WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – The No. 12 Purdue volleyball team hosts its final home matches of its Big Ten season with contests against No.6 Nebraska and Iowa this weekend. The Boilermakers face the No.6 Huskers at 7 p.m. ET in front of a sold out Holloway crowd on Friday, before challenging the Hawkeyes at 8 p.m. on Saturday.
Both matches will stream live on BTN2GO, with a free audio stream available at PurdueSports.com. They are also set to air on Purdue Sports Network radio affiliate 104.3 FM.
AT THE NET – Big Ten Action
No. 12 Purdue vs. No. 6 Nebraska | SOLD OUT
Friday, November 16 | 7 p.m. ET
WATCH | LISTEN | LIVE STATS
No. 12 Purdue vs. Iowa
Saturday, November 17 | 8 p.m. ET | Senior Night
WATCH | LISTEN | LIVE STATS
QUICK HITS
The Boilermakers are 62-39 all-time against this weekend's field.
No. 6 Nebraska: 7-17
Iowa: 55-22
SCOUTING NO. 6 NEBRASKA
Nebraska enters the weekend on a four-match winning streak and is currently tied with Penn State and Wisconsin for third place in the conference standings. The Huskers lead the Big Ten and rank first nationally in opponent hitting percentage at .133. Nebraska's .133 opponent hitting percentage is its best mark since .126 in the 2005 season. The best defensive team in the John Cook era was the 2004 squad that held opponents to .103 hitting for the season. Nebraska also paced the Big Ten and ranks 16th nationally with 1.65 aces per set.
The Huskers are guided by senior Mikaela Foecke, who has been named Big Ten Player of the Week three times this season. The veteran leads the Huskers with 3.71 kills per set and adds 2.68 digs per set and has a team-high 36 service aces this season. Her current kills per set average is Nebraska's best since 2013 (Kelsey Robinson, 4.45). The AVCA second-team All-American is the only active player in NCAA Division I with at least 1,000 career kills, 200 career blocks, 500 career digs and 100 career aces.
LAST MEETING VS. THE HUSKERS
Defending national champion Nebraska swept the Boilermakers last season with a pair of four-set wins. The second of the two meetings in 2017 saw the Boilermakers give the Huskers the fight of their lives at the Devaney Sports Center, ultimately falling to Nebraska 3-1 (22-25, 25-21, 24-26, 23-25). The Boilermakers out-hit (.328-.281), out-blocked (11-6) and out-dug (52-49) the NCAA Selection Committee's then-No. 2 team in the nation.
Danielle Cuttino and Sherridan Atkinson showed 8,420 fans in attendance why they are legitimate All-Americans this season as they both finished the match with identical offensive lines of 20 kills, two errors and 40 swings to hit .450 against one of the Big Ten's best defensive programs. Azariah Stahl added seven kills and a .250 hitting percentage. The trio led Purdue's blocking efforts as well as Stahl and Atkinson each finished with four blocks while Cuttino matched Blake Mohler with three blocks on the night.
Defensively, Brooke Peters delivered 11 digs of her own and was just an assist away from her first career double-double. Jena Otec added nine digs and a service ace while Julianna Reisinger also added an ace.
Overall, Purdue is 7-17 against Nebraska, with the Cornhuskers securing the last five meetings.
SCOUTING IOWA
The Hawkeyes are coming off a 3-1 victory over Michigan State to complete their first season sweep over the Spartans since 1991 and claim their first match in East Lansing since 2000. The victory saw the Hawkeyes record a season-high nine service aces, while junior Megan Buzzerio notched her third double-double of the season, tallying 12 kills and 10 digs along with a .300 hitting percentage.
Standing at 14-13 overall, the Hawkeyes are guided by senior Taylor Louis, who continues to lead the country in active career kills. Louis' 1,881 career kills leads the NCAA by 104 (Carlisa May, Arkansas State) and is 134 kills ahead of the country's third leading player (Jaali Winters; Creighton). In her career, Louis has 1,859 total kills, with 711 kills coming in a Hawkeye uniform
Guiding Iowa's defense is senior Molly Kelly, who tops the Big Ten with 516 total digs and is second with 5.11 digs per set. Kelly's 5.11 digs per set are the highest in program history since the 25-point scoring format was implemented in 2008.
LAST MEETING VS. THE HAWKEYES
Fueled by four Boilermakers with double-digit kill performances, the then-No. 17 Purdue volleyball team fought its way to a five-set (25-18, 20-25, 19-25, 25-22, 15-10) victory over Iowa at Carver-Hawkeye Arena, earlier this season. Freshman Grace Cleveland was impressive in the contest, posting a career-best and match-high 19 kills, while notching a match-best five assisted blocks. Redshirt senior Sherridan Atkinson also played big for the Boilermakers, hitting .359 with 17 kills on 39 swings.
Redshirt freshman Hayley Bush was just two digs away from a double-double as she guided the Boilermakers with a match-high 60 assists. The back row was led by Brooke Peters with a match-high 26 digs. Freshman Marissa Hornung and sophomore Jena Otec strengthened the defensive effort with 15 and 12 digs, respectively.
Overall, Purdue has claimed eight of the last 11 meetings between the two teams, including a 3-2 victory in 2017.
Both matches will stream live on BTN2GO, with a free audio stream available at PurdueSports.com. They are also set to air on Purdue Sports Network radio affiliate 104.3 FM.
AT THE NET – Big Ten Action
No. 12 Purdue vs. No. 6 Nebraska | SOLD OUT
Friday, November 16 | 7 p.m. ET
WATCH | LISTEN | LIVE STATS
No. 12 Purdue vs. Iowa
Saturday, November 17 | 8 p.m. ET | Senior Night
WATCH | LISTEN | LIVE STATS
QUICK HITS
- The Boilermakers are 21-6 on the season and 10-6 in Big Ten action following a pair of road losses to then-No. 8 Wisconsin and then-No.3 Minnesota last weekend. The losses snapped a seven-match winning streak for Purdue, its second longest of the season.
- Purdue's 21-6 overall record and 10-6 Big Ten showing marks its 11th season of at least 20 wins and its 12th year of at least 10 conference victories under head coach Dave Shondell.
- Purdue stays at No. 12 in this week's AVCA Top-25 Coaches Poll and has been ranked in all 13 polls this season. The Boilermakers are currently on a stretch of 29 listings and have made 211 overall appearances on the national poll. Purdue also boasts the nation's 13th-best RPI.
- The Boilermakers have only played seven five-set matches this season, winning six with victories over Louisville, Southern Miss, South Alabama, Iowa, then-No.4 Penn State and Indiana. Purdue's single five-set loss was to then-No.8 Wisconsin last Friday.
- Overall, Purdue ranks sixth in the Big Ten in hitting percentage (.247) and fifth in opponent hitting percentage (.180).
- The Boilermakers are led by senior Sherridan Atkinson, who is averaging 4.15 kills per set, fourth-most in the Big Ten. Atkinson, a unanimous preseason All-Big Ten selection, also has 30 service aces this year.
- Through 25 matches this season, senior libero Brooke Peters has registered 448 digs, putting her 41 digs away from cracking into Purdue's season top-10 list for most digs. With 41 more digs she would tie Killie Miller, who posted 489 in 2006. Overall, Peters has 1,296 career digs, to rank seventh in the Purdue's all-time career-list for most digs.
- Last weekend, freshman Marissa Hornung made her first collegiate start at libero against No. 8 Wisconsin, collecting a career-best 21 digs. Her effort also helped Purdue limit the Badgers to .139 and .179 hitting clips through the first two set of Big Ten match up. The rookie followed her career-performance with a match-high 18 digs against No.3 Minnesota.
- Redshirt junior Blake Mohler adds 2.37 kills per set on .355 hitting and leads the team with 1.11 blocks per set.
- Earlier this week, head coach Dave Shondell and the No. 12 Purdue volleyball team announced the addition of four student-athletes as Emma Ellis, Maddy Chinn, Maddie Koch and Megan Renner signed National Letters of Intent to join the Boilermakers for the 2019 season.
- Friday's contest will be the first meeting with Nebraska this season, while Saturday marks Purdue's second match against Iowa this year.
The Boilermakers are 62-39 all-time against this weekend's field.
No. 6 Nebraska: 7-17
Iowa: 55-22
SCOUTING NO. 6 NEBRASKA
Nebraska enters the weekend on a four-match winning streak and is currently tied with Penn State and Wisconsin for third place in the conference standings. The Huskers lead the Big Ten and rank first nationally in opponent hitting percentage at .133. Nebraska's .133 opponent hitting percentage is its best mark since .126 in the 2005 season. The best defensive team in the John Cook era was the 2004 squad that held opponents to .103 hitting for the season. Nebraska also paced the Big Ten and ranks 16th nationally with 1.65 aces per set.
The Huskers are guided by senior Mikaela Foecke, who has been named Big Ten Player of the Week three times this season. The veteran leads the Huskers with 3.71 kills per set and adds 2.68 digs per set and has a team-high 36 service aces this season. Her current kills per set average is Nebraska's best since 2013 (Kelsey Robinson, 4.45). The AVCA second-team All-American is the only active player in NCAA Division I with at least 1,000 career kills, 200 career blocks, 500 career digs and 100 career aces.
LAST MEETING VS. THE HUSKERS
Defending national champion Nebraska swept the Boilermakers last season with a pair of four-set wins. The second of the two meetings in 2017 saw the Boilermakers give the Huskers the fight of their lives at the Devaney Sports Center, ultimately falling to Nebraska 3-1 (22-25, 25-21, 24-26, 23-25). The Boilermakers out-hit (.328-.281), out-blocked (11-6) and out-dug (52-49) the NCAA Selection Committee's then-No. 2 team in the nation.
Danielle Cuttino and Sherridan Atkinson showed 8,420 fans in attendance why they are legitimate All-Americans this season as they both finished the match with identical offensive lines of 20 kills, two errors and 40 swings to hit .450 against one of the Big Ten's best defensive programs. Azariah Stahl added seven kills and a .250 hitting percentage. The trio led Purdue's blocking efforts as well as Stahl and Atkinson each finished with four blocks while Cuttino matched Blake Mohler with three blocks on the night.
Defensively, Brooke Peters delivered 11 digs of her own and was just an assist away from her first career double-double. Jena Otec added nine digs and a service ace while Julianna Reisinger also added an ace.
Overall, Purdue is 7-17 against Nebraska, with the Cornhuskers securing the last five meetings.
SCOUTING IOWA
The Hawkeyes are coming off a 3-1 victory over Michigan State to complete their first season sweep over the Spartans since 1991 and claim their first match in East Lansing since 2000. The victory saw the Hawkeyes record a season-high nine service aces, while junior Megan Buzzerio notched her third double-double of the season, tallying 12 kills and 10 digs along with a .300 hitting percentage.
Standing at 14-13 overall, the Hawkeyes are guided by senior Taylor Louis, who continues to lead the country in active career kills. Louis' 1,881 career kills leads the NCAA by 104 (Carlisa May, Arkansas State) and is 134 kills ahead of the country's third leading player (Jaali Winters; Creighton). In her career, Louis has 1,859 total kills, with 711 kills coming in a Hawkeye uniform
Guiding Iowa's defense is senior Molly Kelly, who tops the Big Ten with 516 total digs and is second with 5.11 digs per set. Kelly's 5.11 digs per set are the highest in program history since the 25-point scoring format was implemented in 2008.
LAST MEETING VS. THE HAWKEYES
Fueled by four Boilermakers with double-digit kill performances, the then-No. 17 Purdue volleyball team fought its way to a five-set (25-18, 20-25, 19-25, 25-22, 15-10) victory over Iowa at Carver-Hawkeye Arena, earlier this season. Freshman Grace Cleveland was impressive in the contest, posting a career-best and match-high 19 kills, while notching a match-best five assisted blocks. Redshirt senior Sherridan Atkinson also played big for the Boilermakers, hitting .359 with 17 kills on 39 swings.
Redshirt freshman Hayley Bush was just two digs away from a double-double as she guided the Boilermakers with a match-high 60 assists. The back row was led by Brooke Peters with a match-high 26 digs. Freshman Marissa Hornung and sophomore Jena Otec strengthened the defensive effort with 15 and 12 digs, respectively.
Overall, Purdue has claimed eight of the last 11 meetings between the two teams, including a 3-2 victory in 2017.