Nov. 30, 2006

West Lafayette, IN - Saint Louis fell 3-0 at No. 14 seeded Purdue in the first round of the NCAA Volleyball Tournament. The Boilermakers defeated the Billikens, who were making their first NCAA Tournament appearance, 30-21, 30-20, 32-30.

The Boilermakers began the match with a rush and scored the first six points of game one before a Lauren Christman kill put the Billikens on the board. A Sutton Lasater kill was the first of a 3-1 run. Tatyana Menshikova put down a kill, and a Purdue error brought the Billikens to 11-7. However, the Boilermakers scored six of the next seven points to assume a 17-8 lead. The Billikens scored four of the next six points as Angela Powers registered two kills. Menshikova put down a kill, and after a Purdue error, Christman and Sammi McCloud registered a block as the Billikens drew to 22-15. Kills by Menshikova and McCloud drew the Billikens to 26-19, but SLU could not get any closer as Purdue took game one 30-21.

Purdue again led in the early portion of game two, but a kill by Powers and a block by Lasater and Menshikova trimmed the margin to 10-7. The teams traded points until 13-10, but the Boilermakers scored five of the next six points to push out to an 18-11 lead. The Billikens still were down seven at 21-14, but the Boilermakers rattled off five straight points. Kills by Christman and McCloud helped the Billikens scored five of the next seven points, but Purdue closed the second game 30-20.

Menshikova registered a kill to open game three to give the Billikens their first lead of the night. Whitney Roth tipped in a ball for a 2-1 SLU lead, but the Boilermakers scored three straight to take a 4-2 lead. McCloud had a kill, and she joined with Christman on a block to tie the game. A Powers kill put the Billikens on top 5-4. The game was tied 6-6 before the Billikens rattled off four consecutive points. After a Purdue error, McCloud served an ace. Lasater notched a solo block, and another McCloud ace pushed the Billikens to a 10-6 advantage. Purdue closed to 11-8, but a Boilers' error and an ace by Whitney Behrens gave the Billikens their biggest lead of the night at 13-8. Purdue slowly cut into the lead, drawing to 17-16. The Billikens used a kill by Menshikova and two Purdue errors to rebuild a 20-16 lead. Another Menshikova kill kept the Billiken advantage at 21-17, but the Boilermakers scored four straight to draw to 21-21. Menshikova answered for the Billikens to take a 22-21 lead. McCloud kept answering for the Billikens after every Purdue point. After her kill put the Billikens up 25-24, McCloud's serve inched over the next for an ace and a 26-24 SLU lead. The Boilermakers answered with five straight kills to grab a 29-26 lead. The Billikens finally forced a Purdue error to get to 29-27. Lasater tipped in a ball for 29-28, and she and Menshikova had a block to tie the game at 29-29. The game was tied at 30-30, and Purdue reached match point after an ace. The Billikens had a swing to extend the match but it was long and Purdue claimed the final game 32-30.

Powers, Laster and McCloud all had nine kills to lead the Billikens. McCloud registered a team-high 15 kills, while Lasater notched a team-best five blocks. The Billikens had one more team block than Purdue, but the Boilermakers out-dug SLU 60-42. Danita Merlau led Purdue with 17 kills, while Stephanie Lynch added 11 kills. Brittany Dildine finished with a match-high 19 digs.

The Billikens end their season at 22-9, and the Boilermakers, 22-10, advance to take on Kentucky in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.