Sept. 16, 2006
Sept. 16, 2006
LOS ANGELES - The No. 14 Boilermaker volleyball fought hard against No. 9 USC, but found themselves on the short end of a 3-1 score. The Women of Troy (11-0) won the match 30-25, 27-30, 30-15 and 30-26 to hand Purdue (9-1) its first loss of the season.
USC took a 5-3 lead early in Game 1. Purdue made it a one-point game on three occasions, last at 7-6 before the Women of Troy rattled off four in a row to make it 11-6. The Boilermakers took a timeout to talk things over and came back with nine of the next 14 points to make it 16-15. Junior Sam Mader (Algonquin, Ill.) and sophomore Stephanie Lynch (New Albany, Ind.) contributed kills during the stretch, while Lynch also added three block assists and an ace. USC responded with a 7-2 run to make it 23-18, then Purdue cut the margin to two at 24-22 on a kill by sophomore Kelli Miller (Muncie, Ind.). The Boilermakers trailed by just two again at 27-25, but the Women of Troy closed out the game at 30-25. Sophomore Danita Merlau (New Palestine, Ind.) quietly registered five kills in the stanza.
USC led 4-0 to begin Game 2, but the Boilermakers rallied to take their first lead at 9-8 on the second of back-to-back aces by Lynch. After a tie at 9-9, Purdue boosted their advantage to three at 13-10 forcing a timeout for the opponents. The Boilermakers continued to dominate after the break, pushing the point margin to five at 22-17 after a pair of kills by Merlau and freshman Carrie Gurnell (Katy, Texas). A block by junior Lizzie Jacques (Winfield, Ill.) and a kill by Lynch gave Purdue a 25-19 advantage, but USC would not go away, slicing the margin to two at 26-24. Lynch put up two kills and block to set up the Boilermakers' first chance at the game at 29-25, but a Trojan block thwarted the effort. A USC net violation eventually gave the Boilermakers a 30-27 win. Lynch led Purdue with six kills in the game.
The Women of Troy dominated Game 3 from the beginning, quickly running up a 15-4 score. The Boilermakers put together a 4-2 run to make it 21-9, but could not overcome USC, which went on to win 30-15.
USC carried the momentum into Game 4, scoring four of the first five points, but Purdue answered with kills by Gurnell and Lynch to make it a one-point game. The Women of Troy went up seven at 17-10, but the Boilermakers clawed their way back into the match. Purdue cut the margin to four at 22-18 on a block by Lynch and Gurnell and kept pushing, slicing the lead to one at 27-26 after kills by Mader and Miller. USC called a timeout, before capping the match with two kills and a block to win Game 4 30-26.
"You hate to leave a place knowing that if you had played at a higher level, you could have won the match," head coach Dave Shondell said. "We played with them for two games and then our passing broke down. We showed that we can compete with a team like USC and do it in their home gym. It is disappointing to leave with the questions of what if, but that is how I feel. We have to learn from this and come out in 24 hours against another tough team in Pepperdine."
Lynch led the Boilermaker offense with 14 kills, followed by Miller and Merlau with 13 apiece. Jacques added 10 kills in the effort. Lynch also served up a career-high four aces and put up seven blocks, while Dildine led the defense with 21 digs. Miller wrapped up the night with 14 digs to complete the double-double.
The Boilermakers return to action at 10 p.m. (EST) when they take on the No. 20 Pepperdine Waves in Malibu, Calif.