(PURDUE RELEASE)
Friday, Jan. 22 | 6 p.m. ET
Iowa at No. 13 Purdue
Saturday, Jan. 23 | 4 p.m. ET
Iowa at No. 13 Purdue
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - The Purdue volleyball program (0-2) is set to welcome the Iowa Hawkeyes (0-2) in the 2021 home opener Friday at 6 p.m. ET. The evening will mark the first of four consecutive matches in Holloway Gymnasium.
SCOUTING PURDUE (0-2)
• The Boilermakers are coming off a 24-8 (14-6 B1G) record and a Sweet Sixteen appearance in the 2019 NCAA Tournament.
• Purdue's No. 13 AVCA ranking is the highest Week One rating since voted No. 7 (9/1/2014).
• Two of the team's three 2019 All-Americans are returning: Grace Cleveland (third-team) and Caitlyn Newton (honorable mention).
• Purdue owns 64 kills on 213 attempts for a .113 hitting % following two matches against the No. 1 team in the nation, Wisconsin.
• Newton leads the team with 20 kills, 83 attempts and five aces. Four of Newton's aces came in the second night at No. 1 Wisconsin - an individual high since Rutgers (11/20/19).
• Jael Johnson is second on the team with 15 kills and holds a .235 hitting %. Her 10 kills in the season-opener at No. 1 Wisconsin was a career-best for the junior (previous: 8, at No. 1 Baylor, 12/13/19).
• Taylor Trammell's induction to collegiate play saw a team-leading .300 attack % over the first two matches, with nine kills on 20 swings.
• RS-Jr. Hayley Bush tallied 51 assists for 8.50 assists/set.
• Marissa Hornung and Jena Otec tie with 15 digs in 2021, with Otec chipping in two aces as well.
• Purdue was one of 13 Power Five programs to post two or fewer home losses in 2019 (Purdue:15-2 at home).
• The five 2019 Big Ten Player of the Week honors tie as the second-most in program history and the most since 2012. Only the 2011 squad produced more player of the week honors. Additionally, all the honorees will return for the 2020 season: Grace Cleveland, Bush and Hornung.
• Redshirt junior setter Hayley Bush ranked No. 40 in the nation in assists per set (10.71) last year.
• Senior defensive specialist Jena Otec posted 50 aces in 2019, the most by a Boilermaker since Carey Burvis in 1993 (78) to lead the Big Ten and rank No. 24 in the nation.
DAVE SHONDELL & COACHING STAFF
• Head Coach Dave Shondell, associate head coach John Shondell and assistant coach Kathy Jewell are the longest-tenured coaching staff in the Power Five, entering their 18th season together at Purdue.
• Together, they led Purdue to become one of 13 programs in the nation with at least eight Sweet Sixteen appearances in the last 15 years.
• HC Shondell is one of three active Big Ten coaches to own at least a .660 win % entering 2019.
SCOUTING IOWA (0-2)
• Junior Courtney Buzzerio leads the team with 22 kills and two aces, tallying team-highs in kills during each outing thus far. Meanwhile Blythe Rients lead the team in attack % with 14 kills on 32 attempts.
• Two Hawkeyes own double-digit blocks: Rients and Hannah Clayton, who own 11 apiece. Clay-ton's three solo blocks is a team-high.
• Iowa are coming off a pair of losses to RV Illinois, each coming with a 3-1 final score.
• As a team, Iowa owns a .097 hitting clip with 73 kills on 248 attacks.
LAST TIME OUT
• Then-No. 20 Purdue took the match in four sets, with Iowa snagging the first, 20-25, 25-20, 25-16, 25-15.
• Purdue was able to limit the attacking power of Iowa (8-12, 2-7 Big Ten), as it took the advantage in digs (44-43) and blocks (11-4) to hold Iowa to a .208 hitting percentage
(45-20-120)
• Defensively, sophomore libero Marissa Hornung directed the Boilermakers with 18 digs
• Purdue took early leads in the third and fourth sets, with Maddie Koch closing out the match with the final two Purdue kills.
• Grace Cleveland led the team with 18 kills and five blocks, while Newton secured 17 kills, 4 blocks and one ace
BIG TEN FIVE-YEAR AVERAGE
• Purdue is one of only two programs in the Big Ten to rank among the top five in kills (1665.2), hitting % (.262), blocks (325.7) and aces (152) (joined by Nebraska).
• The Boilermakers enter the season with averaging 1,665.2 kills and 325.7 blocks per season.
CAREER MARKERS TO WATCH (THROUGH MATCHES OF 1/28/21)
• Four Boilermakers nearing their 1,000th career kills/digs benchmark:
> Caitlyn Newton: 908 kills
> Jena Otec: 904 digs.
> Marissa Horning enters the season with 888 digs.
> Grace Cleveland enters the season with 700 kills.
• Meanwhile, redshirt junior Hayley Bush looks for her 3,000 career assist: 2,178.
Due to state and local guidance, Purdue will not have fans in attendance for the upcoming spring volleyball and wrestling seasons in Holloway Gymnasium. Immediate family members of student-athletes and team staff will be the only spectators permitted at this time.
Commentaires