Purdue (11-1, 1-1) opened Big Ten play with with a win and a loss last weekend. The Boilers played No. 8 Illinois close but ball control struggles derailed them in the four-set lost on Friday night. Purdue was able to bounce back though and picked up a four-set win over Northwestern on Saturday.
Against the Wildcats, Purdue dropped the first set before winning the final three sets; 22-25, 25-13, 25-22, 25-19. Purdue outhit and out-blocked Northwestern .281-.148 and 11-6 respectively. Sherridan Atkinson was dominant tallying 23 kills, .380 hitting, two aces, and four blocks. Equally impressive was Caitlyn Newton’s error-less performance, 16 kills on 24 attempts (.