Michigan
13-2, 0-2Big Ten
Purdue
12-1, 2-0Big Ten
Wolverines Drop Another Heartbreaker to No. 11 Purdue
9/23/2006 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- Despite recording more kills and digs than its opponent for the second night in a row, the No. 19-ranked University of Michigan volleyball team suffered its second straight loss, falling 30-26, 26-30, 26-30, 30-26, 10-15 to No. 11 Purdue on Saturday night (Sept. 23) in Cliff Keen Arena.
After losing the second and third games to fall behind 2-1, the Wolverines (13-2, 0-2 Big Ten) appeared poised to grab a comeback victory after winning the fourth game 30-26 and bolting to a 9-5 advantage in the final frame. However, Purdue (12-1, 2-0 Big Ten) seized the momentum with four consecutive kills and closed the match with a 10-1 run to take the victory.
Michigan finished with 74 kills to Purdue's 68 and held a 99-85 edge in digs, but the Boilermakers had 14 blocks in a consistent effort at the net and committed five fewer attack errors in the two-hour, 26-minute match.
With U-M's No. 1 attack option, junior Katie Bruzdzinski (Naperville, Ill./Naperville North), stymied by the Purdue defense for much of the night, Michigan received big efforts from junior Lyndsay Miller (Ida, Mich./Ida), who had a match-high 19 kills, including 14 in games three and four combined, and sophomore Beth Karpiak (LaGrange, Ill./Lyons Township), who hit .448 with a career-best 17 kills and added five blocks. Fifth-year senior Erin Penn (Dexter, Mich./Dexter) chipped in 17 kills and 16 digs, and junior Stesha Selsky (Manhattan Beach, Calif./Marymount) contributed match highs of 27 digs and 60 assists.
Though limited to 12 kills and a .000 hitting mark on 57 swings, Bruzdzinski did become the ninth member of U-M's 1,000-kill club with her 10th kill of the match, midway through the third game. By reaching 1,000 in her 76th career match, Brudzinski attained the milestone faster than any other player in program history, bettering Jennifer Gandolph's (2001-04) previous mark of 85 matches.
Neither team was able to string together more than two points in the first game until the Wolverines took control with a 4-0 run to lead 13-10. Michigan extended its advantage to a game-high seven points, 22-15, on a kill by Karpiak and two Purdue hitting errors. After the Boilermakers scored five straight points to close within two, 23-21, a service error and Miller's kill gave U-M a comfortable lead, and another Miller kill and Selsky's put-away of a 50/50 ball closed out the game, 30-25.
Michigan had 19 kills -- including five by Bruzdzinski and four from Penn -- to Purdue's eight and held the Boilermakers to a -.020 (8-9-49) hitting percentage in the opening frame.
Michigan appeared to be following the same script in the second game as it used kills from Bruzdzinski and Penn coupled with a Purdue attack error to lead 14-10 and force a Boilermakers timeout. U-M was still up four at 16-12 when Samantha Mader's kill started an 11-4 Purdue run that included four attack errors by the Wolverines. Michigan twice closed to within two points, but PU's Danita Merlau sandwiched two kills around a Purdue service error for a 30-26 win, tying up the match.
Karpiak hit .500 (5-1-8) in the second game, and carried the hot hand into the third game, when she had three kills early to keep U-M close. Down 13-10, the Wolverines went on a 5-1 run, fueled by two kills apiece from Miller and Penn, to grab what would be their only lead of the frame, 15-14. Purdue benefited from two U-M attack errors to retake the lead 17-15, and the Boilermakers made just three attack errors in the game and hit .333 to hold off the Wolverines for the 30-26 win. Miller hit .600 (6-0-10) in the stanza, and Penn added five kills.
Miller was Selsky's go-to target early in game four as the Wolverines took an early 3-1 lead on back-to-back kills from the junior outside hitter. Sophomore Liz Raschke (Portage, Mich./Portage Central) aced the Boilermakers three times in one turn at the service line to help U-M go up 9-5, and Karpiak had two solo blocks in a 6-1 Michigan burst that gave the Wolverines a seemingly insurmountable 18-9 lead. However, the Boilermakers rallied and slashed the deficit to 23-22 before a Miller kill and another combo block from Karpiak and Miller gave Michigan some breathing room, 25-22. Penn's back-row kill and senior Megan Bowman's (St. John, Ind./Lake Central) solo block pulled U-M to game point, and a Purdue service error ended it, 30-26, sending each team to a fifth game for the second straight night.
Karpiak was in the middle of things early once again in game five as she combined with Miller for a block and then recorded back-to-back kills to put U-M ahead 9-5. However, Purdue reeled off five straight points after a Boilermaker timeout, and Karpiak's third kill of the frame stopped Purdue only momentarily, as three PU kills and two U-M attack errors capped the stunning finish.
The Wolverines are on the road next week for a pair of Big Ten matches, facing Minnesota on Friday (Sept. 29) in Minneapolis, Minn., and No. 14 Wisconsin on Saturday (Sept. 30) in Madison, Wis. Both matches will begin at 7 p.m. CDT.
Contact: Richard Retyi (734) 763-4423
