Northwestern University Athletics
Northwestern
Missouri
No. 20 Missouri Bounces Wildcats From NCAA Tournament
12/6/2002 12:00:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
Dec. 6, 2002
CEDAR FALLS, Iowa - In its first trip to the NCAA Tournament since 1984, the Northwestern volleyball team nearly mounted a historic comeback. The Wildcats fought off 11 match points in the fourth game, but could not prevent No. 20 Missouri from advancing to the second round. The Tigers outlasted, but did not outeffort, the Wildcats for a 25-30, 30-20, 31-29, 40-38 victory.
The 78 combined points in the final game ties the NCAA record for the longest game in tournament history. Ironically, Missouri fell to Illinois 40-38 in the second game of their opening round match last season.
Iwona Lodzik (Tarnobrzeg, Poland/Tarnobrzeg) led Northwestern with 19 kills, while Erika Lange (Orland Park, Ill./Carl Sandburg) added 14 kills and 10 total blocks. Mary Lauren Smith led Mizzou with 28 kills, while Shen Danru added 23. With the victory, the Tigers advance to play the winner of Friday second match between Northern Iowa and Wisconsin-Milwaukee.
"We played with a lot of heart," Northwestern head coach Keylor Chan said. "I give Missouri's outside hitters a lot of credit. They played better than I expected. I'm proud of our team, but Missouri played very well and they deserved to win."
Missouri got out to an early 6-3 lead in the opening game before the Wildcats scored nine of the next 13 points to go ahead 12-10. NU extended its lead to four at 20-16, but the Tigers rallied to trim its deficit to one, 21-20.
However, Northwestern scored four of the next five points for a 25-21 edge, forcing Mizzou to burn its final timeout. Missouri fought back to within 27-25, but the 'Cats scored the final three points to claim Game 1.
NU hit .382 in the game and benefited from six Tiger service errors. Lange and Lodzik led the Wildcats with four kills apiece.
Missouri got out quickly in Game 2, jumping ahead 13-7, resulting in a Northwestern timeout. Trailing 17-9, the 'Cats mounted an 8-2 run to cut the Tigers' lead to two and get back in the game.
With Mizzou holding a slim 21-19 edge, the Tigers were able to withstand NU's charge by scoring nine of the game's final 10 points to even the match at a game apiece. Missouri outhit Northwestern .405-to-.162 in the game, led by nine kills by Smith.
For the third consecutive game, the Wildcats dug themselves an early hole. Down 4-1, the 'Cats came back to tie the game 7-7. The Tigers built their lead back up to 14-10, but again Northwestern rallied, tying the knotting the score 16-16.
The teams were deadlocked 19-19 when the Wildcats used a 4-1 surge to take a 23-20 lead. However, Missouri battled back to force a 25-25 tie. NU scored the next two points to go ahead 27-25, but the Tigers scored two consecutive to tie the score again.
A Kelli Meyer (Madison, Wis./Edgewood) kill gave Northwestern a 28-27 advantage. Back-to-back points by Mizzou gave it game point at 29-28, but another Meyer kill knotted things at 29-29. But a service error and a Tiger kill on an overpass gave Missouri the victory.
The Wildcats dropped the game despite outhitting Missouri .371-to-.222. NU was hurt by six service errors in the game, compared to one for the Tigers. Lange had four blocks in the game for the 'Cats.
Game 4 turned out to be a marathon, as the Wildcats launch a nearly remarkable victory. Trailing 7-4, Missouri went on a 10-2 run to go ahead 14-9, causing Northwestern to use a timeout. The lead grew to 18-11 when the 'Cats called for their final timeout.
Trailing 29-23 and on the brink of elimination, NU mounted a furious, inspired comeback effort. Behind the serve of Lodzik, the Wildcats miraculously scored seven consecutive points to take a 30-29 lead. The Wildcats earned four game points of their own, but committed service errors on two occasions.
Finally, on Missouri's 12th opportunity to serve for the game, the Tigers capitalized, thus ending Northwestern's season. Following the conclusion of the match, the sellout crowd at West Gymnasium gave both teams a standing ovation for their effort. Smith recorded 10 kills in the game for Mizzou, who outhit NU in the game .265-to-.161.
"It's been a very long road from freshman year to now," senior middle blocker Sarah Ballog (Coto de Caza, Calif./Santa Margarita) said. "I'm so proud of everything that we have accomplished. I'm excited for these (underclassmen) because they're going to be awesome next year."
The loss ends Northwestern's season with a 17-16 record.
