Purdue Fort Wayne
0-1,0-0Horizon
Middle Tennessee
1-0,0-0CUSA
Smattering of Career-Highs Highlight 'Dons' Opening Day
8/29/2025 9:46:00 PM | Women's Volleyball
INDIANAPOLIS - Purdue Fort Wayne dropped a pair of women's volleyball matches on Friday (Aug. 29) to Middle Tennessee and Butler.
Middle Tennessee 3, Purdue Fort Wayne 1 (25-17, 27-25, 22-25, 25-21)
A duo of sophomores led Purdue Fort Wayne offensively in the first match of the 2025 season, as Riley Rosneck and Mya Plemons both set career-highs in kills.
Rosneck, the reigning Horizon League Freshman of the Year, registered 20 kills, passing her previous best of 17. Plemons had 10 kills on a .350 clip, one better than the best of her freshman season. These new career-highs lasted all of five hours, until they beat them in the evening match.
Both Rosneck and Plemons had double-doubles, Rosneck with 20 kills and 10 digs while Plemons had 10 kills and 10 blocks. Plemons is the first Mastodon to have a kill/block double-double since Sydney Boerst in 2019.
Freshman Haiden Means was in charge of the setting for the first regular season match of her career. She dished out 35 assists and dug out 19 attempts. Means is the first Mastodon freshman setter to have 19 digs since Madison Jaqua in 2015. She is the first PFW setter to do so in the first match of her career in the Mastodons' 25 years of Division I.
Becky Barrett and Meg Berkland added 21 and 13 digs each, for a team total of 77. Barrett's 21 was a career-high until she topped it in the evening.
The 'Dons jumped out to a 3-0 lead in set one, but the Blue Raiders went up 19-10 from there. A 4-0 run later on gave the 'Dons some life, but Butler answered with a 4-0 run of its own.
In the second, it was a 4-0 start for the 'Dons and it was much closer throughout. It was back and forth until the 22-all mark, but Butler went up 24-22. The Mastodons got three in a row to give themselves a set point opportunity, but MTSU got three in a row to go up 2-0.
The third set went to the Mastodons thanks to a late push. After the 22-all stymie, Rosneck had a kill before Plemons got two in a row.
Another tight set was the fourth, all the way to 20-20. The Blue Raiders used a 5-1 push to finish the match early.
Middle Tennessee improved to 1-0.
Butler 3, Purdue Fort Wayne 2 (25-22, 17-25, 25-23, 24-26, 15-12)
Career-highs from Rosneck, Plemons, Barrett and Means highlighted the second match of the day, a five-set marathon.
Rosneck had 23 kills, Plemons had 15 kills, Barrett had 25 digs and Means had 44 assists, all of which are career-highs in the various points in their careers.
Set one went to Butler despite the set being tied at 18.
Purdue Fort Wayne mounted a huge 10-1 run in the second set, goin up 15-7. Four different 'Dons had a kill in the run: Plemons, Trinity Rye, Miona Dimitric and Means. Butler had a push to bring it within six, but the 'Dons had a 4-2 finish to win the set.
Butler jumped out to a 7-2 lead in set three. It took until very late in the set that the Mastodons got within two, and the 'Dons got it within one at 24-23. A kill from Butler put the Bulldogs up 2-1.
Butler had a match point lined up in the fourth at 24-23, but Purdue Fort Wayne got three points in a row to win the frame. Rye had an ace drop in on set point.
Purdue Fort Wayne went up 9-7 in the fifth after a kill from Plemons, but Butler scored five in a row to take control of the final frame.
Purdue Fort Wayne fell to 0-2. Butler improved to 2-0.
The Mastodons will play against Evansville on Saturday (Aug. 30) at 2 p.m.
~ Feel the Rumble ~
