Friday, December 13
Waco, Texas
11:00 a.m. CT
Baylor
3
vs
1
Purdue (Semifinals)
No. 1 VB Books Spot in NCAA Regional Final over Purdue
12/13/2019 3:58:00 PM | Volleyball
Bears advance to the fourth round of the NCAA Tournament for the first time in program history
By Jerry Hill
Baylor Bear Insider
History made.
Hitting almost .400 over the last two sets, the top-ranked Baylor volleyball team defeated Purdue, 25-12, 23-25, 25-15, 25-17, in Friday's region semifinal at the Ferrell Center to reach the Elite Eight for the first time in program history.
Sophomore Marieke van der Mark continued her impressive NCAA Tournament run with a career-high 16 kills and freshman Kara McGhee contributed on six of the team's 10 blocks as the Bears (28-1) won their 12th match in a row and moved within one win of the Final Four.
"It's exciting. We're going to show up ready to play," Baylor coach Ryan McGuyre said. "It's one more step to get us to somewhere special. We're going to be in the moment, and we're also going to try to cherish it as we work into it, and hope we're on the positive end of it again."
Baylor, hosting an NCAA regional for the first time, will face eighth-seeded Washington (27-6) in Saturday's 3 p.m. region final that will be televised by ESPNU. In the other semifinal, the Huskies rolled to a 3-1 win over ninth-seeded Kentucky (25-7) behind a 24-kill performance from All-American outside hitter Kara Bajema.
While this is unchartered territory for the Bears, Washington is in the Elite Eight for the third time in five years and looking to make its fifth Final Four and first since 2013.
"We really just don't want the season to end," McGuyre said. "We love being together, we love training, we look forward to the challenges and difficulties that training brings, and good competition. When the season's over, we'll sit back and reflect on what's changed, what's shifted. But right now, for the next 30 seconds, we're just thinking about how we can love one another and get better and prepare for the next match."
Purdue coach Dave Shondell said if Baylor plays the way it did Friday, "they're going to have a hard time getting beat."
The Boilermaker defense focused on containing All-American outside hitter Yossiana Pressley, who still had 15 kills but hit just .194 with eight errors on 36 swings.
What they couldn't do is slow down Baylor's full arsenal of weapons. Van der Mark had double-digit kills for the third-straight NCAA Tournament match, hitting .464, while senior outside hitter Gia Milana had a season-high 13 kills and senior middle blocker had nine kills and three blocks and hit .421.
"All their players were on, and they played a great game," said senior middle blocker Blake Mohler, who had eight kills and five blocks in her final collegiate match. "It's hard to stop them in their own gym with the momentum behind them. When everyone's playing well, you can't really focus on every single player at once. Those players that we weren't paying as much attention to played really well."
Baylor actually fell behind 2-0 in the first set, and it was back and forth through the first 20 points. But, senior libero Tara Wulf had two service aces in a 6-0 run and the Bears closed it out, 25-12, on a Stafford kill.
Purdue bounced back to take the second set, 25-23, and evened the match at 1-1 by hitting .400 with just three errors and had four blocks.
"There were some adjustments that we were trying to make in the second set that we just didn't execute," McGuyre said. "They were just blowing us up on the sides. There were some things we wanted our pin blockers to do on the sides that we didn't do. But then, we opened up the third set and we were able to do that and get out to a good start right away."
McGhee had a solo block and two assists in the pivotal third set, taking control with a 9-2 run. After back-to-back blocks by McGhee, Pressley had a kill that gave the Bears a 20-11 lead.
Closing out the set, 25-15, van der Mark had a two-handed stuff, celebrating with her trademark scream.
"I'm pretty consistent in how I celebrate. It's one way," van der Mark said. "I love celebrating with my teammates. I took that up as my job this year just to celebrate, keep the joy on the court, on the bench, just always be the most vocal person on the court. I'm excited to do that three more games."
Baylor hit a combined .397 over the last two frames with a combined 27 kills and just four errors on 58 total attempts. In winning the fourth set, 25-17, van der Mark and Milana had five kills apiece and Pressley had four kills, five digs and a block.
Shondell said the difference in the match was Baylor's serving (eight aces) and the dynamic play of van der Mark and Milana.
"I didn't think we were at our best, but I felt like Baylor was really good," Shondell said. "It started with their serving, to be honest with you. They beat us in the game that we've beaten. Everybody in all year. And I didn't expect that. That's why I think we were a little flat-footed."
Already having an historic season with a school-record 28 wins and its first Big 12 championship, Baylor has the chance to check off another bucket-list item by beating Washington on Saturday and advancing to next week's Final Four in Pittsburgh.
"They're every bit as good as I thought they'd be," Washington coach Keegan Cook said of the Bears. "In person, some things are even more impressive than they are on film. Great environment, but we took our team on the road for the first six weeks of the season. We played in some big venues. Everything was designed for this moment."
Tickets for Saturday's region final are $10 for adults and $5 for youth (ages 2-17).
NOTE: If Baylor advances through the Waco Regional, the Bears would face the winner of Saturday's region final in Madison, Wis., between No. 4 Wisconsin and fifth-seeded Nebraska. In Austin, Louisville stunned second-seeded Texas and will face seventh-seeded Minnesota in the final.
THE RUNDOWN
WACO, Texas – Behind three double-digit kill performances, No. 1 Baylor volleyball (28-1) advanced to the program's first NCAA Regional Final with a 3-1 win over No. 16 seed and 14th-ranked Purdue on Friday at the Ferrell Center, 25-12, 23-25, 25-15, 25-17.
BU extends its school record with 28 wins on the season and a 16-0 home record at the Ferrell Center.
Sophomore Marieke van der Mark topped her own career high from last Saturday's match with a 16-kill, .464 efficiency performance. Junior Yossiana Pressley had 15 kills while senior Gia Milana matched a season-high 13 kills on a .500 percentage.
The Bears used a big 8-2 advantage at the service line with senior Tara Wulf tying a school record with four aces in a postseason match.
BU opened up a 10-7 lead with a Shelly Stafford kill and took a 20-11 advantage with a Wulf ace. BU rolled off five of the next six points with two-straight overpasses to take the first set, 25-12.
The Bears rolled early in the second frame with a 6-1 lead. The Boilermakers fought back and tied it up at 18-18 and then took the lead to force the BU timeout. BU fought off two set points before Purdue took the set with a right-side kill, 25-23.
BU built a 15-10 lead with a Stafford ace prior to the media timeout and didn't let up the rest of the third set. After hitting .440 in the frame, the Bears retook the match lead, 25-15.
Baylor and Purdue tangled to open the fourth set for the 7-7 tie. BU opened up a 17-14 lead with a Milana kill, and a 7-3 run closed out the match when van der Mark put down her 16th kill for the win, 25-17.
To keep up with things all season long, follow the team on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram: @BaylorVBall.
HIGHLIGHTS
• Baylor advances to the NCAA Regional Final for the first time in school history.
• BU has now won 84 sets and only dropped 12 during the 2019 season.
• Baylor improved its home record to 16-0 with the win.
• BU has a school-record 28 wins this season.
• Marieke van der Mark led the Bears with a career-high 16 kills on a .464 percentage.
• Tara Wulf tied a school-record four service aces in the postseason.
• Gia Milana had a team-best .500 hit percentage for a season-high 13 kills.
• Three Bears had two service aces in the match (Pressley, Hunt, Bramschreiber).
• Baylor is now 51-12 as a ranked team under McGuyre.
• BU is now 1-2 against Big Ten teams in the NCAA Tournament.
• Baylor improved to 2-1 all-time against Purdue.
• Baylor improved to 4-1 in postseason matches at home.
STAT OF THE MATCH
16 – the career-high kill count for Marieke van der Mark.
TOP QUOTE #1
Head coach Ryan McGuyre
On the win…
"These girls are hungry. They're driven. We've put a lot of work in as all these teams have, but going back to summer and going back to spring -- that's when Kara (McGhee) first got here for us, and it's a lot different now than it was the first couple weeks in January. I think the team just emulates the great leadership we have in our seniors, and their drive and their hunger is just contagious and one of those many things that gets multiplied on our team."
TOP QUOTE #2
Sophomore Marieke van der Mark
On her postseason production…
"I think I've just been playing like it could be my last match. I want to play the best I can for the seniors, like I don't want to go out and it be my fault for us leaving. I don't want the season to end. We want it to keep going. We want to play those last three matches, so I just want to play the best I can every single time and just play like I can and glorify the Lord with how I play."
WHAT'S NEXT
Top-seeded BU will host No. 8 seed and ninth-ranked Washington in the NCAA Regional Final on Saturday at the Ferrell Center. The match will air live on ESPNU at 3 p.m. CT with Sam Gore and Katie George on the call.
Fans can purchase tickets online at www.BaylorBears.com/tickets or call 254-710-1000.
Baylor Bear Insider
History made.
Hitting almost .400 over the last two sets, the top-ranked Baylor volleyball team defeated Purdue, 25-12, 23-25, 25-15, 25-17, in Friday's region semifinal at the Ferrell Center to reach the Elite Eight for the first time in program history.
Sophomore Marieke van der Mark continued her impressive NCAA Tournament run with a career-high 16 kills and freshman Kara McGhee contributed on six of the team's 10 blocks as the Bears (28-1) won their 12th match in a row and moved within one win of the Final Four.
"It's exciting. We're going to show up ready to play," Baylor coach Ryan McGuyre said. "It's one more step to get us to somewhere special. We're going to be in the moment, and we're also going to try to cherish it as we work into it, and hope we're on the positive end of it again."
Baylor, hosting an NCAA regional for the first time, will face eighth-seeded Washington (27-6) in Saturday's 3 p.m. region final that will be televised by ESPNU. In the other semifinal, the Huskies rolled to a 3-1 win over ninth-seeded Kentucky (25-7) behind a 24-kill performance from All-American outside hitter Kara Bajema.
While this is unchartered territory for the Bears, Washington is in the Elite Eight for the third time in five years and looking to make its fifth Final Four and first since 2013.
"We really just don't want the season to end," McGuyre said. "We love being together, we love training, we look forward to the challenges and difficulties that training brings, and good competition. When the season's over, we'll sit back and reflect on what's changed, what's shifted. But right now, for the next 30 seconds, we're just thinking about how we can love one another and get better and prepare for the next match."
Purdue coach Dave Shondell said if Baylor plays the way it did Friday, "they're going to have a hard time getting beat."
The Boilermaker defense focused on containing All-American outside hitter Yossiana Pressley, who still had 15 kills but hit just .194 with eight errors on 36 swings.
What they couldn't do is slow down Baylor's full arsenal of weapons. Van der Mark had double-digit kills for the third-straight NCAA Tournament match, hitting .464, while senior outside hitter Gia Milana had a season-high 13 kills and senior middle blocker had nine kills and three blocks and hit .421.
"All their players were on, and they played a great game," said senior middle blocker Blake Mohler, who had eight kills and five blocks in her final collegiate match. "It's hard to stop them in their own gym with the momentum behind them. When everyone's playing well, you can't really focus on every single player at once. Those players that we weren't paying as much attention to played really well."
Baylor actually fell behind 2-0 in the first set, and it was back and forth through the first 20 points. But, senior libero Tara Wulf had two service aces in a 6-0 run and the Bears closed it out, 25-12, on a Stafford kill.
Purdue bounced back to take the second set, 25-23, and evened the match at 1-1 by hitting .400 with just three errors and had four blocks.
"There were some adjustments that we were trying to make in the second set that we just didn't execute," McGuyre said. "They were just blowing us up on the sides. There were some things we wanted our pin blockers to do on the sides that we didn't do. But then, we opened up the third set and we were able to do that and get out to a good start right away."
McGhee had a solo block and two assists in the pivotal third set, taking control with a 9-2 run. After back-to-back blocks by McGhee, Pressley had a kill that gave the Bears a 20-11 lead.
Closing out the set, 25-15, van der Mark had a two-handed stuff, celebrating with her trademark scream.
"I'm pretty consistent in how I celebrate. It's one way," van der Mark said. "I love celebrating with my teammates. I took that up as my job this year just to celebrate, keep the joy on the court, on the bench, just always be the most vocal person on the court. I'm excited to do that three more games."
Baylor hit a combined .397 over the last two frames with a combined 27 kills and just four errors on 58 total attempts. In winning the fourth set, 25-17, van der Mark and Milana had five kills apiece and Pressley had four kills, five digs and a block.
Shondell said the difference in the match was Baylor's serving (eight aces) and the dynamic play of van der Mark and Milana.
"I didn't think we were at our best, but I felt like Baylor was really good," Shondell said. "It started with their serving, to be honest with you. They beat us in the game that we've beaten. Everybody in all year. And I didn't expect that. That's why I think we were a little flat-footed."
Already having an historic season with a school-record 28 wins and its first Big 12 championship, Baylor has the chance to check off another bucket-list item by beating Washington on Saturday and advancing to next week's Final Four in Pittsburgh.
"They're every bit as good as I thought they'd be," Washington coach Keegan Cook said of the Bears. "In person, some things are even more impressive than they are on film. Great environment, but we took our team on the road for the first six weeks of the season. We played in some big venues. Everything was designed for this moment."
Tickets for Saturday's region final are $10 for adults and $5 for youth (ages 2-17).
NOTE: If Baylor advances through the Waco Regional, the Bears would face the winner of Saturday's region final in Madison, Wis., between No. 4 Wisconsin and fifth-seeded Nebraska. In Austin, Louisville stunned second-seeded Texas and will face seventh-seeded Minnesota in the final.
THE RUNDOWN
WACO, Texas – Behind three double-digit kill performances, No. 1 Baylor volleyball (28-1) advanced to the program's first NCAA Regional Final with a 3-1 win over No. 16 seed and 14th-ranked Purdue on Friday at the Ferrell Center, 25-12, 23-25, 25-15, 25-17.
BU extends its school record with 28 wins on the season and a 16-0 home record at the Ferrell Center.
Sophomore Marieke van der Mark topped her own career high from last Saturday's match with a 16-kill, .464 efficiency performance. Junior Yossiana Pressley had 15 kills while senior Gia Milana matched a season-high 13 kills on a .500 percentage.
The Bears used a big 8-2 advantage at the service line with senior Tara Wulf tying a school record with four aces in a postseason match.
BU opened up a 10-7 lead with a Shelly Stafford kill and took a 20-11 advantage with a Wulf ace. BU rolled off five of the next six points with two-straight overpasses to take the first set, 25-12.
The Bears rolled early in the second frame with a 6-1 lead. The Boilermakers fought back and tied it up at 18-18 and then took the lead to force the BU timeout. BU fought off two set points before Purdue took the set with a right-side kill, 25-23.
BU built a 15-10 lead with a Stafford ace prior to the media timeout and didn't let up the rest of the third set. After hitting .440 in the frame, the Bears retook the match lead, 25-15.
Baylor and Purdue tangled to open the fourth set for the 7-7 tie. BU opened up a 17-14 lead with a Milana kill, and a 7-3 run closed out the match when van der Mark put down her 16th kill for the win, 25-17.
To keep up with things all season long, follow the team on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram: @BaylorVBall.
HIGHLIGHTS
• Baylor advances to the NCAA Regional Final for the first time in school history.
• BU has now won 84 sets and only dropped 12 during the 2019 season.
• Baylor improved its home record to 16-0 with the win.
• BU has a school-record 28 wins this season.
• Marieke van der Mark led the Bears with a career-high 16 kills on a .464 percentage.
• Tara Wulf tied a school-record four service aces in the postseason.
• Gia Milana had a team-best .500 hit percentage for a season-high 13 kills.
• Three Bears had two service aces in the match (Pressley, Hunt, Bramschreiber).
• Baylor is now 51-12 as a ranked team under McGuyre.
• BU is now 1-2 against Big Ten teams in the NCAA Tournament.
• Baylor improved to 2-1 all-time against Purdue.
• Baylor improved to 4-1 in postseason matches at home.
STAT OF THE MATCH
16 – the career-high kill count for Marieke van der Mark.
TOP QUOTE #1
Head coach Ryan McGuyre
On the win…
"These girls are hungry. They're driven. We've put a lot of work in as all these teams have, but going back to summer and going back to spring -- that's when Kara (McGhee) first got here for us, and it's a lot different now than it was the first couple weeks in January. I think the team just emulates the great leadership we have in our seniors, and their drive and their hunger is just contagious and one of those many things that gets multiplied on our team."
TOP QUOTE #2
Sophomore Marieke van der Mark
On her postseason production…
"I think I've just been playing like it could be my last match. I want to play the best I can for the seniors, like I don't want to go out and it be my fault for us leaving. I don't want the season to end. We want it to keep going. We want to play those last three matches, so I just want to play the best I can every single time and just play like I can and glorify the Lord with how I play."
WHAT'S NEXT
Top-seeded BU will host No. 8 seed and ninth-ranked Washington in the NCAA Regional Final on Saturday at the Ferrell Center. The match will air live on ESPNU at 3 p.m. CT with Sam Gore and Katie George on the call.
Fans can purchase tickets online at www.BaylorBears.com/tickets or call 254-710-1000.
Players Mentioned
MB
/ Volleyball
OH
/ Volleyball
OH
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MB
/ Volleyball
OPP
/ Volleyball
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