Oct. 28, 2011
ANN ARBOR, Mich. - No. 11 Purdue had to fight off three match point attempts, before recording three straight blocks to come-from-behind to sneak out of Cliff Keen Arena with a 3-2 victory over No. 22 Michigan Friday night. The Boilermakers won the match 20-25, 25-14, 20-25, 25-22, 18-16 to take their first win in Ann Arbor since 2007.
The Purdue block was key in the match as the Boilermakers out-stuffed the Wolverines 18.5 to 6. The block also helped stifle UM to the tune of a .181 hitting effort, while Purdue hit at a .277 clip.
Junior Ariel Turner paced the Purdue effort with a 25-kill, 18-dig double double, while also chipping in six blocks. Freshman Val Nichol added 11 kills, while redshirt sophomore Catherine Rebarchak registered nine kills and five blocks.
Turner led a group of four Boilermakers with double digit dig totals, pulling up 18. Redshirt senior Blair Bashen added 17 digs, while sophomore Hilliary Fox and senior Emily Ehlers contributed 11 and 10 respectively. Senior Tiffany Fisher paced Purdue at the net with eight blocks. Turner added six stuffs, while Rebarchak and freshman Kierra Jones each put up five.
The teams were tied at five early in the decisive fifth set, but a kill and a block put Michigan on top at 7-5 and forced Purdue to use its first timeout. Down by two again at 9-7, a pair of Wolverine miscues helped the Boilermakers even the score. Michigan managed four of the next five points, including a trio of Purdue miscues, to go up 13-10. The Boilermakers used their final timeout and scored a pair of points out of the break on an over the net call and a stuff by Nichol and Jones, which made it 13-12. An Alex Hunt kill put Michigan on the hill, but a service error on match point kept things going. A stuff by Jones and Rebarchak knotted the score at 14. A net violation gave UM another shot, but a hitting error made it 15-15. A hitting error set up the Wolverines' third match point attempt, but Jones and Turner thwarted the effort. Fisher and Rebarchak teamed up on a pair of blocks to cap the win. Purdue tallied five blocks in the final stanza.
The teams split the first 10 points of Set 1, but Michigan took control with four straight points en route to a six-point advantage at 13-7. Purdue narrowed the gap to three at 16-13 and 19-16 as Nichol and Turner registered kills, but could not break through. A Rebarchak kill and a block by Turner and Fisher made it a three-point game again at 21-18, but the Wolverines capped the set with four of the final six points. Fisher managed a kill and a block down the stretch, but couldn't stop the 25-20 Michigan win. Purdue put up 5.5 blocks in the stanza, but UM hit .343 to Purdue's .267 effort.
The Boilermakers hit at a .412 clip and got several hitters involved in a 25-14 Set 2 win. Michigan led 6-4 early, but Purdue used a 5-0 run to turn things around. Drewry entered the game and offered a block and a kill in the rally. The Wolverines pulled within one at 10-9, but the Boilermakers tallied nine of the next 11 points to surge ahead 19-11. Turner put away three kills in the run, while Fisher supplied a pair of blocks, including a solo stuff. A UM kill slowed Purdue temporarily, but kills by Davis and Drewry and a Wolverine miscue pushed the lead to 22-12. A kill by Nichol and another Michigan error gave Purdue a shot at the set at 24-14. Another hitting error clinched the victory.
Set 3 was a back-and-forth battle, but Michigan used a late rally to pull away to a 25-20 win. The Wolverines led 6-2, but Purdue fought back with a 9-2 run, including a pair of 4-0 rallies, to go up 11-8. Fisher and Turner each managed two kills, while three UM errors also helped the Boilermaker effort. Michigan countered with four straight points to go up 12-11. Purdue regained the advantage at 14-13 with three of the next four points, including a stuff by Turner and Fisher. The teams were soon tied at 18, sparking a 5-0 Wolverine run including two aces. A UM hitting error and a kill by Turner kept the set going, but a Lexi Erwin putaway sealed the set at 25-20
The Boilermakers staved off several Michigan runs in a 25-22 win to send the match to a decisive fifth set. Turner racked up seven kills, including the set winner, as Purdue hit .359. A pair of kills and a block by Turner put Purdue up 5-3. The Wolverines caught up, tying the score at 6. The teams traded points leading to a 10-10 knotup. Turner pounded down three more kills, including an overpass as the Boilermakers surged ahead 15-11. Purdue led 17-13 after an ace by Fisher, but Michigan rallied to tie it up at 18. Rebarchak put down three kills to put the Boilermakers up 23-20. A Fisher kill made it 24-21 and Turner ended it two plays later.
The Boilermakers (19-3, 8-3 Big Ten) return to action at 6:30 p.m. Saturday when they take on Michigan State in East Lansing. The match will be streamed live on BTN.com and live audio will be available at purduesports.com.