Sept. 2, 2006
AUBURN, Ala. - The No. 16 Boilermaker volleyball team kept its perfect record in tact with a 3-0 sweep of the host Auburn Tigers Saturday afternoon. Purdue also took the Mizuno Challenge title with the 30-23, 30-24, 30-28 win.
"I am pleased with our performance this weekend," head coach Dave Shondell said. "It is early in the year, and although we feel like we are a good team, we are still finding ourselves. We played three teams that we should beat, but teams that are going to fare better than they have in the past. We were lucky to win and are ready to go home and prepare for Dayton."
The Tigers took an early 4-1 lead and held Purdue at bay. The Boilermakers tied it up four times, but could not break through. Down 12-11, sophomores Kelli Miller (Muncie, Ind.) and Danita Merlau (New Palestine, Ind.) put down back-to-back kills to give Purdue its first lead of the match. Auburn hung tight, tying the score at 13, 14 and 16, before the Boilermakers pulled away. A 7-2 rally capped by a pair of blocks by Merlau and junior Lizzie Jacques (Winfield, Ill.) pushed the point margin to five at 23-18. The Tigers made it a three-point game at 24-21, but that sparked a 5-0 run by the Boilermakers including kills by Merlau, Miller and sophomore Stephanie Lynch (New Albany, Ind.) The teams then split the final four points leading to a 30-23 Purdue win off a kill by freshman Carrie Gurnell. Merlau posted five kills in the opening stanza.
The Boilermakers jumped out to an 11-6 advantage in Game 2 after a plethora of AU miscues. Kills by Merlau and Jacques pushed the margin to seven at 14-7, but the Tigers clawed their way back in, slicing the lead to two at 15-13. Auburn remained close, holding the Boilermaker advantage to four or less throughout the next several serves. Up 24-21, Purdue scored five of the next six points, including a pair of kills by Miller to boost the score to 28-22. Another kill by Miller set up the Boilermakers' first game-point attempt. An Auburn kill thwarted the effort, but Merlau put down a kill to give Purdue the 30-24 win. Merlau tallied six kills in the game, while Miller accounted for five.
Auburn went up 10-7 to begin the third game. The Boilermakers then turned the tables, going up 14-11 with a 7-1 run, capped by four-straight Merlau kills. Purdue kept the pressure on, boosting the point margin to six at 20-14 and again at 22-16. Down 26-20, the Tigers rattled off four straight points to pull within two at 26-24. Auburn scored three of the next five to make it 28-27, but the Boilermakers finished off the sweep with a 30-28 win after a kill by junior Sam Mader (Algonquin, Ill.). Merlau racked up eight kills in the final stanza to bring her total to 19 for the match.
Merlau led the Boilermakers with 19 kills, followed by Miller, who put down 13 kills to go with her 13-dig tally. Senior Brittany Dildine (Lafayette, Ind.) led all defenders with 18 digs.
Miller and Merlau were both honored with all-tournament team accolades for their performances.
"Miller was magical for us today, hitting better than .400 in both matches," Shondell said. "We would have been in a world of hurt without her. Merlau bounced back well in the second match and had the kind of performance we expect from her."
The Boilermakers return to action at 7 p.m. Wednesday when they take on the Dayton Flyers in Dayton, Ohio.