(PFW RELEASE)
FORT WAYNE, Ind. - The Purdue Fort Wayne women's volleyball team will return to the court after 417 days away from competition. The Mastodons will face UIC on Monday and Tuesday (Jan. 25-26) in their Horizon League debut.
Game Day Information
Video: ESPN3
Series History: Series tied 2-2
Last Meeting: 8/29/15 | L, 3-1 | Fort Wayne, Ind.
Game Notes: Purdue Fort Wayne
GAME 1
When: Monday, January 25 | 7 p.m.
Where: Flames Athletic Center | Chicago
Live Stats: Link
Video: ESPN3
GAME 2
When: Tuesday, January 26 | 5 p.m.
Where: Flames Athletic Center | Chicago
Live Stats: Link
Video: Once ESPN determines the link for the broadcast, it will be put here.
Know Your Foe
UIC was 20-11, 9-7 Horizon in 2019, and fell to eventual tournament champion Northern Kentucky in the quarterfinal round of the Horizon League Championship. The Flames finished in the middle of the pack in the League standings in 2019. Midway through the League season, UIC went on a seven-match winning streak after starting 1-3. The Flames return their second-leading attacker, Alexandria Hicks, who recorded 249 kills with a .201 hitting percentage, but do not have either of their primary setters from 2019 back this season.
The Series
There have only been four matches in the series history between UIC and Purdue Fort Wayne. The two squads last met in 2015, when UIC beat the 'Dons 3-1. Purdue Fort Wayne took the two prior meetings in 2012 and 2003, and UIC started the series with a win in 2001.
The Crowe's Perch
Katie Crowe is already a member of the 1,000 dig club, and is nearing the 1,000 kill plateau. She currently has 953 kills and 1018 digs. She is looking to become the 10th Mastodon in program history to reach both markers.
Other 1,000-Kill and 1,000-Dig Club Members
Joni Smith (1107 kills, 1319 digs) 1985-88
Heather Teagarden (1669 kills, 1123 digs) 1992-95
Julie Parrot (1180 kills, 1607 digs) 1993-96
Laura Douglas (1904 kills, 1623 digs) 1997-00
Fabiana Souza (2305 kills, 1434 digs) 2002-05
Cynara Martins (1124 kills, 1455 digs) 2004-07
Rebekah Roehm (1506 kills, 1015 digs) 2006-09
Emily Spencer (2106 kills, 1403 digs) 2011-14
Nicole Rightnowar (1584 kills, 1348 digs) 2015-18
On the Double... Double!
Katie Crowe has 35 double-doubles in her career with the Mastodons, 16 of which have come this season. Of the 34, 19 of them came on Arnie Ball Court.
Hittin' High
Sydney Boerst currently ranks second in program history in career hitting percentage at .323. She is the leader in the rally scoring era (2001-present), and only trails Andi Reichart (.362) overall. She hit .343 last season.
Blocking Your Way to the Top
Sydney Boerst also ranks in the top 10 in program history in blocks per set with 0.95 for her career. She is sixth behind three Mastodons that averaged 0.96, who are at third, fourth and fifth in program history.
Diggin' Up Everything
Rachael Crucis led the Summit League in 2019 with 5.00 digs per set in League play. She was ahead of South Dakota's Anne Rasmussen who earned Summit League Defensive Player of the Year.
The Last Summit League Honors
At the end of the 2019 season, Katie Crowe earned a place on the All-Summit League Team, becoming the last Mastodon to do so. Sydney Boerst and Rachael Crucis were selected as Honorable Mentions. Crucis and Sidney Schiller were both on the Summit League All-Freshman Team.
Program's 1,500th Match? W of Course!
Purdue Fort Wayne had its 1,500th program match at the SIUE Cougar Classic on September 21, 2019 when the Mastodons beat Central Arkansas in five sets. The Mastodons have a winning percentage over .600 over the course of the program's 45-year history.
Coming off the NIVC
The 2019 Mastodons concluded the season with a berth to the National Invitational Volleyball Championship, which was the first time in program history. It was also the first postseason tournament that Purdue Fort Wayne competed in since the NCAA Tournament in 2012. The Mastodons finished the season 18-15 and 11-5 in the Summit League for a third-place finish.
New Horizons For the Mastodons
The 2021 spring season is the first for Purdue Fort Wayne in the Horizon League after spending 13 years in the Summit League. The Horizon League is the second Division I conference to serve as the home for Purdue Fort Wayne since moving to Division I in 2001. The Mastodons were independent from 2001-07. Prior to moving DI, the 'Dons were a member of the Division II Great Lakes Valley Conference.
Summit League Recap
During the Purdue Fort Wayne's 13-year stretch in the Summit League, the Mastodons had two head coaches: Kelley Hartley Hutton and Steve Florio. The 'Dons won the regular season championship in 2010 and the tournament championship in 2009 and 2012, earning berths to the NCAA Division I Tournament in those two seasons. Most recently in 2019, the 'Dons finished third in the regular season and earned a berth to the National Invitational Volleyball Championship for the first time in program history. Purdue Fort Wayne earned double-digit conference wins in seven seasons, with conference seasons with at least a .500 record in 10 of them.
Last Time Out
It has been 417 days since Purdue Fort Wayne women's volleyball has played a match, but that match was a first in program history. The Mastodons played Bowling Green in the first round of the NIVC, which was the first-ever berth to the tournament in history, and its first postseason tournament since the NCAA Tournament in 2012. The Mastodons fell to Bowling Green 3-1.
Coming Up
Purdue Fort Wayne will have its home opener for its first season in the Horizon League on February 1. The Mastodons will welcome Youngstown State on Monday and Tuesday for a pair of matches against the Penguins in the Gates Sports Center.
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