It seems like all Purdue sports does is beat Tennessee in the postseason. You had 2019 in men's basketball, 2021 in the Music City Bowl, and today in the NCAA women's volleyball tournament.
Early this season Purdue volleyball picked up a big 3-1 non-conference win over Tennessee in the Volunteers' own invitational. Little did they know a rematch would be in the offing down the road. The teams met today in the first round of the NCAA Tournament at the University of Louisville and played a banger of a match.
Tennessee was dominant in set 1, taking it with ease at 25-14. after taking a very early 1-0 lead Tennessee ripped off nine straight points and never looked back on their way to winning the set.
Set 2 was pretty much the opposite. It was Purdue's turn to dominate as they turned a 7-5 advantage early into a 19-9 one with a 12-4 run. The Boilers reversed the score, taking set 2 25-14.
In set three Tennessee and Purdue battled back and forth. Tennessee pulled ahead 12-5, but Purdue fought back to eventually tie it 18-18, 21-21, and 22-22. The Volunteers put Purdue on the brink by winning the last three points and taking the set 25-22.
Set 4 was another tense affair, as Purdue led for most of it, but couldn't pull away. Consecutive kills by Emma Ellis closed out the set 25-22 for Purdue and sent things to a winner-take-all fifth set with both team dead even on points.
A pair of Eva Hudson kills, a block, and an Ali Hornung ace quickly gave Purdue a 4-0 lead in the deciding set. It was a lead Purdue would not give up, as Tennessee never got closer than three the rest of the way. Hudson started the set with a kill and put the match away on Purdue's third match point with another kill, 15-11.
The stats across the board were nearly dead even, but Purdue held a 9-4 advantage in aces and Tennessee made 16 attack errors to Purdue's 10. Hudson finished the match with 23 kills and 14 digs. Grace Balensiefer had 45 assists to lead Purdue in that category.
The Boilers likely get another rematch in round 2, as #1 seed Louisville, the top seed in the 16 team region, is heavily favored in the second match of the day. Louisville swept Purdue 3-0 back in September for the Boilers' only non-conference loss. The match will be at 6pm ET on Saturday in Louisville.
