Northwestern University Athletics
Postseason Appearance Caps Off Successful 2003
4/9/2004 12:00:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
April 9, 2004
EVANSTON, Ill.--Northwestern's volleyball team started the 2003 season with high expectations. Having All-American candidate Erika Lange (Orland Park, Ill./Carl Sandburg) back for her senior season, along with All-Big Ten candidates Iwona Lodzik (Tarnobrzeg, Poland/Tarnobrzeg) and Drew Robertson (Long Beach, Calif./Long Beach Poly), the 'Cats hoped to improve on their 2002 campaign that netted them their first NCAA Tournament birth since 1984.
With an 18-15 record--the team's best mark since 1988--coupled with a second-consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance, it is safe to say the 2003 Wildcats met those expectations.
The 'Cats wasted no time finding stiff competition. They opened the season by playing 12th-ranked Georgia Tech in the Georgia Tech Courtyard by Marriott Classic on Aug. 29 in Atlanta. After falling to Georgia Tech 3-0, the 'Cats came back strong the next day, posting a 1-1 record by defeating Coastal Carolina 3-0 and losing a close match (3-2) against Alabama.
Northwestern traveled home to face some local competition in the Chicago Challenge Sept. 4-6. The 'Cats did not drop a single game the entire weekend, defeating Ole Miss, Loyola, and Illinois-Chicago all by the score of 3-0. Lange was named Big Ten Player of the Week and Sports Imports/AVCA Division I National Player of the Week for her performance in the event, earning both honors for the first time in her career.
The next weekend the Wildcats swept another tournament, this time the Orange and Green Challenge in Florida. Lodzik was named Big Ten Player of the Week for her superb play as the 'Cats defeated George Mason 3-0, Miami (Fla.) 3-1 and Columbia 3-0.
In their final tune-up for the Big Ten season, Northwestern played host to the 2003 Wildcat Classic Sept. 19-20. After strong showings in 3-0 victories over North Carolina and Chicago State, the 'Cats faced their highest ranked-opponent of the season, No. 3 Florida. Although it was defeated 3-0, Northwestern gained experience from the loss.
"It was a great learning experience," said head coach Keylor Chan. "Anytime you can play a top team, you can always learn a lot and get better as a result."
During the Florida match, Lange broke the Northwestern record for block assists in a career, topping Liz Douglass' old record of 448. Robertson and Lodzik joined Lange on the All-Tournament team for the Wildcat Classic.
With a 9-3 record heading into the Big Ten season, the 'Cats looked ready to improve on their sixth-place conference finish in 2002. Unfortunately, NU was slow out of the gates, dropping its first three matches (Illinois, Wisconsin and Minnesota). The 'Cats finally earned their first win in the conference in early October, a 3-0 decision against Iowa.
Northwestern returned home the following weekend and brought the momentum they gained from its win over the Hawkeyes. The Wildcats edged Ohio State at Welsh-Ryan Arena on Oct. 10 by a score of 3-2. The victory snapped a five-year home losing streak against Ohio State. The next day, however, the 'Cats could not get the hat trick, as they were halted by No. 11 Penn State 3-1.
After losses to Michigan and Michigan State, the Wildcats stood at 2-6 in the Big Ten when they came back home to take on Indiana and Purdue on Oct. 24 and 25, respectively. On both nights, NU swept its opponent to eventually double its number in the conference win column.
Things were eerily similar on Halloween when the 'Cats headed to Happy Valley to challenge Penn State. The 17th-ranked Nittany Lions defeated the Wildcats 3-0, halting a Wildcat two-game winning streak just like the last time they had faced Northwestern.
The team had to quickly put that match behind them if it was going to beat Ohio State in Columbus on Nov. 1. It was able to do just that, fortunately, sweeping the season series against OSU by beating them 3-1. The 'Cats broke another streak against the Buckeyes, winning in Columbus for the first time in 19 years.
The Wildcats continued the winning trend the next weekend, sweeping Iowa for the year after a 3-0 victory on Nov. 7 at Welsh-Ryan Arena. Then came one of the biggest victories of the year, as the 'Cats blanked No. 20 Minnesota 3-0 for their first triumph over a ranked-team in 2003. In attendance that night was the 1983 volleyball team, which was celebrating its 20th anniversary of winning the Big Ten Championship.
"We expected to play this way," said Chan after the match. "We didn't expect to sweep Minnesota, but we'll take it. With the '83 team here, we played with some inspiration; we wanted to play well for them."
Following a loss at No. 25 Illinois, the Wildcats had revenge on their minds again as they headed home to battle No. 20 Wisconsin on Nov. 14. This time, the 'Cats got to savor victory as they toppled the Badgers 3-1.
Northwestern went on the road for the final time in the Big Ten season to battle Purdue on Nov. 21 and Indiana on the 22nd. The 'Cats had thoughts of an NCAA bid on their mind coming into the weekend, but those hopes were dampened by a 3-2 loss to the Boilermakers and a 3-0 loss to the Hoosiers.
For their final two conference matches, the Wildcats welcomed Michigan State and Michigan to Welsh-Ryan Arena on Thanksgiving weekend. Needing at least one win to improve their NCAA resume, the 'Cats stepped up to the challenge and defeated the Spartans 3-0. With a 3-0 loss to the Wolverines the next day, NU concluded the regular season 18-14, including 9-11 in the Big Ten.
Soon after, the 'Cats were given a postseason berth and the right to play No. 14 Washington in Seattle for the first round of the NCAA Tournament.
Before traveling to Seattle, Lange was named to the All-Big Ten team for the second-consecutive year. She also was an honorable All-Big Ten mention her sophomore year and was named to the All-Big Ten Freshman team in 2000.
Against the Huskies, Northwestern could not come up with an answer for Washington's dominating effort, falling in three games by the scores of 30-20, 30-21, 30-26.
"I am proud of my kids--they came in and even though it has been a long year, they gave us everything they had," said Chan. "Even though tonight (Dec. 5) we didn't play our best, the effort was there. It just wasn't our night. Washington played real well."
The loss against Washington ended the Northwestern careers of Lange, Lodzik, Erica Knavel (Elm Grove, Wis./Brookfield East) and Jill Buschur (New Bremen, Ohio/New Bremen). While the loss of these players will have a significant effect on the team, Chan still has a lot of talent at his dispersal for the 2004 season as the 'Cats will look to improve upon this past year's success and earn a third-consecutive trip to the NCAA Tournament.
"We'll be a young team next year, but a young team with NCAA Tournament experience," said Chan. "Even though we graduated a lot of players, our experience should carry us."
