WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. ââ'¬" Another successful Boilermaker volleyball season is in the books.
Despite playing the fifth-toughest schedule nationally, including 14 matches against ranked opponents and contests against three of the Final Four teams, Purdue posted a 19-14 mark and advanced to the NCAA Second Round. The Boilermakers remain in elite company nationally as one of just 11 schools to advance to the NCAA Second Round 11 times in the last 13 years. The coaching staff, the longest tenured complete staff in the Big Ten, recorded their 300th win at Purdue with a victory over Maryland, Nov. 23.
Purdue posted four wins over Top 25 teams, including No. 4 Kansas and No. 9 Stanford, with a roster featuring just one senior. Several players on the squad were new to their positions or seeing their first extended playing time after acting as role players in previous seasons. The team also featured a freshman libero.
More than 40,593 fans saw the Boilermakers play at home in 2016, eighth most nationally, including 8,240 for the Pack Mackey match against Indiana, Sept. 24. The Boilermakers averaged 2,537 fans per match, ranking ninth nationally.
AWARDS AND HONORS
Outside hitter Danielle Cuttino and middle blocker Faye Adelaja were named All-Northeast Region selections and also garnered All-Big Ten acclaim, Cuttino as a unanimous honoree and Adelaja as an honorable mention selection. The pair also garnered All-America honors for their efforts, with Cuttino earning third team acclaim from Volleyball Magazine and both players nabbing honorable mention honors from Prep Volleyball. Setter Ashley Evans was one of just 18 players nationally to receive Academic All-America honors, garnering second team acclaim. Evans alongside Adelaja, middle blocker Blake Mohler, defensive specialist Linnea Rohrsen and outside hitter Azariah Stahl, earned Academic All-Big Ten accolades.
Cuttino led the Boilermakers with 4.11 kills per set, ranking third in the Big Ten and 39th nationally. She posted double-digit kill tallies in all but one of the team's matches, including 20 or more on seven occasions, and led the team offensively 27 times. The unanimous All-Big Ten selection hit at a .250 or better clip 19 times in 33 matches, including .300 or better 14 times and .400 or better six times. She hit at a season-best .613 clip in the NCAA First Round against Iowa State. The Big Ten Player of the Week and ESPNW Player of the Week on Sept. 12, Cuttino put up 0.60 blocks per set, including five or more three times and a team-best tally six times. The Indianapolis native also chipped in 64 digs, including a career-best six twice. Among Big Ten players, Cuttino ranked third in kills per set (4.11) in overall matches and third in conference play (4.02).
Adelaja hit at a .367 clip, which ranked 35th nationally, tied for third in the Big Ten and fifth on Purdue's all-time season listing. The Baton Rouge, Louisiana, native tallied 2.26 kills per set, ranking third on the team, while posting double-digit kills in 13 matches. She pounded down a career-best 21 kills at No. 3 Wisconsin, while leading the team on two occasions. The model of efficiency, Adelaja hit at a .300 or better clip in 18 of her 30 matches, including .400 or better 14 times and .500 or better seven times. At the net, the honorable mention All-Big Ten selection put up 0.85 blocks per set, including five or more stuffs on 11 occasions and a team-leading tally 17 times. The redshirt senior earned her spot in the career Top 10 for hitting percentage (second, .362) and block assists (eighth, 341). She ended her career just one block out of the total blocks Top 10 (395). Adelaja is one of just 12 players in Purdue history with 700 kills and 350 blocks to her name. In conference play, Adelaja hit at a .345 clip, good for fifth among league players.
Evans garnered Academic All-America honors for the second straight year, following third team acclaim in 2015. The mechanical engineering major dished out 10.88 assists per set, ranking 40th nationally and fifth in the Big Ten, while also adding 2.07 digs per set and a team-best 29 aces. She helped the Boilermakers to a team hitting percentage of .250 or better in 19 matches this season, including .300 or better 12 times and .500 or better once. She posted 10 double-doubles, combining assists and digs each time, and also one triple-double. All told, Evans has tallied 28 career double-doubles, while posting 39 double-digit dig efforts and three double-digit kill tallies.
RECORDS AND MILESTONES
Adelaja posted a .362 hitting percentage for her career, ranking second all-time among Boilermakers. She also ranked eighth on the block assists list with 341 and managed 395 total blocks, just one out of the Top 10 in that category.
In 2016, Adelaja hit at a .367 clip, ranking fifth on the season list, while Cuttino put down 530 kills, ranking eighth in that category.
STATISTICALLY SPEAKING
As a team, the Boilermakers ranked 36th nationally in hitting percentage (.254).
Individually, outside hitter Danielle Cuttino ranked 14th in total kills (530), 16th in total points (579.0) and 39th in kills per set (4.11). Setter Ashley Evans ranked first in total assists (1,403) and 38th in assists per set (10.88). Middle blocker Faye Adelaja ranked 35th in hitting percentage (.367).
Cuttino paced the Purdue offense with 4.11 kills per set, while hitting at a .272 clip and adding 0.60 blocks per set. Outside hitter Azariah Stahl followed with 2.53 kills per set, 2.36 digs per set and 17 aces. Adelaja added 2.26 kills per set and 0.85 blocks per stanza, while hitting at a team-best .367 clip. Outside hitter Sherridan Atkinson (2.09) and middle blocker Blake Mohler (1.48) also contributed offensively.
Mohler led the Boilermakers at the net with 0.92 blocks per set. Adelaja followed with 0.85 blocks per set, while Atkinson put up 0.57 blocks per set. In the back court, libero Natalie Haben led the way with 3.14 digs per set to go with 29 aces. Stahl (2.36), defensive specialist Brooke Peters (2.27), setter Ashley Evans (2.07), and defensive specialist Carissa Damler (1.80) followed with nearly two digs per set. Evans also added 10.88 assists per set and a team-best 29 aces, while Peters served up 27 aces. As a team, Purdue hit at a .254 clip and has served up 127 aces.
ADELAJA BROUGHT BALANCE
Middle blocker Faye Adelaja is one of just 12 players in Purdue lore with more than 700 kills and more than 350 blocks. The Baton Rouge, Louisiana, native tallied 835 kills in her career and put up 395 blocks.
EVANS JOINED ELITE GROUP
Setter Ashley Evans joined an elite group Nov. 2, Purdue setters with at least 2,000 career assists and 750 digs. To date, Evans has dished out 2,781 assists and pulled up 823 digs. In program history, only five other women have accomplished the feat: Renata Dargan (5871 assists, 921 digs); Rachel Davis (3294 assists, 874 digs); Darcy Orin (4523 assists, 853 digs); Jaclyn Hart (4918 assists, 818 digs); Kelly Niedbalski (3056 assists, 811 digs).
Evans also became the most recent addition to the Triple Threat club, posting her first career triple double against No. 24 Kentucky on Aug. 27. She dished out 43 assists, while also tallying 10 kills of her own and 10 digs, marking the first triple double for a Boilermaker since Val Nichol recorded her fourth on Nov. 19, 2014. Evans is the 15th individual to record a triple double in program history and just the fourth setter to do so, joining Nichol (4), Jaclyn Hart and Renata Dargan.
EFFICIENT OFFENSE
The Boilermakers hit at a .517 clip against Indiana on Sept. 24, marking the fifth-best hitting percentage in program lore and second best in the rally scoring era (behind a .529 mark vs. George Washington, 8/25/12). Purdue put down 37 kills, while committing just six errors in 60 attempts. Middle blockers Faye Adelaja (8-0-9, .889) and Blake Mohler (7-0-8, .875) led the way efficiency-wise, while outside hitter Danielle Cuttino put down a team-best nine kills. Six players tallied six or more kills in the match and all hit at a .286 or better clip.
The Boilermakers posted a .454 hitting percentage in the NCAA first round, marking the best in a NCAA match in program history. The efficiency topped a .370 hitting percentage against Louisville on Dec. 3, 2011.