WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - The No. 20 Boilermakers fought off a resilient Notre Dame team to win 3-1 in front of a sold out Holloway Gymnasium on Sunday afternoon. Purdue won the match 25-22, 25-21, 23-25, 25-20 to improve to 5-0 on the season.
For a third-consecutive match senior Sherridan Atkinson led the way, registering a match-high 17 kills against the Fighting Irish. Redshirt junior Blake Mohler and sophomore Caitlyn Newton added 11 kills each, while Mohler hit a team-best .526 clip. Freshman Grace Cleveland rounded out the Purdue attack with 10 kills.
Defensively, redshirt junior Shavona Cuttino paced the Boilermakers at the net with five blocks, followed by Mohler with four. In the backcourt, senior Brooke Peters managed a season-best 30 digs, while Hayley Bush, Marissa Hornung and Jena Otec added nine apiece. Atkinson, Peters and Julianna Reisinger also served up two aces each.
Following a 6-6 open, Notre Dame recorded a 6-1 stretch to garner a 12-7 advantage. Following two Purdue timeouts, the Fighting Irish maintained a 17-12 lead, but the Boilermakers turned tables with a 7-0 run to grab a 19-17 advantage. Purdue forced a pair of Notre Dame miscues to ultimately take the set, 25-22.
The Boilermakers carried their momentum into the second set, jumping out to a 6-2 advantage. Fueled by a trio of Newton putaways, Purdue's advantage grew to 12-7. Notre Dame responded with three kills from Jemma Yeadon to cut it 12-11 and later claimed an 18-17 lead. A pair of Notre Dame errors gave the lead back to the Boilermakers, who would collect the last three points for a 25-21 set win.
The teams split the first 20 points of set three with neither owning more than a two-point edge in the span. With the set tied at 22-all, a trio of Notre Dame kills put the Irish on the board with a 25-23 set victory.
Persistent, Purdue retaliated by jumping out a 7-1 advantage in the fourth frame. The Boilermakers upheld their lead with 15 kills and aces from Atkinson, Reisinger and Otec. A kill from Cleveland secured a 25-20 final set and 3-1 match for Purdue.
The Boilermakers will remain at home with the Stacy Clark Classic as Purdue welcomes Xavier, Lipscomb and Louisville to Holloway Gymnasium. Up first, Purdue will clash with Xavier on Friday, Sept. 7, at 10 a.m. ET.
