Sept. 24, 2011
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - The No. 13 Boilermaker volleyball team topped No. 18 Michigan 3-0 Saturday night in a true team effort. A balanced attack on offense and defense coupled with tough serving aided the team in the contest, which Purdue won 26-24, 26-24, 25-15 to remain undefeated at 13-0, 2-0 in the Big Ten.
Purdue bested the Wolverines in every major statistical category with steady efforts across the board, including an 8-4 advantage in blocks and a .241 to .073 tally in hitting percentage. Four Boilermakers posted eight or more kills. Junior Ariel Turner and senior Tiffany Fisher led the way with nine apiece, while redshirt sophomore Catherine Rebarchak and freshman Valerie Nichol each tallied eight. Rebarchak also added two aces and three blocks in the match.
Redshirt sophomore Rachel Davis led the Purdue defense with 15 digs to go with her 28 assist tally. Redshirt senior Blair Bashen followed with 14 saves, while senior Emily Ehlers added eight. Freshman Kierra "KiKi" Jones led the Boilermakers at the net with four blocks.
The opening set, which featured 15 ties and six lead changes, was split 6-6 early on, but Michigan scored three straight to take the lead and prompt a Purdue timeout. Down 10-7, Purdue manufactured a 5-1 run, including a trio of UM errors and capped by a Nichol overpass putaway, to go up 12-11. The teams battled for control with neither managing more than a one point lead, until the Wolverines took advantage of two Purdue miscues to go ahead 19-17. After trading the next six points, a Michigan ace made it 23-20 and brought on another Boilermaker timeout. The pause worked as Purdue rallied to close out the set at 26-24 with six of the next seven points. A Nichol kill and a solo stuff by Rebarchak helped Purdue tie the score at 23. Facing set point, Nichol came through with her sixth putaway and a UM error and Turner kill clinched the 26-24 comeback win.
Michigan took control of set two in the early stages, scoring three of the first four points and battling ahead to an 8-5 lead. A kill by Davis and an ace by Fisher pulled the Boilermakers within one as did a pair of UM miscues a few points later, but Michigan held on to the lead. Trailing 13-9 and with both timeouts gone, the Boilermakers rallied with nine of the next 11 points, including six straight, to turn the deficit into an 18-15 lead. The Wolverines burned both of its timeouts during the final 6-0 stretch which featured a pair of Rebarchak kills and a trio of UM miscues. Michigan tied things up at 18, but Purdue pressed on, going up 21-18 on a block by Davis and Fisher. The Wolverines rallied with six of the next eight to steal a 24-23 edge. A UM service error and two hitting errors, however, gave the Boilermakers the 26-24 win.
Purdue trailed 8-6 early on in Set 3, but turned things around with a 6-1 run, including a solo block and two kills by Nichol. Down 12-9, Michigan rallied to a 13-13 tie, but that only sparked a 10-0 Boilermaker rally, including eight straight points on serves by Ehlers. Kills by Turner bookended the rally, which also included a pair of kills by Rebarchak and a trio of blocks. Rebarchak had a hand in two of the blocks, while Turner registered a solo stuff. A Wolverine kill and a ball handling miscue slowed Purdue temporarily, but a UM net violation set up match point, which came on an ace by Bashen. The Boilermakers outhit Michigan .333 to -.030 in the set and outblocked UM 5-1.
The Boilermakers (13-0, 2-0 Big Ten) return to action at 8 p.m. Wednesday when they take on Northwestern, live on the Big Ten Network. Purdue's 13-0 start is its best since beginning the 1985 season 13-0. Only a 33-0 beginning in 1982 betters the efforts.