Northwestern University Athletics
Northwestern
Illinois
Wildcats Outlast Illini, 3-2
9/30/2005 12:00:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
Sept. 30, 2005
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. -- Northwestern rumbled downstate for its Big Ten road opener and motored out of Champaign with a 3-2 victory and its first Big Ten win of the season, 30-18, 31-33, 31-29, 26-30, 15-10, in a match tape-delay televised by Comcast SportsNet Chicago.
With the win, the Wildcats improve to 10-3 on the season, 1-2 in the Big Ten. Illinois falls to 10-4, 1-2 in the conference. The Illini entered the match receiving votes in the latest CSTV/AVCA Coaches poll.
CSN Chicago will broadcast the match at 3:30 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 1.
The match was just the second of the season for Northwestern to go beyond three games and its first to go five. The Wildcats earned a win over Loyola in four at the Chicagoland Classic on Sept. 9.
The lead was Northwestern's to begin the match. Serving with a two-point lead, sophomore Courtnie Paulus (Belgium, Wis./Ozaukee) aced the Illini twice to build a 9-5 Wildcat advantage. Another Paulus ace later in the game gave NU a 17-12 cushion and forced an Illinois timeout.
Coming out of the break, the Wildcats reeled off the next four points -- including yet another Paulus ace. A kill from junior Cassie McLaughlin (Cary, Ill./Cary Grove) made the score 21-12 in favor of NU and brought another timeout from Illinois.
Northwestern's run would eventually hit 9-0 before the Illini could break it. At that point, the Wildcats led 23-13 and cruised to a 30-18 game one win on a kill from the Big Ten's leading hitter, sophomore Brittney Aldridge (Hampshire, Ill./Hampshire).
Paulus finished the first game with four aces, bettering her career-match-high of three before the teams even switched sides.
In game two, Illinois held an early advantage. Down four, 8-4, NU pulled to within one with a 3-0 run capped by a McLaughlin ace. The Wildcats then tied the score, 11-11, before taking their first lead of the game, 13-12, on a McLaughlin kill.
Sophomore Lindsay Anderson (Wilmette, Ill./New Trier) uncorked a rocket of an ace that gave Northwestern a 15-13 lead, and Illinois used its first timeout of the game.
The game remained close throughout, until a late 3-0 run by Illinois gave the hosts at 26-23 lead. NU head coach Keylor Chan called timeout, then watched his team reel off three straight points of its own to tie the game, 26-26, on a kill from sophomore Stephanie Jurivich (LaGrange, Ill./St. Ignatius).
Illinois earned a game point, 29-28, but an attack error knotted the score. McLaughlin and Paulus then blocked a ball to give the Wildcats a 30-29 lead and a game point of its own. The Illini fought off that and one more game point from Northwestern before winning the second game, 33-31.
Trailing 3-1 to begin the third game, NU earned back the serve on a kill from McLaughlin, who then served three consecutive aces to give the Wildcats a 5-3 lead. Northwestern held that lead until Illinois put together a run to take a 17-16 advantage.
With Northwestern down by one, 26-25, Chan used a timeout after which the Wildcats ran off four consecutive points to earn a 29-26 lead. Illinois staved off all three game points, however, to again knot the score, 29-29. A Paulus kill earned the 'Cats a 30-29 lead before an Anderson kill gave NU a 31-29 game win and a 2-1 match lead.
The Wildcats came out clawing in the fourth game. Illinois claimed the first point, then Northwestern ran off eight straight -- including three blocks and three aces from senior Lizzie Carlson (Palo Alto, Calif./Palo Alto).
In the Big Ten, though, everybody makes a run. The Illini fought back and eventually tied the game, 19-19, before taking a 26-23 lead and forcing a Northwestern timeout. Illinois closed out the fourth game, 30-26, to knot the match at two games each.
Playing their first game five of the season, the Wildcats jumped out to a 5-2 lead before the Illini called timeout. Northwestern pushed out to an 8-4 advantage before the side change.
The Wildcats continued to step on the gas, eventually opening a 13-8 lead. An Illini attack error finished the game, 15-10, and the match, 3-2, in favor of Northwestern.
A season-best five Wildcats finished in double-digit kills, led by Anderson with 19. Julie Purcell (Louisville, Ky./Assumption) had 15, Paulus finished with 11, McLaughlin had 10 and Jurivich added 10.
Gardner set a career-high with 32 digs in the match, the fourth-best total in NU history.
Anderson put up a career-best 15 digs for her fifth double-double of the season.
As a team, Northwestern put up 15 aces, its second-best total on the year.
Northwestern returns to action at 2 p.m. Sunday at Purdue in a match being played at Mackey Arena.
