Northwestern University Athletics
Northwestern
Purdue
Wildcats Fall in Five-Set Heartbreaker to 18th-Ranked Purdue
11/28/2008 12:00:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
Nov. 28, 2008
2008 Northwestern Volleyball Statistics 
EVANSTON, Ill. -- Sophomore Brittani Gray (Cincinnati, Ohio/Sycamore) tied a career-high 21 kills and senior Chelsy Hyser (Belvidere, Ill./Belvidere) added 11 kills and nine blocks, but Northwestern came up just short, losing a five-set heartbreaker to 18th-ranked Purdue, 25-22, 22-25, 22-25, 25-21, 13-25, at Welsh-Ryan Arena. The Boilermakers sweep the season series and improve to 23-8 overall and 12-7 in the Big Ten, while the Wildcats drop to 8-22 on the year and 2-17 in conference play.
Northwestern carried the early momentum on its home court, notching the first point of the opening set and leading wire-to-wire to take the 25-22 victory. NU led by as many as seven at 19-12, then held off a late Purdue rally in the opener. Hyser registered four kills and a pair of blocks for the Wildcats, while Gray and sophomore Sabel Moffett (Temecula, Calif./Chapparal) each added three kills of their own.
The Wildcats again pounced out of the gates in set two, opening up a six-point cushion on the Boilermakers at 13-7. But Purdue would fight back, using a 5-1 rally to take the lead at 20-18. Leading 23-22, the Boilers notched the final two points of the set to hold off the Northwestern charge. Gray had a monster set for the `Cats, tallying seven kills and adding a solo block with Hyser notching four kills of her own. Freshman Madalyn Shalter (Ottawa, Ohio/Ottawa-Glandorf) and sophomore Elyse Glab (Chicago, Ill./Resurrection) each added a pair of kills, while Glab dished out 10 assists and junior Kate Nobilio (Johnsburg, Ill./Johnsburg) tallied seven digs.
Purdue gained the early advantage following the break, cruising out to an 18-8 lead in the third set. Northwestern would stage a rally of its own and was able to trim the deficit to a single point at 19-18, but couldn't get over the hump as the Boilermakers outscored NU 6-4 down the stretch to take the 25-22 victory and the 2-1 advantage. Gray added three more kills for the `Cats with Hyser adding two kills and three blocks of her own, complimented by a pair of kills from Shalter.
With the match on the line, Northwestern responded, staking claim to an early six point advantage at 14-8 and never looked back. Purdue would stage a comeback late in the set, trimming the Wildcat lead to two at 20-18, but NU kept the Boilermakers at bay, taking the 25-21 decision and forcing a decisive fifth set. Gray once again came up big, knocking down five attacks and was complimented by three kills from Moffett. Glab tallied 12 assists while Nobilio dug five more Purdue attacks.
In the final set, Purdue jumped out to an early three point advantage, and was able to maintain that lead for the majority of the set. Trailing 13-10, NU fought back one last time to tie the set at 13 apiece, but a kill by Kelli Miller and a block by Jaclyn Hart and Stephanie Lynch sealed the victory for the Boilers. Danita Merlau paced the Purdue attack with 21 kills while Carrie Gurnell added 12 of her own.
Gray's 21 kills ties her career best, set on Sept. 28, 2007, against Wisconsin, while her 46 attempts is her second-highest output of the season, shy of her career-best 61 at Dayton on Sept. 5. Hyser tallied a double-digit kill total for the 16th time this season, finishing with 11, while her nine blocks is a new season-best, surpassing the eight she recorded against Ohio State on Oct. 13. Moffett finished with eight kills and five blocks as well for the Wildcats, with junior Ariel Baxterbeck (Menlo Park, Calif./Castilleja) adding six kills and 11 digs on the night. Nobilio led the way with 24 digs, bringing her career total to 1,648, meaning she needs just 11 digs in the season finale Saturday night to surpass Christie Gardner as Northwestern's all-time dig queen. Glab also finished with 46 assists and four blocks on the night.
The Wildcats close the curtain on the 2008 season Saturday evening at Welsh-Ryan Arena, hosting 15th-ranked Illinois at 7 p.m. The Illini remain in third place in the Big Ten with a 14-5 conference mark and are 23-7 overall after sweeping Wisconsin in Madison Friday evening. Saturday's match will also be Senior Night, as Hyser and Kelly Keporos (Downers Grove, Ill./Downers Grove North) will be honored before the opening serve.
