Sept. 3, 2004
MADISON, Wis. - The Boilermaker volleyball team ended an 11-year drought against Top 15 teams on Friday night, defeating the No. 12 Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets (0-3) in four games. Purdue won the match 3-1 by scores of 30-27, 30-26, 27-30 and 30-28.
"The key for us tonight was mental toughness," head coach Dave Shondell said. "We have talked about it so many times that the team that finishes tough, or in this case plays tough throughout, will win. Our short serve was also key for us."
The Boilermakers claimed the first two points of Game 1 on a kills by senior Kim McConaha (Centerville, Ind.) and junior Renata Dargan (New Lenox, Ill.) and maintained the lead throughout. Purdue boosted its lead to eight at 15-7 with a 7-1 run, which included five Yellow Jacket miscues and a pair of Dargan kills. Tech cut the point margin to five at 17-12, but the Boilermakers made it an eight-point game once again at 23-15. The Yellow Jackets pulled within three at 24-21, but Purdue expanded the lead to five at 27-22 moments later on a kill by McConaha. A kill by redshirt junior Leah Wischmeier (Brownstown, Ind.) set up Purdue's first game point attempt at 29-26. Two serves later, the Boilermakers clinched the game on another Wischmeier kill, her sixth of the match. Purdue hit .450 to Georgia Tech's .271 effort.
Game 2 saw Purdue score early and often, taking a 10-3 lead out of the gates, as McConaha contributed three kills and a block. Georgia Tech chipped away at the Boilermaker advantage cutting it five at 12-7, but the Purdue raised it back to seven at 18-11. Tech then took seven of the next nine points to make it a 20-18 game. The teams traded points until the Yellow Jackets tied it up at 24. Purdue called a timeout and scored three straight points out of the break, two by Wischmeier, to regain the lead. After a pause at 28-26, the Boilermakers finished the game on kills by Wischmeier and McConaha, to take a 2-0 lead into the intermission.
The Yellow Jackets scored four of the first five points in game 3, but the Boilermakers used an 11-6 run to take the lead at 12-10. The teams then knotted up at 14 and 15 before Georgia Tech went up three at 20-17 prompting a Purdue timeout, after which the Boilermakers tied things up again at 24 and 25. Purdue called another timeout, down 27-25 and pulled within one at 28-27 on a Wischmeier kill. Tech finished the game out at 30-27 on a Boilermaker miscue.
Purdue played from behind again in Game 4 as Georgia Tech jumped out to a 13-8 lead. Shondell called a timeout and sparked his troops to a 10-1 rally, which saw McConaha serve eight-straight points including an ace, and Dargan register three kills and a block. The Yellow Jackets would not go down easy, however, tying things up at 20 and again at 22. Purdue then rattled off four-straight points on kills by McConaha and Dargan and a pair of Tech miscues. Georgia Tech made a late run, pulling within one at 28-27. Freshman Sammi Mader (Algonquin, Ill.) put down a kill to set up Purdue's first attempt at match point. A Yellow Jacket kill thwarted the effort, but Mader slammed another down to clinch the upset victory.
"It was an incredible rush for me to go up and put down the final kill of the game," Mader said. "It is exciting that they trusted me enough to put the ball in my hands to end the match."
Shondell said he knew that pulling out a victory would not be easy, but he had confidence his players could get the job done.
"We knew coming in that Georgia Tech was a great team with great tradition," Shondell said. "We knew they were capable of coming back and they did. When we went down 13-8 in Game 4, I thought we might be in trouble, so I called a timeout. I reminded our players that we have three seniors on our team and that getting a win like this, and doing something that hadn't been done in a long time, would be priceless. I think that motivated our seniors and in turn the rest of our team to finish the match."
McConaha led the Boilermakers with a 21-kill, 10 dig double-double, while Wischmeier, Dargan and Mader all reached double figures with 14, 13 and 10 respectively. Dargan just missed the triple-double adding 55 assists and eight digs to her kill tally. Freshman Annie Mastandrea (Downers Grove, Ill.) led the Purdue defense with 24 digs, while senior Daren Poe (Martinsville, Ind.) added 11.
"I just went out there tonight hoping to live up to the expectations I had for myself," Mastandrea said. "I love playing with this team and for this program, so when (coach Shondell) talked to us in the fourth game about what this win would mean, I got fired up. I am excited to see what this team will be able to do and hope we keep going up. I will do anything I can to help us get there."
For McConaha, the victory was not only a milestone for the program, but it was personal.
"This win was huge for us, in that it people will have to give us more respect," McConaha said. "It was also a big win for me because I have played against (Georgia Tech senior) Lynette Moder since seventh grade and I had never beaten her. I am so excited for our team because this in our time to shine, but we it is just the second match of the year, so we have to stay calm and keep our heads on straight because we have to play another tough opponent tomorrow."
The Boilermakers will return to action at 5 p.m. Saturday against the Missouri Tigers in match three of the Badger Challenge. Live stats can be found at http://www.uwbadgers.com/game_day.vb.index.aspx or by following the game day links on www.uwbadgers.com.