TOURNAMENT INFORMATION
Stanford Invitational
Maples Pavilion; Palo Alto, Calif.
Game Notes
Purdue at Stanford
Friday, Sept. 9 / 11 p.m.
Live Stats / Live Audio / Live Video
Purdue vs. Cal Poly
Saturday, Sept. 10 / 7 p.m.
Live Stats / Live Audio / Live Video
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - The No. 20 Boilermakers take a three-match win streak into a Top 25 battle with No. 9 Stanford on Friday. Purdue also will face Cal Poly at the Stanford Invitational in Palo Alto, California, this weekend.
THE BOOK ON THE BOILERMAKERS
At First Glance: No. 20 Purdue (5-1) is coming off its 10th NCAA Tournament appearance in the last 12 seasons after going 23-10 and finishing fifth in the Big Ten in 2015. The Boilermaker roster features seven returning players, two redshirts, a transfer and three newcomers. Head coach Dave Shondell is in his 14th season with the team.
Last Time Out: The Boilermakers went 3-0 at the Shamrock Invitational in South Bend, Indiana, last weekend, sweeping Howard on Friday and taking Coastal Carolina (3-0) and Notre Dame (3-1) on Saturday.
Statistically Speaking: Outside hitters Danielle Cuttino and Azariah Stahl pace the Purdue offense with 4.09 and 3.77 kills per set respectively. Cuttino is hitting at a .262 clip and has added 17 blocks (0.77 per set), while Stahl is hitting .259 and has also managed 2.77 digs per set, 14 blocks and four aces. Middle blocker Faye Adelaja follows with 2.50 kills per set and 1.20 blocks per stanza. Middle blocker Blake Mohler (1.59), outside hitter Sherridan Atkinson (1.55) and setter Ashley Evans (1.45) also contribute offensively. Mohler paces the Boilermakers at the net with 1.23 blocks per set, while Evans also adds 11.55 assists and 2.36 digs per set and a team-best five aces. In the back court, libero Natalie Haben leads the way with 3.55 digs per set and four aces. Stahl (2.77), Evans (2.36), and defensive specialists Carissa Damler (2.14) and Brooke Peters (2.09) follow. As a team, Purdue is hitting at a .282 clip and has served up 23 aces.
Honorable mention All-American middle blockers Faye Adelaja (2.38) and Danielle Cuttino (2.04) and outside hitter Azariah Stahl (1.80) return after contributing nearly two kills per set in 2015. Adelaja hit at a team-best .397 clip and added 0.89 blocks per set, while Cuttino put up a team-leading 1.21 stuffs per stanza. The team must fill the gap left by All-American outside hitter Annie Drews, who tallied 4.25 kills and 1.72 digs per set and 17 aces. Defensively, the Boilermakers must replace libero Amanda Neill, who pulled up 4.02 digs per set and served up 29 aces. Setter Ashley Evans is back after posting 2.39 digs and 11.06 assists per set and 22 aces as is defensive specialist Brooke Peters, who chipped in 1.17 digs per set and served up a team-leading 30 aces. As a team, Purdue hit at a .262 clip and served up 145 aces.
SERIES INFORMATION
Stanford (Stanford leads the series 3-0): The Cardinal have won all three previous meetings in the series with the Boilermakers, which began Sept. 24, 1980, in Palo Alto, California. Stanford took a second match just three days later in San Jose and also won the most recent contest Nov. 24, 1984, in Palo Alto.
Cal Poly (The series is tied 2-2): The Boilermakers and Mustangs have split the four meetings in the series which began Sept. 26, 1980, at the San Jose State Invitational. Cal Poly took the first match. Purdue answered with a pair of sweeps in 1983 and 1990. The Mustangs won the most recent contest, a Dec. 1, 2007, NCAA second round matchup in Athens, Ohio.
WHAT A DIFFERENCE A WIN MAKES...
If the Boilermakers top No. 9 Stanford on Friday:
- They will move to 6-1 to start the season for the second straight year.
- They will post their first win over a Top 25 foe since knocking off No. 3 Minnesota on Nov. 21, 2015.
- They will earn their first win in the series with the Cardinal.
- They will improve to 298-151 all-time when playing in the month of September, including a 9-6 mark when playing on Sept. 9. The Boilermakers last played on Sept. 9 in 2011, sweeping Jacksonville State to open the Active Ankle Challenge.
SCOUTING STANFORD
At First Glance: The Stanford Cardinal (3-1) return nine letterwinners, including four starters, from the 2015 team which went 23-7, finished third in the Pac-12 and advanced to the NCAA Tournament second round. The Cardinal are coached by John Dunning, who is in his 16th season with the team.
Last Time Out: The Cardinal went 2-0 at the Big Ten/Pac-12 Challenge in Boulder, Colorado, last weekend, topping No. 17 Illinois in five set on Friday and No. 13 Penn State via sweep on Saturday.
Statistically Speaking: Middle blocker Audriana Fitzmorris (2.76) leads a group of five players who are averaging more than two kills per set. Middle blocker Inky Ajanaku (2.59), outside hitter Hayley Hodson (2.53), opposite Kathryn Plummer (2.18) and middle blocker Merete Lutz (2.12) round out the group. Fitzmorris is hitting at a team-best .412 clip and also has put up a team-leading 1.76 blocks per set. Ajanaku, a 2014 first team All-American, is hitting at a .366 clip and has chipped in 1.47 blocks per set after taking a redshirt season in 2015. Hodson, a second team All-America selection, has served up a team-best five aces and adds 2.12 digs per set, while Lutz, also a second teamer, has registered 1.53 blocks per set in addition to her kill tally. Defensively, libero Morgan Hentz leads the way with 3.65 digs per set. Hodson follows with 2.12, while setter Kelsey Humphreys chips in 1.88 digs per set and setter Jenna Gray adds 1.76 saves per stanza. As a team, Stanford is hitting at a .231 clip and has served up 19 aces.
In 2015, Hodson paced the team with a 3.82 kills per set, while also adding 2.42 digs per set and 36 aces. Lutz managed 3.22 kills per set, while hitting at a team-best .388 clip and adding a team-high 1.24 blocks per set. Middle blocker Ivana Vanjak chipped in 1.18 kills and 1.24 blocks per set. Defensively, Halland McKenna led the way with 3.60 digs per set to go with 15 aces followed by Hodson (2.42). As a team, Stanford hit at a .279 clip and served up 123 aces.
CHATTING ABOUT CAL POLY
At First Glance: The Cal Poly Mustangs (4-2), which were picked to finish third in the Big West, return nine letterwinners, including six starters, from the 2015 team which went 19-8 and finished third in conference play. The Mustangs are coached by Sam Crosson, who is in his fifth season with the team.
Last Time Out: The Mustangs went 2-1 at the Marcia E. Hamilton Classic in St. Louis last weekend, topping No. 19 Western Kentucky and host SLU in four sets each and falling to Arkansas State in five sets.
Statistically Speaking: Outside hitter Adlee Van Winden, the 2015 Big West Freshman of the Year, paces the Cal Poly hitters with 3.35 kills per set to go with 2.09 digs per set and eight aces. Outside hitter Alexis Clewis (3.17), All-Big West honoree at outside hitter Raeann Greisen (2.78) and All-Big West selection at middle blocker Taylor Gruenewald (2.13) round out the offense. Clewis is hitting at a team-best .338 clip, while Gruenewald is hitting .317 and has put up 0.70 blocks per set. Defensively, libero Katherine Brouker leads the way with 4.09 digs per set. Four other players add nearly two digs per set: All-Big West setter Taylor Nelson (2.26), Van Winden (2.09), outside hitter Jessica McRoskey (2.04) and defensive specialist Mika Dickson (1.91). As a team, Cal Poly is hitting at a .233 clip and has served up 32 aces, including a team-best 11 by Dickson.
In 2015, Van Winden paced the Mustangs with a 3.91 kills per set to go with 2.42 digs per set and 21 aces. Greisen (3.21) and Gruenewald (2.19) followed. Gruenewald chipped in 0.83 blocks per set, while middle blocker Savannah Niemen added 1.74 kills per set at a .295 clip and served up 29 aces. Nelson is the team's top returning defensive player after pulling up 3.09 digs per set to go with her 10.74 assists per set and team-leading 31 aces. As a team, Cal Poly hit at a .239 clip and served up 145 aces.
POLL POSITION
Purdue climbed four spots to No. 20 in this week's AVCA Coaches' Poll returning to their preseason ranking after dropping to No. 24 in last week's poll.
The Boilermakers have been ranked in 18 straight polls since entering the top 25 at No. 24 in the August 31, 2015, poll. They were ranked throughout the rest of the 2015 season, peaking at No. 14 and ending the year at No. 17.
Purdue has been ranked 177 times since the AVCA polls began in 1982, including preseason and postseason listings.
AMONG THE NATION
The Boilermakers rank among the nation's Top 50 in four major statistical categories: blocks per set (24th with 2.84), assists per set (24th with 13.55), kills per set (27th with 14.32) and hitting percentage (29th with .282).
Individually, setter Ashley Evans ranks 15th nationally in assists per set (11.55), while outside hitter Danielle Cuttino ranks 53rd in kills per set (4.09).
tHE SLATE
The Boilermakers are slated to play 11 matches against teams ranked in the AVCA Preseason Top 25 Poll, and three more against teams that are receiving votes outside of the Top 25. Purdue will face No. 1 Nebraska, No. 3 Minnesota, No. 4 Wisconsin twice, No. 5 Kansas, No. 9 Penn State, No. 11 Stanford, No. 14 Illinois twice, No. 15 Ohio State and No. 24 Kentucky. The Boilermakers also will face off with vote getters Michigan State twice and Michigan once.