Unforced errors aid in Illini sweep of Boilers
>>Print ViewPublication Date: 11/02/2009
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No. 6 Illinois used an aggressive attack and a steady pace to wear down the Purdue volleyball team Saturday night.
The Boilermakers lost in straight sets to their conference foe, 25-21, 25-19, 25-14.
The loss marks the Boilers’ second loss to Illinois this season and the team’s fourth consecutive loss to a conference opponent. In those four losses Purdue has won only three of 15 sets and been swept twice, including Saturday’s loss to Illinois.
Despite the sweep, the Boilermakers (11-12, 3-9 Big Ten) came out strong and appeared to be in control for the majority of the first set. Purdue served to win the first three points and maintained a similar margin throughout the set until the squad committed three consecutive service errors, which made the set an 18-all deadlock. The Fighting Illini (18-3, 10-2 Big Ten) capitalized on those errors, never again trailing in the set and winning it 25-21.
“I thought the first set was pretty symbolic of where the season is going,” coach Dave Shondell said. “That was like a lot of our sets: We play good teams, we play them very well, we hold leads throughout, and then we’ll make some unforced errors down the stretch that make the difference and turn the tide.”
The second set began much like the first, with the Boilermakers jumping out to a brief lead. The squads traded points until Illinois pushed the set to a 9-all tie and began steadily pulling away, using its consistent attack to wear down the Boilermakers.
The Fighting Illini continued their offensive dominance into the third set, at one point taking 11 of 12 points from the Boilermakers.
“They had all three hitters tonight,” senior outside hitter Carrie Gurnell said of Illinois’ attack. “It’s really hard to block a team that has three hitters that you’ve got to watch out for.”
“(Illinois) had great balance tonight,” Shondell said. “We didn’t do enough to negate what they were doing.
“We just gave up too many easy points.”