Purdue volleyball didn't take long to set the tone against its rival IU at Holloway Gymnasium a week after losing in Bloomington.

Purdue defeated IU, 3-1, with a dominating 25-13 fourth set that closed things out after going 25-22, 25-22, 21-25 in the first three sets.

Eva Hudson set the pace for a balanced Purdue attack with 19 kills while Lourdes Myers got hot late on her way to 11 kills while the true freshman added 9 kills.

For head coach Dave Shondell, it was a satisfying ending to what was a jam-packed seven days that saw Purdue play its rival twice around a match up with Ohio State on the road.


"I don't mind it," Shondell said after the match when asked about playing IU twice in one week. "It's emotional. It wears you out," he added. "I need a vacation... it actually helps you because you've prepared for them."

Purdue played IU just a week before Wednesday night's rematch, and the Boilers used that match, an unlikely upset, as motivation at home.

"It was a really really big match for us," Shondell said. "After winning most the matches we play against them[IU], they punched us right in the mouth a week ago."

The key to Purdue's hot start and hotter finish was its defense, led by junior Raven Colvin.

"Raven is not that long," Shondell said about his star middle blocker. "She's probably six foot. But she is the most relentless middle blocker in America. She works harder than anyone in the country."

It also helped that Purdue's young team found their serve tonight. It's not always the case with a team of younger players. It was a difference maker for Shondell's Boilers.

"I think our serving was the biggest indictor tonight of our success," Shondell said about his team which jumped out to early leads in all three sets it won against IU. That success hasn't been the case all season. "And we've not been a great serving team. We've been a mediocre serving team. When you have young players, you don't have a lot of experienced servers that feel confident going back and serving bb's."

Youth didn't just shine at the serve, Purdue's freshman setter Taylor Anderson had a strong performance in a big rivalry game at home.

"Tonight our setter was really really good," Shondell said. "Freshman setter, in this environment, nothing easy about it." Anderson had 36 assists on the night and had 6 digs on defense.

It was a big win for Purdue, especially considering the schedule it has waiting for it.

With two matches looming against Wisconsin, and a Big Ten slate full of the best team's in the country, Coach Shondell knows the teams job isn't getting any easier.

"A lot of heavy hitters are stilling waiting on us," Shondell said.

Purdue will have two matches against ranked opponents next week with a road game at Penn State and then Minnesota coming to Holloway next Sunday.