the lead at 12-11, but CMU went up by three moments later at 18-15. The Boilermakers posted a 5-0 run, including a pair of aces by Dildine and a couple kills by Cappa, to turn the deficit into a 20-18 lead. Purdue boosted the margin to four at 24-20, and then scored five of the next eight, including four straight, to set up its first attempt at the match at 29-23. CMU again held off the Boilermakers, but a kill by Wischmeier, her 14th of the match, gave Purdue the 30-24 win and the 3-0 sweep.
Wischmeier led all hitters with 14 kills, on a career-high .619 hitting percentage (14-1-21), while Jacques posted 11 kills on 16 swings. Dildine accounted for six of Purdue's 12 aces, while Dargan added three.
"Brittany really served the ball well," head coach Dave Shondell said. "I think she was the player of the game tonight. Wischmeier also has turned into a very good player and we are to a point now where we expect her to perform well every time she steps on the floor. We just played well all around."
The Boilermakers return to action at 11 a.m. on Saturday, when they face East Tennessee State (1-7).