Volleyball Falls 3-1 To No. 25 Purdue In Season Opener

Friday, August 29

West Lafayette, Ind.

7:00 p.m.

Duke University

Purdue

Duke Falls 3-0 At No. 9 UCLA To End NCAA Tournament Run

Volleyball Falls 3-1 To No. 25 Purdue In Season Opener

8/29/2008 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball

By: Duke Sports Information

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. ?Stephanie Lynch hammered 16 kills and put back a team-high seven blocks to lead No. 25 Purdue to a 3-1 (25-19, 25-22, 16-25, 25-23) win over Duke in the season opener for both teams at the Purdue Mortar Board Premier in Holloway Gymnasium Friday night.

Lynch finished 16-of-33 attacking for a team-high .364 hitting percentage and picked up six of her kills in the 25-23 fourth set victory. The senior outside hitter made just four attack errors, including just one in the match-clinching fourth set, and also added two service aces and nine digs.

Lynch's performance was enough to outpace the efforts of Duke junior Rachael Moss and sophomore Becci Burling, who each reached double-digit kills. Moss led the Blue Devils (0-1, 0-0 ACC) with 17 kills and picked up her first double-double of the year by adding 11 digs. Burling, meanwhile, contributed 12 kills at a .455 clip along with four blocks and five digs.

The Boilermakers (1-0) also received 17 kills from senior Danita Merleau and nine more from sophomore Lisa Pierce. Purdue hit .245 as a squad, compared to Duke's .263 mark. The Boilermakers were also effective at the net and blocked eight Duke attacks while the Blue Devils countered with 10 stops. Senior Jourdan Norman was in on a team-high four of those blocks, while freshman setter Kellie Catanach had three stops and classmates Sophia Dunworth and Amanda Robertson had two apiece. Sophomore Claire Smalzer also donned the libero jersey for the first time in her career and added nine digs and a pair of assists.

Purdue jumped out to an early 1-0 lead after taking the first set 25-19 on the strength of 17 kills and four service aces. The Boilermakers managed to hold the Blue Devils to seven kills in the opening set, three of which came from Moss. Duke mounted a late rally after falling behind 23-13 and went off with a 6-1 run, but had the comeback effort squashed after a set-clinching kill from Merleau.

Set two featured a back-and-forth battle that saw Duke take its first lead of the match at 15-14 before Purdue fought back with a 6-3 run to retake the lead at 20-17. Senior Sue Carls, Burling and Dunworth came on late and each added kills to bring the set within two points at 24-22, but could not stop Merleau from locking up the 2-0 advantage with another set-clinching kill.

“We were anxious in games one and two,” head coach Jolene Nagel said. “It was typical first match jitters, and we weren't playing like we've been playing the past two weeks in our own gym.

“We settled down in game three and really played well with more consistent services and disciplined defense.”

Facing elimination, the Blue Devils bounced back with a 25-16 win in the third set thanks to a 10-assist effort from Catanach that allowed Duke to turn in a .536 hitting percentage for the set. In her first collegiate match, Catanach never left the floor and totaled 34 assists, four kills and 15 digs for her first career double-double. She distributed three kills each to Burling, Moss and Carls in the third set, including the set-clincher from Carls.

“I was pleased with how we kept fighting and hung in there,” Nagel said, “especially after being down 0-2 on the road and in front of a nice crowd.”

The Blue Devils mounted one last comeback in game four and went ahead by as much as four points at 20-16, but fell victim to an 8-1 run and dropped the fourth set 25-23. Lynch was the difference-maker in set four and contributed seven points, including six kills and a block that broke a 21-21 tie and set up the Boilermakers for their final run.

“Everyone is working very hard to help this team come together,” Nagel said. “In addition to a productive preseason, this match was another step toward us coming together and reaching our potential.”

The Blue Devils will continue play at the Purdue Mortar Board Premier on Saturday, August 29, with a pair of matches against Kansas State (Noon) and Tennessee State (5:30 p.m.). Duke will then return to Cameron Indoor Stadium on September 5 for the two-day Duke Invitational.

-d-u-k-e-