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No. 8 Purdue Takes Down No. 25 Cougs in Three

by wsucougars.com
Sep 3, 2021

 LAS VEGAS – The No. 25 ranked Washington State Cougars were defeated by the No. 8 ranked Boilermakers of Purdue during the Cougs' opening match at the Rebel Challenge inside Cox Pavilion. 

Set scores from the match were: 19-25, 23-25, and 26-28 in favor of the Boilermakers (4-0, 0-0 BIG 10).

The Cougars (0-3, 0-0 Pac-12) were able jump out in front of the Boilermakers in set number one, as a pair of short runs saw WSU leading 8-5. Penny Tusa was right in the middle of the action as she posted a kill and a block assist to get Washington State rolling against the number eight team in the nation. Purdue countered immediately with a 5-1 scoring run of their own to take over the lead at 14-11 and would see the Cougs taking their first timeout of the set. Purdue continued to control the pace of the opening set, ultimately winning it 25-19. Leading the Cougars in set number one was Tusa with three kills, two digs, and one block. Julia Norville added two digs and an ace, and Magda Jehlářová posted one block as well.

The Boilermakers continued to ride their wave of momentum from set one into the second, posting a 6-2 overall run. Washington State was not going out without a fight in this second set, posting a 7-2 run to take the lead at 16-15. Leading the Cougs during the run, Hannah Pukis, Katy Ryan, Tusa, and Magda all recorded kills to fuel the offensive attack. These two squads began trading points late into the second game, until Purdue managed a quick run to force WSU to take a timeout at 21-19. Tusa continued to have a hot offensive hand, totaling back-to-back kills to trail Purdue just 23-23. The Boilermakers ultimately took the second set at 25-23 as they finished the game off with a kill.

Multiple Cougs were getting involved in the offensive early in set number three as Kalyah Williams, Pia Timmer, and Katy Ryan all totaled kills to hold a 6-5 advantage. The Cougs continued to go point for point with the Boilermakers, until WSU began to put together small runs to take the lead from Purdue. Both Williams and Pukis continued to record kills midway through this contest and Washington State took a lead of 17-16 after another Tusa kill. Purdue went on to retake the lead after a 5-1 scoring run to hold a 21-19 advantage. Some additional volleyball was needed between these two top 25 programs as they went beyond 25 points, but it was the Boilermakers who would take set three at 28-26 and complete the sweep at 3-0 overall.
 

INTO THE TWITTER-VERSE

 

MATCH NOTES

  • Penny Tusa once again led WSU in total kills on the offensive side of the ball as she recorded 10 total. Tusa also posted seven digs, and one block.
  • Hannah Pukis anchored the Cougs overall from the setter position as usual, totaling 30 assists in the match. Pukis also recorded a double-double with 14 digs in the contest as well.
  • WSU returns to Cox Pavilion tomorrow, Saturday, Sept. 4, to conclude the Rebel Challenge against host UNLV. First serve is set for 4:00 p.m. between the Cougars and the Rebels. 

     

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