Big Ten/SEC Challenge Descends on Mackey Arena

THE DEBUT OF ADDY TINDALL

• After sitting out her freshman season due to injury, redshirt freshman Addy Tindall made her mark against Creighton, posting an errorless seven kills in eight attacks  for .875 clip and a block solo in Set 1 alone.
• Tindall led the team with 22 kills while hitting nearly .500% (22-3-41 for .463 clip), three total blocks and three digs.
• Tindall is the first pin hitter in Dave Shondell’s All-America history (nine pin hitter All-Americans, accounting for 21 All-America honors) to post as many kills – or to do so as efficiently as Tindall – in their first collegiate match.
• Her performance was second among all Big Ten players last week for kills in a match - second only to MSU's Karolina Staniszewska (23-7-50), however Tindall surpassed the Spartan in efficiency.

PROMISING START VS #13 CREIGHTON

• Despite playing against #13 Creighton without two of its three returning All-Americans and preseason Player of the Year Watch List honorees (Wollard: out and Heaney leaving the match in Set 2 due to a lower leg injury), seven Boilermakers played in their first match in the Purdue jersey (two transfers, five freshmen) and still went on to finish the five-set match with Purdue holding the edge in every statistical category except for aces, including team hitting % (.219 vs. .104), digs (83 vs. 66), blocks (16 vs. 12) and points (79 vs. 71).
• Taylor Anderson posted a career-high 17 digs in her double-double with 44 assists, five block assists and four kills.

PRIMED TO MAKE HISTORY

• With the first win of the 2026 season, head coach Dave Shondell will become the outright all-time winningest head coach in Purdue Athletics history, surpassing men's basketball legend Gene Keady's 512 wins.

OUTSIDE LAMEEN "MIMI" MAMBU

• In her first-ever match as a Boilermaker, Mambu set a career-high kills (19) while seeing a team-high 58 attacks in the match vs. #13 Creighton. Meanwhile, Mambu added three blocks and four digs.

DEFENSIVE LIVES HERE: 16 TEAM BLOCKS

• Purdue's 16 total blocks were the second-most in a season-opener in over 15 years.
• Meanwhile, it was the most blocks against a ranked opponent in five years (last: 17 at #11 Penn State, 11/25/2022) - however the Boilers total defensive showing was stronger than in 2022, as teh team also complimented the showing with 83 digs vs. Creighton (only 68 at Penn State in 2022).
• The performance led the Big Ten last week with the most in a match.
  

BACK ROW STRENGTH

• Three players posted double-digit digs in the match vs. #13 Creighton: freshman defensive specialist MaryKate Scheumann (13), junior libero Ryan McAleer (14) and senior setter Taylor Anderson (career-high 17).
• The team totaled 83 digs, the most in a match since last year's non-con win vs. #15 Kansas (87 digs, 9/3/2025, W 3-2).

FRESHMEN STEPPING UP VS #13 CREIGHTON

• Five freshmen played in the match vs. Creighton - totaling 28 digs, 25 kills.
  Four different freshmen started at least one set.
  

SCHEDULING TOUGH

• The Boilermakers are set to start the season with three of its first four opponents ranked in the top 20 of the preseason poll.
• Purdue's start to the year includes three opponents in the first six days of the season (two of which are top-13 ranked teams).

#12 TEXAS A&M AT A GLANCE

• Texas A&M already has five matches under its belt, more than nearly every other team in the nation after competing in Week Zero. As a team, A&M leads the nation in total assists, kills, blocks and attacks. Their back row ranks #16 in total digs.
• Two AVCA National Player of the Year Watch List honorees are Aggies: Natalie Ring (Gr. OH) and Kyndal Stowers (Jr. OH)
• Ring is #1 in the nation in attacks and #4 in both kills and points. Meanwhile, Eliza Sharp leads the nation in blocks.
• A&M was picked to finish third in the SEC standings, with one first-place vote.

GEORGIA AT A GLANCE

• Georgia, picked to finish 6th in the SEC, opened the season with a home tournament, featuring North Florida, George Washington and Furman, dropping just one set over the three matches.
• Bianna Muoneke, preseason All-SEC Team, surpassed 1,000 career kills in the win vs. Furman.
• The week ahead vs. Indiana and Purdue will be one of its toughest stretches vs. ranked opponents until the end of the regular-season.