Oct. 4, 2008
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - The Boilermaker volleyball team's quest to move to 3-1 in Big Ten Conference play hit a roadblock in the form of No. 13 Minnesota Saturday night. The Gophers (14-2, 4-0 Big Ten) downed No. 18 Purdue 25-14, 25-16 and 25-19 despite a late comeback effort in the third set on Dig For A Cure night.
The Boilermakers raised $1,546 for the Indianapolis Affliate of Komen for the Cure through donations and a silent auction, while 2,283 fans, many of them in pink, came out to watch the match.
Senior Stephanie Lynch made up nearly half of the Boilermaker offense with 13 of the team's 31 kills. Senior Danita Merlau added six. Defensively, senior Kelli Miller and Merlau tallied eight digs apiece to pace Purdue. Lynch tacked on three blocks to lead the team at the net. Purdue posted a paltry .046 hitting effort as Minnesota hit .263 for the match. The Gophers served up six aces, while allowing just two.
The Boilermakers took a 6-4 lead to start the match, including an ace by Lynch. The Gophers charged back, taking the lead at 8-7 after a pair of Purdue hitting miscues. The Boilermakers tied it up at eight, nine and 10, but could not break through. With a 13-12 lead, Minnesota rattled off seven straight points to go up 20-12. A kill by junior Carrie Gurnell and a hitting error slowed the Gophers momentarily, but UM served up five straight points, including two aces to cap the 25-14 win.
Minnesota picked up where they left off in Set 2, racing out to a 16-6 lead. A block by Merlau and a trio of putaways by Lynch cut the margin to seven at 17-10, but Minnesota rallied again, snapping off an 8-3 run to go up 24-13. A service error, a Boilermaker ace by Miller and a Lynch kill thwarted three Gopher match point attempts, before a putdown by Brook Dieter closed the set at 25-16. Lynch tacked on five kills in the losing effort.
The Golden Gophers kept the pressure on in the third set, going up 20-4, including four aces, six Boilermaker hitting errors and two blocks. Purdue, however, wasn't content to sit quietly as the match slipped away. Instead, the Boilermakers mounted a stellar comeback, rattling off 15 of the next 18 points to narrow the gap to four at 23-19. Merlau served up seven straight points in the stretch, while adding three putaways. Lynch chalked up four kills, while junior Samantha Ainsworth and sophomores Jessica Ullrich and Jaclyn Hart also contributed kills. A kill by Dieter stopped the Boilermaker rally and a block sealed the 25-19 win and the sweep for Minnesota.
The Boilermakers (13-3, 2-2 Big Ten) return to action on Friday when they take on Michigan in Ann Arbor. The match will air tape delayed on ESPN2 on Sunday, Oct. 12.