Turner named player of week

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. (WLFI) - Purdue's Ariel Turner was named Big Ten Player of the Week on Monday.

The reigning Big Ten Player of the Year paced Purdue with 4.89 kills per set and added 2.89 digs per set, 0.40 blocks per set and an ace in the pair of wins over Northwestern and No. 21 Illinois, which made Purdue 4-0 in Big Ten play for the first time since 1990. The senior moved into fourth place all time in career kills at Purdue with 1577.

Against Northwestern, Turner narrowly missed a 20-20 effort with 19 kills and 17 digs, while also chipping in three blocks. In Set 1, she racked up six kills, including five in the latter half of the set as Purdue battled back from an 11-6 deficit to a 25-18 win. She also had the final kill of Set 2.

Against No. 21 Illinois, Turner put down 25 kills, while hitting at a .364 clip and adding nine digs and an ace. She tallied eight kills in a 25-20 Set 3 win and registered six more in the decisive 15-7 Set 5 win, including the final three points in the victory. Turner also handled 14 of her 15 serve receive chances. The double-double against Northwestern was her sixth of the season.

The Player of the Week honor is the sixth of her career, and first since Nov. 28, 2011.

The Boilermakers (13-2, 4-0 Big Ten) take on top 10-ranked Nebraska on Friday in a Social Media Night affair and Iowa on Saturday. Both matches are slated for 8 pm starts.