Grace Heaney's Career Day Fuels Purdue's Reverse Sweep Over Minnesota
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Purdue's volleyball team doesn't know the word "quit." That was evident in Sunday afternoon's top-25 showdown between the 11th-ranked Boilermakers and No. 20 Minnesota, as the Black and Gold overcame a two-set deficit to pick up their 17th win of the season.
The Boilermakers were fueled by right-side hitter Grace Heaney, who had a career day at Holloway Gymnasium. The redshirt sophomore finished the match with 22 kills, 11 digs, and two blocks, while hitting .364 for the afternoon. Purdue needed every single one of those kills, too.
Minnesota was the team that jumped out to a hot start in West Lafayette, winning the first two sets 25-19 and 25-17, respectively. Purdue didn't have an answer for Gophers stars Julia Hanson and Carly Gilk. But something changed in the third set.
Dave Shondell's team came out with more energy and effort, though it found itself fighting for its life in the third. Purdue squeaked out a 27-25 victory and won the fourth set 25-21 to force a fifth.
"It's always great when you get a reverse sweep," Heaney said after the match. "We started off slow but really came out better in those last three sets."
Moments like this > pic.twitter.com/SK0jyEpS44
— Purdue Volleyball (@PurdueVB) October 26, 2025
But Purdue actually didn't get off to a hot start in that fifth set. Minnesota won the first four points and held a 9-3 advantage before the Boilermakers went on a run. The Gophers had match point at 14-13, but Purdue won the next two rallies.
Minnesota fought off two match points, but the Boilermakers ultimately won the fifth set 18-16. With the win, Purdue improved to 17-3 on the season and 8-2 in Big Ten play.
Wollard finished the day with a match-high 23 kills, adding 10 digs and three blocks to her total. Akasha Anderson provided a huge spark in the fifth set and ended the afternoon with 18 kills. Taylor Anderson had 59 assists, eight digs, and five kills. Ryan McAleer had 22 digs and seven assists.
With Sunday's win, Purdue will enter next week in at least a tie for second place in the Big Ten standings, trailing only Nebraska (20-0, 10-0 Big Ten).
Heaney speaks on big day
Heaney provided life to Purdue, especially in the third set. At one point, she had eight kills on just 11 swings, one of the few bright spots for the Boilermakers early in the match.
The redshirt sophomore gave a lot of credit to her setter, as well as her teammates, for the success on the court.
"Taylor did a great job of giving us great opportunities," Heaney said. "Our passing struggled today, but we really just stuck with it."
Heaney did not play last season, using it as a redshirt year to recover from injury. She's averaging 3.141 kills per set and is hitting .338 on the year for the Boilermakers.
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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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