By Andrew SimonThe Daily Northwestern
A volleyball in Lindsay Anderson’s hands is more than just a ball. It’s a deadly weapon.
Just ask the Michigan player who took one of Anderson’s trademark rockets off her face last weekend. Not only did Anderson notch a kill on the play, but she also knocked the girl backwards with the force of her shot.
The junior outside hitter’s ability to smash the ball at an alarming velocity presents opposing players with a no-win situation: Let the ball go and risk it landing inbounds, or step in front of the shot at your own peril.
“I definitely understand being scared by it,” freshman Ariel Baxterbeck said. “I try not to when I’m on defense, but sometimes (her shots) go by me so fast I can’t even react. She’s very powerful.”
Anderson’s hard hitting has carried her to within 13 kills of 1,000 for her career. When she reaches that plateau, she will become the first since Erika Lange did so in 2002.
“It’ll mean a lot, especially if it comes with a couple victories in these next couple matches,” Anderson said. “It’s always nice to reach a milestone but I’d really take two wins over that any day.”
With eight matches remaining this season and her whole senior campaign still ahead, Anderson has a chance to climb into the top five on NU’s all-time list.
This season she is averaging 3.46 kills per game to lead the Wildcats and has the team’s only two 20-kill matches.
“I’m not one of the tallest outside (hitters) in the Big Ten. But I have a good jump, so I try to use that to my advantage and really explode in my approach,” Anderson said.
This explosiveness can literally create headaches for opponents, although it doesn’t always translate into points for NU.
In a recent road match against Indiana, Anderson elevated and spiked a vicious shot over the net. Before an Indiana player could put her hands up, the ball caromed off her forehead with such force that it ricocheted up into the gym’s rafters, bouncing off two lights.
Unfortunately for the Cats, the ball flew so high that Indiana had time to recover and won the point.
Despite the occasional stroke of bad luck, the Cats often look to her in key situations.
“She’s one of those players who I feel I can go to at any time, so she gives me a lot of confidence,” setter Stephanie Jurivich said. “She gives the team a lot of confidence that she can put the ball away with power.”
Anderson is also a dangerous server, as she is always a threat to score from behind the baseline. She currently sits in a tie for first in the Big Ten with 0.41 service aces per game.
“The power she puts into her serves is amazing,” Baxterbeck said. “There’s so much speed behind it that as a passer, it’s hard to control.”
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