No. 4 Purdue Fort Wayne Visits No. 1 Wright State in Horizon League Tournament

Sunday, March 28

Dayton, Ohio

1 PM

Purdue Fort Wayne

Wright State

Sydney Boerst

No. 4 Purdue Fort Wayne Visits No. 1 Wright State in Horizon League Tournament

3/26/2021 2:53:00 PM | Women's Volleyball

Live Stats Watch (ESPN+)Purdue Fort Wayne Match Notes

Presented by Glenbrook Dodge

FORT WAYNE, Ind. - The fourth-seeded Purdue Fort Wayne women's volleyball team will visit top-seeded Wright State in the Mastodons' first-ever trip to the Horizon League Championship.

Game Day Information
When: Sunday, March 28 | 1 p.m.
Where: C.J. McLin Gymnasium | Dayton, Ohio
Live Stats: Link
Video: ESPN+
Series History: Wright State leads 11-10
Last Meeting: 9/5/2017 | L, 3-2 | Fort Wayne, Ind.
Game Notes: Purdue Fort Wayne | Wright State

Know Your Foe
Wright State is 14-1 and 14-0 in Horizon League play and is receiving votes in the AVCA Top 25 poll. The Raiders have only gone five sets with one League team: Cleveland State. The Raiders' only loss came to Dayton in their only non-League match. Wright State has four All-League selections that led the Raiders to a regular season championship. Setter of the Year Lainey Stephenson is averaging 9.37 assists per set, leading WSU to a .219 team hitting percentage. Jenna Story, who was named the Defensive Player of the Year, is averaging 6.23 digs per set.

The Series
Wright State has taken the last two meetings between these two programs, but the 'Dons won eight in a row before that. The Raiders hold an 11-10 edge all-time. The last time these two teams met was 2017, which saw a freshman Katie Crowe record 10 kills and 15 digs and Sydney Boerst have eight kills and five blocks.

Player of the Year
Katie Crowe was selected as the Horizon League Player of the Year and Offensive Player of the Year for the Spring 2021 season. Crowe is the first Mastodon to be named Player of the Year since Emily Spencer was the Summit League Player of the Year in 2014. Crowe is also the first Mastodon of any sport to be named Horizon League Player of the Year. In her first year in the League, she was named Player of the Week four times, more than any other player. She became the fourth player in Horizon League history to win the Player of the Week honor four times in a season. Crowe was the League-leader in kills per set at 4.23 and points per set at 4.67. The next closest player, Alexandra Zakutney, averaged 3.52 kills per set. In addition to her offensive numbers, Crowe has recorded 178 digs, which was 13th among all players in the League. This averaged to 3.18 digs per set. Crowe finished the regular season with 10 double-doubles in the 16-match slate. Crowe will have chance to repeat as Player of the Year, as she is electing to return for another season at Purdue Fort Wayne.

All-League Honorees
Katie Crowe, Madison Gates, Sydney Boerst and Ramei Jackson picked up All-League honors in the Mastodons' first season in the Horizon League. Crowe and Gates earned spots on the All-League First Team, Boerst was a Second Teamer and Jackson was named to the All-Freshman Team. Crowe was also the League Player of the Year and Offensive Player of the Year.

Swinging the Right Way
Sydney Boerst, Madelyn Wurster and Ramei Jackson are all in the top 10 in the Horizon League in hitting percentage this season at .329, .298 .and .294 respectively, this season. Boerst is second, Wurster is fifth and Jackson is sixth. Wurster is the top pin-hitter in the League in hitting percentage.

Offense=Good
Purdue Fort Wayne's .246 hitting percentage is the highest season-long average in the rally scoring era. The previous best of .228 was set in 2016.

Is That Good?
Purdue Fort Wayne has hit over .300 in six matches this season. The 'Dons are 6-0 in those matches and 27-0 under head coach Steve Florio when they hit at least .300.

Make It A Double
Katie Crowe has 10 double-doubles this season, with 45 total in her career. She has recorded back-to-back double-doubles against three opponents this season: Youngstown State, Cleveland State and Green Bay. Madison Gates had nine double-doubles this season with 22 in her career.

Sharing the Sugar
Madison Gates led the Horizon League with 10.11 assists per set while leading Purdue Fort Wayne to the second-best hitting percentage in the Horizon League at .247.

She's Been Around the Block
Sydney Boerst is 13th in the nation in total blocks among active players with 396. Taryn Knuth of Florida State is the leading Division I with 562.

Last Time Out
Purdue Fort Wayne dropped a pair of contests to Milwaukee to end the regular season. Katie Crowe and Madison Gates recorded double-doubles in the second match against the Panthers. The Mastodons also celebrated the careers of Sydney Boerst and Julia Wayer.

Coming Up
Depending on the results of the semifinal matchups, Purdue Fort Wayne could move on to the final, which would either be hosted by UIC or Northern Kentucky. That match will be on Saturday, April 3. The winner of the Horizon League Championship will go on to the NCAA Tournament.

~ Feel the Rumble ~