University of Minnesota Athletics
Gophers Travel to No. 15 Purdue Saturday
11/20/2015 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
Nov. 20, 2015 
Notes
GOPHERS SET TO TAKE TO THE ROAD VS. PURDUE
The No. 3 University of Minnesota volleyball team takes to the road as the Golden Gophers travel to No. 15 Purdue, Saturday, at 6 p.m. CT.
FOLLOWING THE GOPHERS
The Minnesota/Purdue match will be streamed on BTN Plus. A game day live page and live statistics will be available on gophersports.com.
ON THE DOCKET
The Golden Gophers return to the Sports Pavilion confines to compete against No. 16 Ohio State, Wednesday, Nov. 25, at 7 p.m. It marks the regular home season finale and senior day for Daly Santana and Toni Alugbue.
ABOUT PURDUE
The No. 15 Purdue Boilermakers enter the Minnesota match with a 21-7 overall record and 12-5 mark within Big Ten play. Purdue is riding a four-match win streak, including a 3-1 victory over Rutgers Wednesday night. Right-side hitter Annie Drews ranks second in the conference in kills per set (4.30) and has 434 total on the season. Faye Adelaja and Danielle Cuttino follow with 209 and 206 kills respectively. Ashley Evans paves the way with 1109 assists, while Amanda Neill has a team-best 402 digs.
ALL TIME SERIES & LAST TIME
Minnesota holds a 49-29 all-time series lead, dating back to 1975. The Gophers defeated Purdue, 3-1, in the earlier meeting this year. Minnesota won the first two sets 25-20, 25-21, fell in the third set 25-21, and finished the match in the fourth, 25-14. As a team, the Gophers hit .238 to Purdue's .156, and out blocked the Boilermakers 7.5 to 7. Daly Santana had 21 kills in 48 attempts (hit .312), while Hannah Tapp had 11 kills and hit for .417.
RECORD AT 15-STRAIGHT BIG TEN WINS
With the win over Michigan (11/7), Minnesota broke a school record, winning 12-straight Big Ten matches. Minnesota added to that mark with three additional wins the past week. The Golden Gophers dropped a five-set contest to Penn State on Sept. 26. Since then, the Gophers have had an incredible run. In that span, Minnesota has defeated seven ranked opponents. The record broke Minnesota's previous best of 11-consecutive matches, which was set in 2002. With the win over Maryland on Wednesday, it also ties the longest overall win streak in school history.
LAST MATCH RECAP
The No. 3 University of Minnesota earned a 3-0 win (25-18, 25-17, 25-14) over Maryland, Wednesday at the Sports Pavilion. The Gophers received a balanced attack from multiple individuals in the win. Daly Santana had a double-double with 15 kills, 11 digs, while Hannah Tapp had 10 kills and hit .600. Sarah Wilhite added 10 kills, an ace and three blocks, while Paige Tapp hit .438 (8-1-16). Samantha Seliger-Swenson had a double-double with 39 assists and a team-high 12 digs, while Molly Lohman had a match-high five blocks.
Hannah Tapp RECEIVES B1G WEEKLY AWARD
Hannah Tapp was named the Big Ten Conference Defensive Player of the Week after her performances against Northwestern and Penn State last week. Tapp held a team-best 15 blocks (2.14 per set) in the wins over the Wildcats and Nittany Lions. She also had 23
kills, which averaged 3.29 per set and hit .340 in 53 attempts. In the win over the Wildcats, Tapp tied a team-high 10 total blocks, while she also hit .423. Against PSU, Tapp had 10 kills in 27 attempts, while accomplishing a team-best five blocks. She also added two digs in the win.
WILHITE NAMED ESPNW PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Sarah Wilhite was named the ESPNW Player of the Week as she paced the Gophers in kills against Northwestern/Penn State. She had 24 kills, averaged 3.43 kills per set and hit .352 against Northwestern and Penn State. Against the Wildcats, Wilhite established 12 kills, in 35 attempts and added eight digs. Against then-No. 1 Penn State, Wilhite had 12 kills, nine of which came in the third set. Hitting .579 for the match, Wilhite hit .900 in the third when she had nine kills.
GOPHERS RANK FIRST IN RPI
For the second-straight week, the Golden Gophers are ranked No. 1 overall in the NCAA's recent Ratings Percentage Index (RPI). Minnesota enters the week with a 23-3 overall record and 15-1 mark within Big Ten play. The RPI is one of the tools used by the NCAA Selection Committee to evaluate teams for the post season. Minnesota leads the charge in the recent RPI, followed by Texas (2), Southern California (3) and Florida (4). In the top 10 alone, five hail from the Big Ten Conference in the Gophers, Wisconsin (7), Penn State (8), Nebraska (9) and Ohio State (10). Along with Big Ten teams ranked high in the RPI, Minnesota also competed against Stanford (12), Louisville (13), Texas A&M (14) and North Carolina (23) in the non-conference season.
GOPHERS RANKED NO. 3
Minnesota moved up from No. 4 to No. 3 in the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) poll. With the Gophers sweeping Penn State in three last Saturday, USC took the top spot and 47 first-place votes, followed by Washington (10 votes) and Minnesota (seven votes). Penn State and Texas round out the top five.
GOPHERS ADD FOUR TO 2016 ROSTER
Minnesota volleyball head coach Hugh McCutcheon has announced that Alexis Hart (Independence, Mo.), Lauren Litzau (Greendale, Wis.), Brittany McLean (Rosemount, Minn.) and Regan Pittman (Spring Hill, Kansas) will join the Golden Gophers in the fall of 2016. Hart and McLean are outside hitters, while Pittman is a middle blocker and Litzau will play as a defensive specialist for the Gophers.
| #3 Minnesota (24-3, 16-1) at #15 Purdue (21-7, 12-5) | |||||||||||
| Date | Time | Saturday, November 21 | 6 p.m. | ||||||||||
| Location | Holloway Gymnasium | West Lafayette, Ind. | ||||||||||
| Watch Online | BTN Plus | ||||||||||
| Live Stats | |||||||||||
| Live Updates | Game Day Live | ||||||||||
| Official Sites | Minnesota | Purdue | ||||||||||
| Social Media | @GopherVball | Facebook | ||||||||||
Notes
GOPHERS SET TO TAKE TO THE ROAD VS. PURDUE
The No. 3 University of Minnesota volleyball team takes to the road as the Golden Gophers travel to No. 15 Purdue, Saturday, at 6 p.m. CT.
FOLLOWING THE GOPHERS
The Minnesota/Purdue match will be streamed on BTN Plus. A game day live page and live statistics will be available on gophersports.com.
ON THE DOCKET
The Golden Gophers return to the Sports Pavilion confines to compete against No. 16 Ohio State, Wednesday, Nov. 25, at 7 p.m. It marks the regular home season finale and senior day for Daly Santana and Toni Alugbue.
ABOUT PURDUE
The No. 15 Purdue Boilermakers enter the Minnesota match with a 21-7 overall record and 12-5 mark within Big Ten play. Purdue is riding a four-match win streak, including a 3-1 victory over Rutgers Wednesday night. Right-side hitter Annie Drews ranks second in the conference in kills per set (4.30) and has 434 total on the season. Faye Adelaja and Danielle Cuttino follow with 209 and 206 kills respectively. Ashley Evans paves the way with 1109 assists, while Amanda Neill has a team-best 402 digs.
ALL TIME SERIES & LAST TIME
Minnesota holds a 49-29 all-time series lead, dating back to 1975. The Gophers defeated Purdue, 3-1, in the earlier meeting this year. Minnesota won the first two sets 25-20, 25-21, fell in the third set 25-21, and finished the match in the fourth, 25-14. As a team, the Gophers hit .238 to Purdue's .156, and out blocked the Boilermakers 7.5 to 7. Daly Santana had 21 kills in 48 attempts (hit .312), while Hannah Tapp had 11 kills and hit for .417.
RECORD AT 15-STRAIGHT BIG TEN WINS
With the win over Michigan (11/7), Minnesota broke a school record, winning 12-straight Big Ten matches. Minnesota added to that mark with three additional wins the past week. The Golden Gophers dropped a five-set contest to Penn State on Sept. 26. Since then, the Gophers have had an incredible run. In that span, Minnesota has defeated seven ranked opponents. The record broke Minnesota's previous best of 11-consecutive matches, which was set in 2002. With the win over Maryland on Wednesday, it also ties the longest overall win streak in school history.
LAST MATCH RECAP
The No. 3 University of Minnesota earned a 3-0 win (25-18, 25-17, 25-14) over Maryland, Wednesday at the Sports Pavilion. The Gophers received a balanced attack from multiple individuals in the win. Daly Santana had a double-double with 15 kills, 11 digs, while Hannah Tapp had 10 kills and hit .600. Sarah Wilhite added 10 kills, an ace and three blocks, while Paige Tapp hit .438 (8-1-16). Samantha Seliger-Swenson had a double-double with 39 assists and a team-high 12 digs, while Molly Lohman had a match-high five blocks.
Hannah Tapp RECEIVES B1G WEEKLY AWARD
Hannah Tapp was named the Big Ten Conference Defensive Player of the Week after her performances against Northwestern and Penn State last week. Tapp held a team-best 15 blocks (2.14 per set) in the wins over the Wildcats and Nittany Lions. She also had 23
kills, which averaged 3.29 per set and hit .340 in 53 attempts. In the win over the Wildcats, Tapp tied a team-high 10 total blocks, while she also hit .423. Against PSU, Tapp had 10 kills in 27 attempts, while accomplishing a team-best five blocks. She also added two digs in the win.
WILHITE NAMED ESPNW PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Sarah Wilhite was named the ESPNW Player of the Week as she paced the Gophers in kills against Northwestern/Penn State. She had 24 kills, averaged 3.43 kills per set and hit .352 against Northwestern and Penn State. Against the Wildcats, Wilhite established 12 kills, in 35 attempts and added eight digs. Against then-No. 1 Penn State, Wilhite had 12 kills, nine of which came in the third set. Hitting .579 for the match, Wilhite hit .900 in the third when she had nine kills.
GOPHERS RANK FIRST IN RPI
For the second-straight week, the Golden Gophers are ranked No. 1 overall in the NCAA's recent Ratings Percentage Index (RPI). Minnesota enters the week with a 23-3 overall record and 15-1 mark within Big Ten play. The RPI is one of the tools used by the NCAA Selection Committee to evaluate teams for the post season. Minnesota leads the charge in the recent RPI, followed by Texas (2), Southern California (3) and Florida (4). In the top 10 alone, five hail from the Big Ten Conference in the Gophers, Wisconsin (7), Penn State (8), Nebraska (9) and Ohio State (10). Along with Big Ten teams ranked high in the RPI, Minnesota also competed against Stanford (12), Louisville (13), Texas A&M (14) and North Carolina (23) in the non-conference season.
GOPHERS RANKED NO. 3
Minnesota moved up from No. 4 to No. 3 in the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) poll. With the Gophers sweeping Penn State in three last Saturday, USC took the top spot and 47 first-place votes, followed by Washington (10 votes) and Minnesota (seven votes). Penn State and Texas round out the top five.
GOPHERS ADD FOUR TO 2016 ROSTER
Minnesota volleyball head coach Hugh McCutcheon has announced that Alexis Hart (Independence, Mo.), Lauren Litzau (Greendale, Wis.), Brittany McLean (Rosemount, Minn.) and Regan Pittman (Spring Hill, Kansas) will join the Golden Gophers in the fall of 2016. Hart and McLean are outside hitters, while Pittman is a middle blocker and Litzau will play as a defensive specialist for the Gophers.
Players Mentioned
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/ VolleyballCinematic Recap: Gophers Sweep Illini
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Highlights: Gophers 3, Illinois 0
Wednesday, October 29
Highlights: Gophers 2, Purdue 3
Sunday, October 26
Highlights: Gophers 3, Indiana 1
Friday, October 24