Dave Shondell Nearly Speechless After Purdue's Wins Over UCLA, USC
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Dave Shondell has witnessed many things on a volleyball court during his 23 years at Purdue. Saturday night's sweep of No. 17 USC to cap off a perfect trip to California? That left the veteran head coach nearly speechless.
Purdue defeated USC 3-0 on Saturday night, which followed a 3-2 reverse sweep of No. 24 UCLA on Thursday. It was a pair of big back-to-back wins, giving the Boilermakers their fourth and fifth victories over ranked opponents this season.
Following Saturday night's sweep of USC, Shondell joined Big Ten Network for a quick interview. You could tell he was nearly speechless after the impressive performance in Los Angeles.
"They were in a great zone tonight, I can't explain it," Shondell said of his Boilermakers. "I think these guys love to play; they've got a lot to prove to America."
Purdue's win over UCLA on Thursday night was arguably the biggest of the season. The Boilermakers overcame a 0-2 deficit and fought off four match points in the third set to extend the match.
Following that improbable performance, Shondell made quite the statement in the locker room.
"In 23 years, let's say you get 10 or 12 signature wins, we just had one," Shondell told his team.
Purdue's confidence from that thrilling win translated to Saturday night, when it picked up another road win over USC. But Shondell admitted before the match that he had some concerns during the pregame warmups.
"I was watching USC warm up and then I watched our team warm up," Shondell said. "I thought, 'We're going to be in some trouble.'"
Kenna Wollard, Grace Heaney, and Akasha Anderson stepped up for the Boilers on Saturday night, accounting for 38 of the team's 46 kills. All three posted at least 10 kills in the match. As a team, the Boilermakers had a .287 hitting percentage in the sweep.
With the pair of wins over UCLA and USC, Purdue improved to 12-2 and 3-1 in Big Ten play.
Purdue continues to win big
All anyone wanted to talk about during the offseason was what Purdue lost. It was understandable, as All-Big Ten players Eva Hudson and Chloe Chicoine entered the transfer portal, along with contributors Lourdes Myers and Lizzie Carr. It looked like the Boilers might have to go through a rebuilding phase.
During Big Ten Media Days in July, Shondell acknowledged that his new Purdue team might endure some growing pains, but he wasn't going to lower the bar on what he thought his squad could accomplish.
"Our expectations will remain very high," Shondell said. "I can guarantee you that."
So far, Purdue has delivered. The Boilermakers have lost just twice this season, sitting at 12-2 on the year and owning a 3-1 record in Big Ten play. They have wins over five ranked opponents already, with plenty of season remaining to add more to the list.
The Boilermakers will have a match against Ohio State on Thursday before a potential top-10 showdown against No. 1 Nebraska at Holloway Gymnasium on Sunday.
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Dustin Schutte is the publisher of Purdue Boilermakers on SI and has spent more than a decade working in sports journalism. His career began in 2013, when he covered Big Ten football. He remained in that role for eight years before working at On SI to cover the Boilermakers. Dustin graduated from Manchester University in Indiana in 2010, where he played for the men's tennis team.
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