WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - Steady backcourt play and tough serving set up the Boilermaker attack in a 3-0 sweep of Maryland on Wednesday. No. 16 Purdue won the match 25-15, 25-18, 25-17 with help from seven aces and a .373 hitting efficiency.
The victory moved Purdue to 20-7 on the season, securing the eighth 20-win season under head coach Dave Shondell and the fifth straight. It also gave the Boilers their 10th Big Ten win, securing a .500 or better season for the ninth time in the last 10 years.
Junior Sam Epenesa and freshman Azariah Stahl had 10 kills apiece to pace Purdue as the Boilers outhit Maryland .373 to .140. Junior Annie Drews added eight kills and senior KiKi Jones chipped in six as seven different players accounted for two or more kills in the match.
Defensively, junior Amanda Neill had a match-high 10 digs followed by freshman Lydia Dimke who added seven and redshirt freshman Ashley Evans who managed six. Dimke also served up two aces along with redshirt sophomore Kate Workman. Senior Val Nichok, Evans and Neill also managed a perfect serve in the match. At the net, Jones put up three stuffs including a solo effort.
Purdue raced out to a 10-4 lead in Set 1 and never looked back, as seven hitters put down at least one kill in the stanza. Maryland called timeout at 10-4, but the Boilers scored five of the next seven out of the break to go up 15-6. Epenesa and Jones tacked on two kills apiece and Workman added an ace as the lead swelled to 11 at 22-11. A Terrapin service error and a kill by redshirt sophomore Faye Adelaja clinched the 25-15 win.
The Boilermakers put up four blocks and outhit Maryland .323 to .062 in a 25-18 Set 2 win. Purdue kicked off the set with a 12-3 run, including aces by Evans and Dimke, solo blocks by Jones and Adelaja and three putaways by Epenesa. The Terrapins narrowed the gap to four at 17-13 prompting a Boilermaker timeout. Purdue scored five of the next seven, including a stuff by Jones and Epenesa and an ace by Workman, to take a 22-15 lead. Stahl pounded down two kills and Drews added another to cap the stanza.
Four kill efforts by Epenesa and Stahl helped Purdue close out the night with a 25-17 Set 3 win, which saw Purdue hit at a .500 clip. The Boilers scored five of the first six points in the set as Neill served up an ace and Drews turned in two kills. Maryland pulled to within one at 8-7, but the Boilermakers responded with a 6-1 run to make it 14-8. Stahl had her four kills in that stretch, while Nichol added an ace. The Terrapins were back within three at 14-11, but Purdue put the set out of reach with a seven of the next 10 points. Kills by Epenesa and Nichol and a Maryland miscue made it 24-16. Jones wrapped up the match with the final putaway.
The No. 16 Boilermakers (20-7, 10-5 Big Ten) return to action at 7 p.m. Saturday against Northwestern, whom the Boilers topped in five sets in Evanston, Ill., on Oct. 24.