Purdue and Penn State battle for third place

Purdue and Penn State will engage in a direct battle for the third place in the standings of the Big Ten women’s volleyball division this weekend, at the conclusion of the seventh week of conference play.

The Boilermakers and the Nittany Lions will appear in one of the matches streamed live for VBTV subscribers around the world on Sunday, at 13:00 local time (17:00 GMT).

• Watch the Big Ten Volleyball matches live on VBTV.

Purdue and Penn State are currently separated by just one win, with the Boilermakers ranking fourth with eight wins and five losses and the Nittany Lions sitting in third place with nine victories and three defeats – before Sunday’s encounter, Penn State will battle division leaders Nebraska on Friday.

Coming from back-to-back losses to Illinois and Wisconsin in the last six days, Purdue will return home on Sunday looking for a victory that would, at a minimum, bring them closer to Penn State in the standings. The Boilermakers have four wins and two losses in home conference matches this season and won the last four duels they played at the Holloway Gymnasium.

Purdue have topped Penn State on the road 3-1 in the first round of Big Ten conference play, two weeks ago, but have only ten wins in 69 matches against their opponents in Big Ten history.

Sophomore outside hitter Eva Hudson, who registered a double-double with 18 kills and 11 digs in a 3-1 loss to Wisconsin on Wednesday, and freshman setter Taylor Anderson, who produced 37 assists and six digs in the same match, are some of Purdue’s weapons this weekend.

Penn State also enter the weekend looking to bounce back after last weekend’s five-set road loss to Michigan State. The Nittany Lions have been fairly successful on the road this season, having secured five wins and two losses playing as visitors.

Senior outside hitter Jess Mruzik, the team’s leading scorer with 380 points, and senior middle blocker Allie Holland, the third in the big with most blocks at 112, have been two pillars for Penn State this season.

Ohio State vs. Indiana on Friday

Besides the duel between Purdue and Penn State, 11 other Big Ten conference matches will be held over the weekend, with three encounters on Friday, five on Saturday and three on Sunday.

VBTV will also stream the match between Ohio State and Indiana on Friday, at 19:00 local time (23:00 UTC), live for subscribers around the world. The Buckeyes are tenth with five wins and seven losses while the Hoosiers rank sixth with six wins and six losses.

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