NCAA History

1981

Dec. 6 - South Regional First Round
Mackey Arena (496)
West Lafayette, Ind.

Tennessee131010
Purdue (W)151515

The Boilermakers participate in the first NCAA Tournament and sweep Tennessee. Junior Jane Neff, sophomore Jan Hoosline and freshman Kate Crandell all tally seven kills. Crandell also has five blocks.

Dec. 11 - South Regional Semifinals
Foster Auditorium
Tuscaloosa, Ala.

Purdue (L)11151583
UCLA156111515

UCLA rallies from a 2-1 deficit for the win. Senior Donna Hardesty and freshman Becky Winsett both have 11 kills, while junior Jane Neff records seven blocks and senior Anne McMenamy adds 11 digs.

Team
1981 Team

1982

Dec. 5 - Mideast Regional First Round
Multi-Purpose Athletic Facility (963)
West Lafayette, Ind.

Rutgers15739
Purdue (W)12151515

The Boilermakers bring an unblemished 32-0 record into the tournament and defeat Rutgers. Senior Jane Neff leads the way with 13 kills, while classmate JoAnn Wissen has 12 kills on a .550 attack percentage, and junior Jan Hoosline adds five blocks and five aces.

Dec. 11 - Mideast Regional Semifinals
Multi-Purpose Athletic Facility (1,352)
West Lafayette, Ind.

Nebraska15154125
Purdue (W)1212151515

In one of the greatest matches in Purdue history, the Boilermakers rally from two games down to top Nebraska and remain undefeated. Junior Joan King erupts for 30 kills while hitting .464, senior Jane Neff has 19 kills, and sophomore Kate Crandell tallies 16 kills, 11 blocks and four aces.

Dec. 12 - Mideast Regional Finals
Multi-Purpose Athletic Facility (1,520)
West Lafayette, Ind.

USC151515
Purdue (L)1338

Purdue's dream season comes to an end against USC. Junior Joan King has eight kills on a .467 attack percentage. The Boilermakers end the season 33-1.

Team
1982 Team

1983

Dec. 3 - Mideast Regional First Round
Multi-Purpose Athletic Facility (682)
West Lafayette, Ind.

Illinois State9151515
Purdue (W) 15531515

Purdue is forced to come from behind to down Illinois State. Senior Jan Hoosline hits .487 with 21 kills and six blocks, while sophomore Kim Corwin has 22 digs.

Dec. 9 - Mideast Regional Semifinals
Multi-Purpose Athletic Facility (1,862)
West Lafayette, Ind.

Western Michigan15915 14 15
Purdue (L)3 15 9 16 10

Western Michigan survives in five games to remain undefeated at 32-0. Sophomore Kim Corwin paces Purdue with 22 kills on a .400 attack percentage, junior Kate Crandell records 12 blocks, and junior Annette Bauer comes up with 21 digs. A Multi-Purpose Athletic Facility (now the IAF) record crowd of 1,862 is on hand.

Team
1983 Team

1984

Nov. 29 - Northwest Regional First Round
Spartan Gym
San Jose, Calif.

Purdue (L) 15 8 9 13
San Jose State 5 15 15 15

Nine days after beating San Jose State in five games on the road, Purdue falls to the host Spartans. Juniors Kim Corwin and Marianne Smith and freshman Linda Reichl all have 10 kills, and Corwin adds 14 digs.

Team
1984 Team

1985

Dec. 5 - Mideast Regional First Round
Horton Fieldhouse (1,336)
Normal, Ill.

Purdue (W) 15 15 15
Illinois State 11 5 6

Purdue sweeps Illinois St. behind 14 kills from sophomore Linda Reichl. Senior Kim Corwin has 12 digs.

Dec. 13 - Mideast Regional Semifinals
Devaney Sports Center (2,740)
Lincoln, Neb.

Purdue (L)1141511
Nebraska15161215

Nebraska wins the first two games and holds on for the victory. Sophomore Linda Reichl leads Purdue with 24 kills, senior Marianne Smith has 16 kills and 21 digs, and senior Cheryl Flowers adds 23 digs.

Team
1985 Team

1987

Dec. 4 - Midwest Regional First Round
Intercollegiate Athletic Facility (823)
West Lafayette, Ind.

Penn State4915
Purdue (W)151517

After a year away from postseason play, the Boilermakers return with a flourish and a sweep of Penn State. Junior Linda Reichl totals 13 kills, while freshman Amber Douglas has 13 digs.

Dec. 10 - Midwest Regional Semifinals
Kenney Gym (2,300)
Champaign, Ill.

Purdue (L) 8 12 3
Nebraska 15 15 15

For the second time in three years the Boilermakers see their season ended by Nebraska. Junior Linda Reichl leads Purdue with 13 kills, and freshman Amber Douglas records five blocks.

Team
1987 Team

1990

Nov. 29 - Mideast Regional First Round
Rec Hall (1,963)
University Park, Pa.

Purdue (L)8144
Penn State151615

In their first postseason appearance in three years, the Boilermakers face Penn State with its 42-0 record. The Boilermakers get nine kills and 13 digs from senior Jill Whiteman.

Team
1990 Team

2004

Dec. 2 - First Round
Moby Arena (2,720)
Fort Collins, Colo.

Purdue (W)3025302215
#9 Colorado State2530273012

The Boilermakers make quite a splash in their first NCAA game in nearly 15 years, going into Moby Arena and upsetting the ninth-ranked host Rams in a five-game thriller. Six Boilermakers post double-digit kills, led by Kim McConaha. Daren Poe tallies a match-high 21 digs.

Dec. 3 - Second Round
Moby Arena (1,210)
Fort Collins, Colo.

Purdue (L)312719
#2 Hawai'i333030

The Boilermakers send Game 1 against No. 2 Hawai'i to overtime, but cannot overcome the Rainbow Wahine. Kim McConaha posts a 14 kill, 14 dig double-double, while also setting the Purdue career record for block assists. Elizabeth Jacques adds 11 kills and Daren Poe posts 18 digs.

Team
2004 Team

2005

Dec. 2 - First Round
Dean Smith Center (370)
Chapel Hill, N.C.

Purdue (W)303030
Va. Commonwealth27 2421

The No. 14-seeded Boilermakers advance to the second round for the second consecutive year with a 3-0 win over VCU. Four Purdue players reach double digit dig totals, while freshmen Danita Merlau and Stephanie Lynch lead the team with 16 and 12 kills respectively.

Dec. 3 - Second Round
Dean Smith Center (332)
Chapel Hill, N.C.

Purdue (W) 30 30 30
Col. of Charleston 22 20 28

Purdue earns its first trip to the third round since 1982 with a sweep of the College of Charleston. Sophomore Sam Mader and freshman Danita Merlau lead the Boilermakers with 11 kills each. Three players tally double-digit dig totals, led by freshman Kelli Miller's tally of 19.

Dec. 9 - College Station Regional Semifinal
G. Rollie White Coliseum (414)
College Station, Texas

Purdue (L) 25 19 20
#3 Washington 30 30 30

In their first Sweet 16 appearance in 18 years, the Boilermakers clash with No. 3 Washington, which ends Purdue's season with a 3-0 sweep. Freshman Stephanie Lynch notches 14 kills, while junior Brittany Dildine posts 18 digs.

Team
2005 Team

2006

Nov. 30 - First Round
Intercollegiate Athletic Facility (906)
West Lafayette, Ind.

Saint Louis 21 20 30
#23 Purdue (W) 30 30 32

Purdue hosts an NCAA Tournament match for the first time since 1987 as the No. 14-seeded Boilermakers sweep the Saint Louis Billikens. Sophomore Danita Merlau tallies 17 kills on a .308 hitting percentage and senior Brittany Dildine and sophomore Kelli Miller lead the defensive effort with 19 and 17 digs respectively.

Dec. 1 - Second Round
Intercollegiate Athletic Facility (1,107)
Chapel Hill, N.C.

Kentucky 21 28 26
#23 Purdue (W) 30 30 30

Purdue earns its second consecutive trip to the Sweet 16 after making short work of the Wildcats. Sophomore Danita Merlau racks up 17 kills, while junior Sam Mader finishes close behind with 13. Senior Brittany Dildine notches 20 digs and freshman Sam Gray registers 36 assists.

Dec. 9 - Seattle Regional Semifinal
Bank of America (4,686)
Seattle, Wash.

#18 Purdue (L) 24 18 15
#5 Penn State 30 30 30

The Boilermakers fall to the third-seeded Nittany Lions for the third time in 2006. Sophomore Stephanie Lynch tallies eight kills, while sophomore Danita Merlau racks up seven kills and seven digs.

Team
2006 Team

2007

Nov. 30 - First Round
Convocation Center (3,072)
Athens, Ohio

#19 Ohio 30 24 22 23
Purdue (W) 25 30 30 30

The Boilermakers bested the Bobcats on their home floor after shaking off a loss in Game 1. With the win, Purdue advanced to the second round for the fourth-straight season. Sophomore Carrie Gurnell paced the Boilermaker offensive attack with 17 kills, while freshman Kristen Arthurs and junior Danita Merlau each added 12 putdowns. Merlau also pulled up a team-leading 14 digs, while senior Anne Mastandrea and junior Kelli Miller reached double-digits with 13 and 12 respectively. Junior Stephanie Lynch put up nine blocks, including three solo efforts.

Dec. 1 - Second Round
Convocation Center (321)
Athens, Ohio

Purdue 12 14 27
#17 Cal Poly 30 30 30

The Boilermakers' quest for a third-straight Sweet 16 appearance was cut short by the No. 16 seeded Mustangs. Purdue could not overcome Cal Poly's potent offense which hit .325 for the match and also served up nine aces. Sophomore Carrie Gurnell provided a bright spot for the Boilermakers with 11 kills on a .320 hitting effort. A trio of Boilermakers posted double-digit dig tallies, led by junior Kelli Miller's tally of 14. Junior Danita Merlau and freshman Jessica Ullrich added 13 and 10.

Team
2007 Team

2008

Dec. 5 - First Round
Intercollegiate Athletic Facility (1,277)
West Lafayette, Ind.

#17 Purdue (W) 25 21 29 23 16
Louisville 22 25 27 25 14

The Boilermakers advance to the second round for the fifth-straight season with a five-set win over Louisville. A balanced and efficient offensive attack guided the team to victory. Purdue hit .318 in the match, while five players posted double-digit kills, led by senior Stephanie Lynch's 15. Lynch also contributed 10 blocks to the team's tally. Senior Kelli Miller added 23 digs and three aces, while sophomore setter Jaclyn Hart nearly pulled off a triple double with 51 assists, 14 digs and eight kills.

Dec. 6 - Second Round
Intercollegiate Athletic Facility (1,002)
West Lafayette, Ind.

#17 Purdue (W) 25 24 25 22 15
Midd Tenn State 18 26 18 25 8

The Boilermakers move on to the Sweet 16 for the third time in four years and post their 26th win of the season, the most since 1985 (34-4). Senior Kelli Miller records her 2000th career dig with 18 in the match. Sophomore Kristen Arthurs leads the way for the Purdue offense with 15 kills, while senior Stephanie Lynch and senior Danita Merlau add 13 and 12 respectively. Merlau rounds out a double-double with 15 digs, while Lynch puts up eight blocks to pace Purdue at the net. Redshirt sophomore Lisa Pierce served up three aces in the contest.

Dec. 12 - Fort Collins Regional Semifinal
Moby Arena (2,573)
Fort Collins, Colo.

#17 Purdue (L) 25 22 23 20
#6 Hawai'i 18 25 25 25

Purdue managed to take the first set from No. 6 Hawai'i, but could not hold off the sixth-ranked Rainbow Wahine eventually falling 3-1. Sophomore Kristen Arthurs paces the offense with 14 kills on a .500 hitting effort, while senior Stephanie Lynch racks up 13 putaways and six blocks in her final match as a Boilermaker. Senior Danita Merlau tacks on eight kills, while junior Carrie Gurnell adds seven. Senior Kelli Miller pulls up 11 digs to lead the Purdue defense one last time, while freshman Emily Ehlers and sophomore Jaclyn Hart added 10 each. Hart rounded out a double-double with 34 assists. Purdue outblocked Hawai'i 13 to 9, but won only that statistical category.

Team
2008 Team

2010

Dec. 3 - First Round
Intercollegiate Athletic Facility (1,414)
West Lafayette, Ind.

Kentucky 18 26 17 18
#24 Purdue (W) 25 24 25 25

The Boilermakers advance to the second round for the sixth time in seven years with a four-set win over Kentucky. Purdue outdid the Wildcats in every major statistical category. Ariel Turner and Anna Drewry led the way offenisvely with 18 and 16 kills respectively. Jaclyn Hart, Kristen Arthurs and Tiffany Fisher add nine kills apiece. Hart managed her nine kills in 12 swings with no errors for a Purdue NCAA Tournament record hitting effort, besting JoAnne Wissen's .550 (12-1-20) effort on Dec. 5, 1982. Arthurs led Purdue at the net with six blocks. Carly Cramer pulled up 11 digs, while three other players added nine or more. The Boilermakers posted 62 kills to Kentucky's 38 and outdug the Wildcats 50 to 30.

Dec. 4 - Second Round
Intercollegiate Athletic Facility (1,374)
West Lafayette, Ind.

Louisville 24 23 25 15
#24 Purdue (W) 26 25 18 25

The Boilermakers punched their ticket to the Sweet 16 with a four-set win over Louisville. It was a gutsy effort which saw Purdue weather 27 tie scores and 12 lead changes. It was a total team ordeal as five different players posted nine or more kills and five Boilermakers posted eight or more digs. Eleven players saw court time and all made a contribution. Tiffany Fisher posted a team-best 12 kills, while Ariel Turner chipped in 11. Carly Cramer led the way with 13 digs, while Blair Bashen (11), Jaclyn Hart (10) and Emily Ehlers (10) also reached double digits. Hart rounded out a double-double with 45 assists.

Dec. 10 - Austin Regional Semifinal
Gregory Gymnasium (3,731)
Austin, Texas

#24 Purdue (W) 28 25 25
#1 Florida 26 15 19

The Boilermakers toppled a No. 1 team for the first time in program history, while also advancing to the Regional Finals for just the second time in Purdue lore. Purdue hit a team NCAA record .327 in the contest, while holding the top-ranked Gators to a season-low .122 effort. The Boilermakers trailed 24-20 in the opening set, but scored five in a row, thwarting four UF set point attempts, en route to stealing the 28-26 win on their own third chance at the stanza. Purdue cruised in sets two and three. Ariel Turner guided the offense with 18 kills and Katie Griffin added nine. Carly Cramer pulled up a match-high 16 digs, while Emily Ehlers added 15.

Dec. 11 - Austin Regional Final
Gregory Gymnasium (4,152)
Austin, Texas

#24 Purdue (L) 25 16 15 25
#6 Texas 18 25 25 27

The Boilermakers dream NCAA Tournament run ended in the Elite 8 as they were edged by No. 6 Texas. Purdue won the first set 25-18, but lost All-American setter Jaclyn Hart to injury in the stanza. The Longhorns took the next two sets as Purdue regrouped, but the Boilermakers led 20-15 late in the fourth. Purdue had three chances at set point at 24-22, 24-23 and again at 25-24, but could not shake a late UT surge, falling 27-25. Ariel Turner put down a match-high 23 kills and added 11 digs and two aces. Catherine Rebarchak chipped in 10 kills, while Carly Cramer paced the defense with 15 digs.

Team
2010 Team

2011

Dec. 2 - First Round
Intercollegiate Athletic Facility (2294)
West Lafayette, Ind.

Morehead State 15 16 23
#8 Purdue (W) 25 25 25

Purdue advanced to the second round with a dominating 3-0 sweep of Morehead State. The Boilermakers hit at a then-school NCAA record clip of .349 in the match and outblocked the Eagles 12.5 to 4. Ariel Turner posted a 13-kill, 12 dig double double, while Val Nichol chipped in 11 kills while hitting .474. Blair Bashen pulled up 13 digs, followed by Turner's 12. Kierra Jones led the Boilermakers at the net with seven block assists.

Dec. 3 - Second Round
Intercollegiate Athletic Facility (2036)
West Lafayette, Ind.

Louisville 14 28 11 16
#8 Purdue (W) 25 26 2525

The Boilermakers earned a spot in the NCAA third round for the fifth time since 2005 with a 3-1 win over Louisville, knocking the Cardinals out of the tournament in the second round for the second straight year. Purdue dominated Sets 1, 3 and 4 and posted a team NCAA record .370 hitting effort in the match. Ariel Turner paced Purdue with 16 kills, while Tiffany Fisher (14) and Catherine Rebarchak (10) also reached double-digits. Blair Bashen led the defense with 10 digs, while Fisher put up a team-leading eight blocks. Purdue outhit Louisville .370 to .083 and put up nine blocks to UofL's 3. Tanya Lukyanenko hit at an opponent NCAA record .643 clip for the Cardinals.

Dec. 9 - Regional Semifinal
Sports Pavilion (3237)
Minneapolis, Minn.

#21 Florida State 25 21 25 25
#8 Purdue (L) 23 25 20 19

The Florida State Seminoles used several big rallies and stout net defense to advance past the Boilermakers in the Sweet 16. Purdue led 21-13 in Set 1, only to see the stanza go to FSU, 25-23. The Boilermakers rebounded with a second set win, but had their backs against the wall in the fourth set after the Seminoles posted a 25-20 Set 3 win. Purdue led 19-17 in the final stanza, but Florida State stole it away with eight straight points. FSU posted an opponent NCAA record 15 blocks, including an individual record nine by Sareea Freeman. Ariel Turner led Purdue with 16 kills, while Tiffany Fisher (15) and Catherine Rebarchak (11) also reached double digits. Five Boilermakers managed double-digit dig totals, led by Turner (20) and Blair Bashen (20). Rachel Davis added 19 to finish out a double double (also 47 assists), while Emily Ehlers posted 16 and Hilliary Fox added 15 and three aces.

Team
2011 Team