Purdue Fort Wayne Women's Volleyball Heads to Western Illinois

MACOMB, Ill. - Purdue Fort Wayne women's volleyball will visit Western Illinois for a Tuesday matchup before returning home.

Gameday Information vs. Western Illinois
WHEN: Tuesday, October 22 | 7 p.m. ET
WHERE: Macomb, Ill. | Western Hall
LIVE STATS: Western Illinois Live Stats
LIVE VIDEO: Western Illinois Video
SERIES HISTORY: Purdue Fort Wayne leads 21-6
LAST MEETING: W, 3-0 (25-15, 25-14, 25-21) | Sept. 24, 2019 | Fort Wayne, Ind.

Scouting Western Illinois
Western Illinois enters its matchup with Purdue Fort Wayne at 5-16, 2-6 Summit League. The Leathernecks are coming off a pair of 3-0 losses at South Dakota and at Denver. WIU's two Summit League wins are a 3-0 victory over Oral Roberts and a five-set grinder over South Dakota State. The Mastodons defeated Western Illinois 3-0 earlier this season. The Leathernecks are led by Mariah Mitchell, who has 179 kills on the year with a team-leading .254 hitting percentage.

Career Nights Lead to Wins
Katie Crowe and Rachael Crucis both had career-highs in the Mastodons' five-set win over South Dakota State. Crowe slammed down 28 kills, which surpassed her previous high of 24. Crucis had 32 digs, which tied her career-high set in September against Central Arkansas.

Sweeping Player of the Week Honors
Purdue Fort Wayne had a pair of Summit League Player of the Week recipients this past week. Katie Crowe earned the Offensive Player of the Week honor after averaging 4.13 kills per set. Rachael Crucis brought home a Defensive Player of the Week award after racking up 5.5 digs per set against Oral Roberts and Omaha. Crowe and Crucis led the 'Dons to a three-set win over the Golden Eagles and a five-set win over the Mavericks.

Dubba-Yoos
Purdue Fort Wayne is entering the weekend having won nine out of the last 11 matches. This stretch includes three straight at the Cougar Classic and six Summit League wins.

Second in the League
The Mastodons are in second place in the Summit League standings at the halfway mark of the season. The 'Dons are 6-2 after beating North Dakota, Western Illinois, preseason-favorite Denver, Oral Roberts, Omaha and South Dakota State. Purdue Fort Wayne's only losses of the Summit League season were road tests at North Dakota State and league-leading South Dakota.

Diggin' Up Everything
Rachael Crucis is currently leading the Summit League in a pair of digs per set categories, with 4.83 overall and 5.10 in League play only. She is ahead of Anne Rasmussen, who has earned four Summit League Defensive Player of the Week honors.

At the Summit
In Summit League play, Katie Crowe ranks first in kills per set and points per set with 4.34 and 4.80 respectively. She has had double-digit kills for 10 straight matches, including all eight League contests.

On the Double... Double!
Katie Crowe has 30 double-doubles in her career with the Mastodons, 11 of which have come this season. Of the 30, 16 of them came on Arnie Ball Court.

Hittin' High
Sydney Boerst currently ranks second in program history in career hitting percentage at .319. She is the leader in the rally scoring era (2001-present), and only trails Andi Reichart (.362) overall. She is hitting .342 this season.

Last Time Out
The Mastodons split last weekend, coming away from Brookings, South Dakota with a five-set win over South Dakota State. Purdue Fort Wayne dropped its contest against South Dakota in Sioux Falls in three sets.

Next Time Up
Purdue Fort Wayne will conclude its longest road stretch of the season with a match at preseason-favorite Denver on Friday (Oct. 25) at 9 p.m. ET.

~ Feel the Rumble ~

Purdue Fort Wayne Women's Volleyball Heads to Western Illinois

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Players Mentioned

Sydney Boerst

Katie Crowe

Rachael Crucis

Purdue University Fort Wayne Athletics