MAMBU/TINDALL: LEADING THE BIG TEN
- Purdue's Addy Tindall (4.38) and Mimi Mambu (4.00) rank #2 and #3 in the league for kills/set. Purdue's the only school with two players ranked in the top-10.
- The pair combined for just three attack errors vs. Texas A&M in 58 attempts.
HISTORY MADE
- 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, earning 513 wins.
OUTSIDE LAMEEN "MIMI" MAMBU
- Mambu set career-highs in kills in two of the first three matches: first in the season-opener (19 vs. #13 Creighton, with a team-high 58 attacks) and vs. Georgia (21)
- 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.
- Then, in the match vs. Georgia, she bested her mark, totaling 21 kills and a court-leading, career-high two block solos (four total).
RYAN MCALEER: THE ANCHOR
- McAleer nearly had a double-double, totaling 27 digs, 9 assists in the 3-2 win vs. Georgia.
- McAleer is joined by Lola Schumacher (UCLA) as the only returning liberos/defensive specialists who averaged at least 14.00 digs per match last season.
- Meanwhile, McAleer is the only returner in the Big Ten to average at least 14.00 digs per match and over four assists per match.
- Shondell refers to McAleer as "the heart and soul of the team".
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 (then-career-high 17).
- Against Georgia, Purdue combined for 89 digs– the most by a Purdue team since 2021 (89 vs. Illinois on October 1, 2021). 27 of those digs were by Ryan McAleer, a career-high 18 by Taylor Anderson and 16 by Grace Heaney.
SPREADING THE OFFENSE
- Finding their groove, Anderson dished out at least 35 balls to three different players vs. Georgia, leading the squad to three Boilers with at least 15 kills.
EXTRA POINTS
- Purdue has gone to extra points in four of 13 sets so far, owning a 3-1 record in winning those games.
TAKING DOWN THE DEFENDING NATIONAL CHAMPS
- For the second straight year, the Boilers have taken down the defending national champions in West Lafayette - both in sweeping fashion: 2025 vs. Penn State and 2026 vs. Texas A&M.
- A hostile environment by Boiler Nation has led to other defending national champs falling in Mackey Arena, the last coming December 4, 2019 as men's basketball defeated #5 Virginia 69-40.
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).
#18 TCU AT A GLANCE
- While Purdue picked up a five set win vs. Georgia, #18 TCU toppled #8 SMU in five on their home court (16-25, 25-22, 25-16, 26-28, 15-12). Becca Kelley, Evan Hendrix and Jalyn Gibson - Preseason All-Big 12 - all totaled double-digit kills, with Hendrix leading the group with a .351 clip and Kelley on a .311 clip.
- Hendrix, an All-American a season ago, was tabbed to the AVCCA Player of the Year Watch List.
- A program gaining momentum, TCU has reached 20 wins for each of the past two seasons, set a program record with six ranked wins last year, and includes Evan Hendrix, who led the Big 12 in 2025 with 4.96 kills per set in conference play.
- The Horned Frogs have a gauntlet to start the season, playing Texas, SMU, Louisville and Purdue to start the year - that's four top-14 ranked teams - and three in the top-8.
- The squad is coming off a loss to #6 Louisville, however Reese Robins went nearly errorless on the attack with 12 kills, 1 error on 17 swings for a .647 hitting %.
