Preseason All-Big Ten Team, Poll Revealed

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – The Big Ten Conference office revealed the preseason All-Big Ten team, featuring three Purdue All-American returners on the list, tying as the most honorees in the league. The list featured senior setter Taylor Anderson, redshirt-junior opposite Grace Heaney and senior outside hitter Kenna Wollard.

In tandem, the league also announced its preseason coaches poll, which predicted Purdue to finish No. 4 in the Big Ten standings. The all-conference team and poll were voted upon by league head coaches.

Purdue, coming off arguably its best season in program history behind a program-record five All-Big Ten First Team honorees, which includes Anderson, Heaney and Wollard as first team selections and tied for third in the Big Ten standings, rides its momentum into the 2026 season, returning five of its 2025 Regional Final starters.

Preseason training has officially begun for the Boilermakers. The team preps for a loaded non-conference slate that features four teams ranked in the top-18 of the AVCA 2025 final poll: No. 1 Texas A&M, No. 2 Kentucky or No. 11 SMU, No. 10 Creighton and No. 18 TCU – teams that boast a combined 10 All-Americans.

The Big Ten Tournament and Purdue volleyball home single-match tickets go on-sale next week. The Big Ten tournament will open tickets on Monday, August 3 at 11 a.m. ET via Ticketmaster. Then, home matches will be available for purchase Tuesday, August 4 at 9 a.m. ET for John Purdue Club members and Thursday, August 6 at 9 a.m. ET for the general public.

Purdue will host two ticketed exhibition matches on August 14 vs. Ball State and August 21 vs. Butler leading up to the season-opener vs. Creighton on August 28. The Big Ten season will open at home September 24 vs. Maryland.

2026 Big Ten Preseason Poll
1. Nebraska
2. Wisconsin
3. Penn State
4. Purdue
5. Minnesota
6. Indiana
7. USC
8. Oregon
9. UCLA
10. Illinois
11. Michigan
12. Michigan State
13. Washington
14. Northwestern
15. Iowa
16. Ohio State
17. Rutgers
18. Maryland

Wollard, coming off a breakout junior season in which she was named an AVCA National Player of the Year Semifinalist, a Second Team All-American and unanimous All-Big Ten First Team selection, ranked sixth in the nation with 577 kills. The output was the most by any Boilermaker in 14 years, and third-most overall in Purdue single-season history. Meanwhile, her 637 total points checked in at seventh in the nation. Over the 2025 season, she totaled 23 matches with at least 15 kills, nine matches with at least 20 kills and five matches hitting at least .400%. Averaging 4.40 kills per set in 2025, Wollard also received AVCA National Player of the Week (Oct. 7) and Big Ten Player of the Week twice (Sep. 8 and Oct. 6).

Her highlights include 33 kills on a .369 clip for the reverse sweep at #24 UCLA, 23 kills on a .457 clip, 10 digs and a career-high-tying five blocks vs. No. 7/2-seed SMU in the Regional Semifinals, 19 kills on a .417 clip vs. No. 24 Penn State and 26 kills at Michigan State. Meanwhile, she helped guide Purdue to a Regional Finals appearance, playing some of her best volleyball yet, averaging 4.6 kills per set (69 total kills) on a .423 attack % during the NCAA tournament, while showing up defensively with 3.0 digs per set and .67 blocks per set.

Anderson, a fellow 2025 AVCA Second Team All-America, All-Big Ten First Team member and midseason pick-up for the 2025 AVCA Player of the Year Watch List, dished out the most assists by a Purdue setter in 20 years and on a .290 clip – the second-most efficient clip in program history. Over the season, the San Antonio native produced at least 30 assists in 17 matches and at least 50 assists in eight matches, all while guiding Purdue to 33 sets with the team hitting at a .400 attack % or better.

Over the NCAA tournament, Anderson set Purdue to an average .328 hitting %, among the most efficient of all NCAA tournament teams and 225 total kills, third among all tournament teams through Regionals play.

Heaney earned AVCA All-America Third Team and All-Big Ten First Team accolades as a redshirt sophomore. She helped lead Purdue’s offensive efficiency, posting nine matches hitting above .400 and four matches above .500 – including a .515 clip (19 kills, 2 errors, 33 attacks) against No. 10 SMU (9/14/25). In all, the opposite is the only player in the nation with three errorless performances with 30+ attacks in each, including the only Big Ten player with more than one performance of that caliber. Meanwhile, her 18 dig, 15 kill performance in the five-set win at Michigan State (10/31/25) included a career-high six blocks and an errorless attack on 37 swings (.405%).

Boasting a season full of efficient matches, Heaney shined at Rutgers with an errorless 18 kills on 31 attacks at Rutgers (.581%), an errorless 15 kills on 37 attacks at Michigan State with 18 digs and a .513 hitting % vs. Oregon with 21 kills and just one error on 39 swings. In total, Heaney racked up six double-doubles and had just two attack errors or fewer in 15 matches. The opposite led the Boilermakers in Big Ten play with a .329 average attack %.