WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – In a five-set thriller, the No. 5 Purdue Boilermakers (12-1, 3-0 Big Ten) handed Illinois its first loss of conference play with a 25-17, 25-17, 23-25, 16-14 inside Huff Hall.
After going point-for-point with Illinois in the final set for a total of eight tied scores and with Illinois on match point (14-13), the Boilermakers stormed back with the final three points to secure the victory. Emma Ellis recorded back-to-back kills, followed by setter Grace Balensiefer winning the match on a sneak attack, her lone kill of the night.
Eva Hudson led the team with a career-setting night, totaling 24 kills and 17 digs, besting her previous marks of 21 and 9, respectively. The freshman tallied 50 attempts with just five errors for a .380 hitting %.
Ellis closed the night with 11 kills, followed by Madeline Koch with nine.
No. 5 Purdue will return home for a Sunday matinee vs. Rutgers at 1 p.m. ET. The match will be streamed on B1G+.
Set One (25-17)
- After Illinois took the first point of the match, the Boilermakers responded with a 6-0 run, a lead which Purdue held onto for the rest of the set.
- Ali Hornung led the set with six digs
- Purdue was led by Raven Colvin’s errorless .600% and Eva Hudson’s four kills.
Set Two (25-17)
- Illinois brought the match within two points at 12-10, but a kill by Emma Ellis
- After hitting .152 in the first set, Purdue found their groove with a .348 attack % in the set after no Boilermaker had more than one error. Meanwhile, Illinois was held to a .094 clip.
- Defensive specialist Ava Torrance dug five balls in the set, leading the team
More to come..
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