GAMEDAY INFORMATION
2019 NCAA Tournament Central | Tickets | Game Notes (PDF)
PURDUE VS. WRIGHT STATE
Friday, Dec. 6 | 7 p.m. ET
WATCH (free) | LISTEN | LIVE STATS
Winner of Match 1 vs. Winner of Match 2 (Marquette vs. Dayton)
Saturday, December 7 | 7 p.m. ET
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - The No. 14 Purdue volleyball team (22-7) is set to open the NCAA Tournament against Wright State (24-5) Friday, Dec. 5, at Holloway Gymnasium in West Lafayette, Ind. The match is the first meeting between the programs.
Purdue is making its 21st appearance in the NCAA Tournament and 14th under head coach Dave Shondell. The Boilermakers finished the regular season fifth in the Big Ten for a third consecutive year, claiming its 12th season with 20 or more wins.
Overall, Purdue has never lost in the first match of the NCAA Tournament and boasts a 29-20 program record in the postseason, including a 23-13 showing under Shondell. Under his guidance, the program has seen seven Sweet 16 appearances as well as two trips to the Elite Eight.
Wright State is making its first NCAA Tournament appearance after claiming the program's first at-large selection on the heels of its first Horizon League regular season championship and a 24-win regular season.
The winner will take on the victor between No. 16 Marquette and Dayton on Saturday, Dec.7 at 7 p.m. ET.
QUICK HITS
• Purdue is second in the Big Ten and 14th in the country in blocks per set with a 2.77 average, and they have three players ranked in the top 12 in blocks per set in the conference: Shavona Cuttino (1.26, 5th), Blake Mohler (1.18, 7th) and Grace Cleveland (1.08, 13th).
• The Boilermakers ranks second in the Big Ten with 1.56 aces per set, an improvement from last year's 1.3 mark. The effort is guided by 48 aces from junior Jena Otec. She currently leads the Big Ten in total aces and aces per set (0.42). She is the first Boilermaker to reach the milestone since Brittany Dildine registered 48 in 2006. Otec's mark ranks 28th in the nation. Grace Cleveland and Caitlyn Newton also rank among the league's top-10 servers with Cleveland standing at fifth with 40 aces on the year and Newton ranking eighth with 38.
• Redshirt senior Blake Mohler is closing on a pair of career milestones. She currently owns 952 career kills, only 48 away from 1,000, while also registering 481 blocks (68solo / 413 assists), only 19 away from 500.
• Head coach Dave Shondell stands at 370-191in his 17th season in West Lafayette. He is joined by assistant coaches John Shondell and Kathy Jewell, who also enter their 17th season with the Boilermakers. Overall, Purdue owns a 926-601 program record behind four head coaches (Dave Shondell, Jeff Hulsmeyer, Joey Vrazel, Carol Dewey)
• Purdue was picked to finish sixth in the Big Ten in the conference's preseason poll. With a pair of wins over then-No.22 Michigan and Michigan State last week, the Boilermakers finished the regular season with 14 conference wins. Purdue's 2019 league showing is its best since the program's 16 Big Ten wins in 2011.
• Purdue enters the weekend guided by All-Big Ten first-team selections Grace Cleveland and Blake Mohler and second-team selection Caitlyn Newton.
• The Boilermaker roster features a pair of redshirt seniors, two juniors, six sophomores and six freshmen.
• The 2019 Purdue volleyball team welcomes six freshmen to Holloway in Maddy Chinn, Emma Ellis, Madeline Koch, Megan Renner, Maddie Schermerhorn and Ava Torrance. Together the incoming group was ranked the 8th-best recruiting class in the nation by PrepVolleyball.
•Head Coach Dave Shondell strengthened Purdue volleyball's middle court with the addition of the 2020 incoming class on this year's National Signing Day. The class was made up of a pair of middle blockers in Lourdes Myers and Taylor Trammell. Their talent and physicality will compliment Purdue's nationally recognized competitiveness and tradition of success.
SERIES INFORMATION
Purdue is 6-3 against this weekend's potential opponents.
Wright State | Friday's match against Purdue will be the first meeting between Wright State and the Boilermakers in program history.
Marquette | Purdue leads the series 2-0: The Boilermakers last defeated the Golden Eagles in the opening match of the 2002 Jayhawk Invitational. Purdue claimed the 3-2 win with a 15-12 fifth set victory.
Dayton | Flyers lead the series 4-3: Dayton and Purdue last met in the championship match of the 2009 Purdue Mortar Board Premier, with the Flyers walking away with a 3-2 victory (25-23, 25-20, 17-25, 22-25, 15-11).
SCOUTING WRIGHT STATE
• The Raiders bring a 24-5 overall record with their only losses coming to Bowling Green, UIC, Green Bay, Milwaukee and Northern Kentucky. Their record is highlight by a five set win over Notre Dame Aug.30 in South Bend, Ind.
• Wright State enters the NCAA Championship with the No. 41 RPI in the country, its best in program history. The Raiders are not alone in the RPI, as the Horizon League is one of just six Division I conferences to have five or more teams in the top 100, with Northern Kentucky (No. 44), Green Bay (No. 45), Milwaukee (No. 53) and UIC (No. 95) joining the Raiders.
• The Raiders enter the 2019 NCAA Championship inside the Top 10 nationally in four different team categories: First nationally: 19.63 digs/set; Third nationally: 39.51 team attacks/set; Fifth nationally: 0.143 opponent hitting percentage; Seventh nationally: 2,120 team digs.
• Sophomore Jenna Story ranks in the top-five individually in two statistics: Second nationally: 6.35 digs/set; Fifth nationally: 686 total digs.
• The Raider volleyball team is the sixth Wright State program to advance to its respective NCAA Championship in the last two seasons, joining: men's soccer (2019), women's basketball (2019), men's golf (2018), baseball (2018) and men's basketball (2018).
SCOUTING NO. 16 MARQUETTE
• MU owns a 27-5 record heading into the tournament, one-win shy of its program-record 28 wins set in the 2018 campaign. This is the ninth straight season with 20-or more victories.
• BIG EAST Player of the Year Allie Barber leads the team with 4.67 kills per set, which ranks 15th in the NCAA, while the Golden Eagles ranks second in the country as a team with a combined 14.90 kills per set. MU also ranks second in the NCAA dishing out 14.16 combined assists as a team.
• Barber also broke Marquette's all-time kills record in a 22-kill performance against Georgetown on Nov. 15. The senior passed Marquette Hall of Famer Theresa Coughlin, who played from 2002-05, and had 1,733 career kills.
• The senior class of Allie Barber, Gwyn Jones, Madeline Mosher and Lauren Speckman have amassed 100 victories in their careers at Marquette and they are currently tied for the second-winningest class in MU program history. The record is 101 victories that the senior class of 2014 earned in their careers.
• The Golden Eagles move to No. 16 this week in the AVCA Coaches' Poll after they entered the poll ranked No. 16 in the preseason. This marks the 29th consecutive week that Marquette has been ranked, dating back to Sept. 3, 2018.
SCOUTING DAYTON
• Friday marks Dayton's 14th NCAA appearance. The Flyers have reached the second round seven times and hold a 7-13 all-time record in NCAA tourney matches.
• The Flyers finished the 2019 regular season with a 20-8 overall record and a 13-1 Atlantic 10 mark, finishing in second place in regular-season league play. 2019 is the program's 41st winning season and its 32nd 20-win season.
• Tim Horsmon is in his 11th season overall, and sixth since 2007, as head coach of the Flyers in 2019. His record at Dayton is 283-81 and his career win-loss mark sits at 459-245 in 21 seasons as a head coach. Horsmon is the program's second-winningest coach behind only R. Elaine Dreidame who amassed 310 wins 1970-79.
• UD's offense is led by 2019 A-10 Player of the Year sophomore Jamie Peterson with 4.60 kills/set (1st A-10, 17th NCAA) and 5.43 points/set (1st A-10, 8th NCAA). Defensively, junior Olivia Dubay averages 1.14 blocks/set (3rd A-10) and sophomore Maura Collins gets under a team-best 4.36 digs/set (3rd A-10).
WHAT A DIFFERENCE A WIN MAKES...
If the Boilermakers top Wright State on Friday:
HORNUNG STAYS PERFECT
Following back-to-back five set victories for Purdue last weekend, sophomore Marissa Hornung was recognized as the Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week. The honor marks her second consecutive week of conference recognition, making her the first Boilermaker in program history to receive back-to-back defensive accolades.
The libero earned 46 digs for 4.60 digs per set and added five assists, while being perfect on all receptions through 58 attempts in Purdue's victories over then-No.22 Michigan and Michigan State. Her performance was highlighted by a career-best 29 digs against Michigan. The Indiana native has also not committed a reception error in Purdue's last five matches.
HOSTING AT HOLLOWAY
The Boilermakers have also hosted NCAA Tournament matches nine previous times (1981, 1982, 1983, 1987, 2006, 2008, 2010 2011 and 2012). Purdue last hosted the opening rounds at Holloway in 2011, while Mackey Arena played host to the Sweet Sixteen in 2012.
THE PREMIER CONFERENCE
Seven Big Ten volleyball teams were selected to the 2019 NCAA Volleyball Tournament, with first and second round matches held Dec. 5-7. The seven bids mark the 27th consecutive season that at least six Big Ten volleyball teams have been selected for the tournament. Five of the top sixteen seeds are Big Ten programs.
Big Ten Champion Wisconsin enters the tournament as the No. 4 overall seed. Nebraska earned the No. 5 seed, Minnesota was chosen as the No. 7 seed, Penn State earned the 11th seed, while Purdue is the 16th seed. Michigan and Illinois received at-large bids to the tournament. Wisconsin, Nebraska, Minnesota, Penn State and Purdue will host first and second round contests.
2019 NCAA Tournament Central | Tickets | Game Notes (PDF)
PURDUE VS. WRIGHT STATE
Friday, Dec. 6 | 7 p.m. ET
WATCH (free) | LISTEN | LIVE STATS
Winner of Match 1 vs. Winner of Match 2 (Marquette vs. Dayton)
Saturday, December 7 | 7 p.m. ET
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - The No. 14 Purdue volleyball team (22-7) is set to open the NCAA Tournament against Wright State (24-5) Friday, Dec. 5, at Holloway Gymnasium in West Lafayette, Ind. The match is the first meeting between the programs.
Purdue is making its 21st appearance in the NCAA Tournament and 14th under head coach Dave Shondell. The Boilermakers finished the regular season fifth in the Big Ten for a third consecutive year, claiming its 12th season with 20 or more wins.
Overall, Purdue has never lost in the first match of the NCAA Tournament and boasts a 29-20 program record in the postseason, including a 23-13 showing under Shondell. Under his guidance, the program has seen seven Sweet 16 appearances as well as two trips to the Elite Eight.
Wright State is making its first NCAA Tournament appearance after claiming the program's first at-large selection on the heels of its first Horizon League regular season championship and a 24-win regular season.
The winner will take on the victor between No. 16 Marquette and Dayton on Saturday, Dec.7 at 7 p.m. ET.
QUICK HITS
• Purdue is second in the Big Ten and 14th in the country in blocks per set with a 2.77 average, and they have three players ranked in the top 12 in blocks per set in the conference: Shavona Cuttino (1.26, 5th), Blake Mohler (1.18, 7th) and Grace Cleveland (1.08, 13th).
• The Boilermakers ranks second in the Big Ten with 1.56 aces per set, an improvement from last year's 1.3 mark. The effort is guided by 48 aces from junior Jena Otec. She currently leads the Big Ten in total aces and aces per set (0.42). She is the first Boilermaker to reach the milestone since Brittany Dildine registered 48 in 2006. Otec's mark ranks 28th in the nation. Grace Cleveland and Caitlyn Newton also rank among the league's top-10 servers with Cleveland standing at fifth with 40 aces on the year and Newton ranking eighth with 38.
• Redshirt senior Blake Mohler is closing on a pair of career milestones. She currently owns 952 career kills, only 48 away from 1,000, while also registering 481 blocks (68solo / 413 assists), only 19 away from 500.
• Head coach Dave Shondell stands at 370-191in his 17th season in West Lafayette. He is joined by assistant coaches John Shondell and Kathy Jewell, who also enter their 17th season with the Boilermakers. Overall, Purdue owns a 926-601 program record behind four head coaches (Dave Shondell, Jeff Hulsmeyer, Joey Vrazel, Carol Dewey)
• Purdue was picked to finish sixth in the Big Ten in the conference's preseason poll. With a pair of wins over then-No.22 Michigan and Michigan State last week, the Boilermakers finished the regular season with 14 conference wins. Purdue's 2019 league showing is its best since the program's 16 Big Ten wins in 2011.
• Purdue enters the weekend guided by All-Big Ten first-team selections Grace Cleveland and Blake Mohler and second-team selection Caitlyn Newton.
• The Boilermaker roster features a pair of redshirt seniors, two juniors, six sophomores and six freshmen.
• The 2019 Purdue volleyball team welcomes six freshmen to Holloway in Maddy Chinn, Emma Ellis, Madeline Koch, Megan Renner, Maddie Schermerhorn and Ava Torrance. Together the incoming group was ranked the 8th-best recruiting class in the nation by PrepVolleyball.
•Head Coach Dave Shondell strengthened Purdue volleyball's middle court with the addition of the 2020 incoming class on this year's National Signing Day. The class was made up of a pair of middle blockers in Lourdes Myers and Taylor Trammell. Their talent and physicality will compliment Purdue's nationally recognized competitiveness and tradition of success.
SERIES INFORMATION
Purdue is 6-3 against this weekend's potential opponents.
Wright State | Friday's match against Purdue will be the first meeting between Wright State and the Boilermakers in program history.
Marquette | Purdue leads the series 2-0: The Boilermakers last defeated the Golden Eagles in the opening match of the 2002 Jayhawk Invitational. Purdue claimed the 3-2 win with a 15-12 fifth set victory.
Dayton | Flyers lead the series 4-3: Dayton and Purdue last met in the championship match of the 2009 Purdue Mortar Board Premier, with the Flyers walking away with a 3-2 victory (25-23, 25-20, 17-25, 22-25, 15-11).
SCOUTING WRIGHT STATE
• The Raiders bring a 24-5 overall record with their only losses coming to Bowling Green, UIC, Green Bay, Milwaukee and Northern Kentucky. Their record is highlight by a five set win over Notre Dame Aug.30 in South Bend, Ind.
• Wright State enters the NCAA Championship with the No. 41 RPI in the country, its best in program history. The Raiders are not alone in the RPI, as the Horizon League is one of just six Division I conferences to have five or more teams in the top 100, with Northern Kentucky (No. 44), Green Bay (No. 45), Milwaukee (No. 53) and UIC (No. 95) joining the Raiders.
• The Raiders enter the 2019 NCAA Championship inside the Top 10 nationally in four different team categories: First nationally: 19.63 digs/set; Third nationally: 39.51 team attacks/set; Fifth nationally: 0.143 opponent hitting percentage; Seventh nationally: 2,120 team digs.
• Sophomore Jenna Story ranks in the top-five individually in two statistics: Second nationally: 6.35 digs/set; Fifth nationally: 686 total digs.
• The Raider volleyball team is the sixth Wright State program to advance to its respective NCAA Championship in the last two seasons, joining: men's soccer (2019), women's basketball (2019), men's golf (2018), baseball (2018) and men's basketball (2018).
SCOUTING NO. 16 MARQUETTE
• MU owns a 27-5 record heading into the tournament, one-win shy of its program-record 28 wins set in the 2018 campaign. This is the ninth straight season with 20-or more victories.
• BIG EAST Player of the Year Allie Barber leads the team with 4.67 kills per set, which ranks 15th in the NCAA, while the Golden Eagles ranks second in the country as a team with a combined 14.90 kills per set. MU also ranks second in the NCAA dishing out 14.16 combined assists as a team.
• Barber also broke Marquette's all-time kills record in a 22-kill performance against Georgetown on Nov. 15. The senior passed Marquette Hall of Famer Theresa Coughlin, who played from 2002-05, and had 1,733 career kills.
• The senior class of Allie Barber, Gwyn Jones, Madeline Mosher and Lauren Speckman have amassed 100 victories in their careers at Marquette and they are currently tied for the second-winningest class in MU program history. The record is 101 victories that the senior class of 2014 earned in their careers.
• The Golden Eagles move to No. 16 this week in the AVCA Coaches' Poll after they entered the poll ranked No. 16 in the preseason. This marks the 29th consecutive week that Marquette has been ranked, dating back to Sept. 3, 2018.
SCOUTING DAYTON
• Friday marks Dayton's 14th NCAA appearance. The Flyers have reached the second round seven times and hold a 7-13 all-time record in NCAA tourney matches.
• The Flyers finished the 2019 regular season with a 20-8 overall record and a 13-1 Atlantic 10 mark, finishing in second place in regular-season league play. 2019 is the program's 41st winning season and its 32nd 20-win season.
• Tim Horsmon is in his 11th season overall, and sixth since 2007, as head coach of the Flyers in 2019. His record at Dayton is 283-81 and his career win-loss mark sits at 459-245 in 21 seasons as a head coach. Horsmon is the program's second-winningest coach behind only R. Elaine Dreidame who amassed 310 wins 1970-79.
• UD's offense is led by 2019 A-10 Player of the Year sophomore Jamie Peterson with 4.60 kills/set (1st A-10, 17th NCAA) and 5.43 points/set (1st A-10, 8th NCAA). Defensively, junior Olivia Dubay averages 1.14 blocks/set (3rd A-10) and sophomore Maura Collins gets under a team-best 4.36 digs/set (3rd A-10).
WHAT A DIFFERENCE A WIN MAKES...
If the Boilermakers top Wright State on Friday:
- They will move to 23-7 on the season.
- They will advance to the NCAA Second Round for the 14th time under in 14 appearances under Coach Shondell.
- They will move to 30-20 all-time in NCAA Tournament matches, including 24-13 under Shondell.
- They will improve to 9-2 record for Friday matches this season. Currently at 8-2, Purdue has only dropped Friday contests to Notre Dame and Wisconsin this year.
HORNUNG STAYS PERFECT
Following back-to-back five set victories for Purdue last weekend, sophomore Marissa Hornung was recognized as the Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week. The honor marks her second consecutive week of conference recognition, making her the first Boilermaker in program history to receive back-to-back defensive accolades.
The libero earned 46 digs for 4.60 digs per set and added five assists, while being perfect on all receptions through 58 attempts in Purdue's victories over then-No.22 Michigan and Michigan State. Her performance was highlighted by a career-best 29 digs against Michigan. The Indiana native has also not committed a reception error in Purdue's last five matches.
HOSTING AT HOLLOWAY
The Boilermakers have also hosted NCAA Tournament matches nine previous times (1981, 1982, 1983, 1987, 2006, 2008, 2010 2011 and 2012). Purdue last hosted the opening rounds at Holloway in 2011, while Mackey Arena played host to the Sweet Sixteen in 2012.
THE PREMIER CONFERENCE
Seven Big Ten volleyball teams were selected to the 2019 NCAA Volleyball Tournament, with first and second round matches held Dec. 5-7. The seven bids mark the 27th consecutive season that at least six Big Ten volleyball teams have been selected for the tournament. Five of the top sixteen seeds are Big Ten programs.
Big Ten Champion Wisconsin enters the tournament as the No. 4 overall seed. Nebraska earned the No. 5 seed, Minnesota was chosen as the No. 7 seed, Penn State earned the 11th seed, while Purdue is the 16th seed. Michigan and Illinois received at-large bids to the tournament. Wisconsin, Nebraska, Minnesota, Penn State and Purdue will host first and second round contests.