Purdue Sports Update: Feb. 4

Softball set to open season in Vegas

To kickoff the 2026 season, the Boilermakers will travel to the campus of UNLV from Feb. 6-9 to take on Cal Baptist, UIC, and the host team as a part of the UNLV Leadoff Classic.

The tournament begins the first of five preseason tournaments for Purdue, including trips to Alabama, Georgia, and Nashville, before returning to Indiana to host the Boilermaker Classic.

Purdue will officially begin its 2026 season with a contest on Feb. 6 at 3:00 p.m. est against CBU. The following day, the Boilers will begin with CBU again at 12:30 p.m. ET, followed by UIC at 3:00 p.m. est. On Sunday, Feb. 8, Purdue will close out the tournament with another matchup against UIC at 12:30 p.m. est before taking on the host UNLV Rebels at 3:00 p.m. est.

The Boilers return key experience with eight returning upperclassmen, including All-Big Ten selection, Moriah Polar, and NFCA All-Region honoree, Julia Gossett. The Boilers also added four transfers to the roster, to bolster the already stacked squad.

TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE

Friday, Feb. 6 – Purdue vs. Cal Baptist – 3:00 p.m. ET (Youtube.com)

Saturday, Feb. 7 – Purdue vs. Cal Baptist – 12:30 p.m. ET (Youtube.com)

Saturday, Feb. 7 – Purdue vs. UIC – 3:00 p.m. ET (Youtube.com)

Sunday, Feb. 8 – Purdue vs. UIC – 12:30 p.m. ET (Youtube.com)

Sunday, Feb. 8 – Purdue at UNLV – 3:00 p.m. ET (Youtube.com)

Women’s Hoops Routed in Pair of Losses

Purdue fell 88-55 on the road to Minnesota on Sunday afternoon at Williams Arena.

The Boilermakers (11-11, 3-8) put three players in double figures. Kiki Smith led the attack with 16 points on 6-of-11 shooting, matching her career high with four 3-pointers.

Kendall Puryear notched her fifth game in double figures this season to finish with 12 points on 5-of-7 shooting and 2-of-2 at the line. Tara Daye added 10 points to go with a team-high six rebounds.

The Boilermakers shot 37.3% for the game and 7-of-22 from distance. Madison Layden-Zay dished out a team-high four assists out of Purdue’s 11 on 22 made field goals.

The Golden Gophers (15-7, 6-5) shot 60.3% from the floor and 6-of-12 from behind the arc. Amaya Battle paced Minnesota with 17 points.

The women’s basketball team dropped an 86-65 decision on Thursday night at Mackey Arena to No. 13 Michigan State.

Freshman Avery Gordon had a career performance in her first start of the year. The rookie was 9-of-11 for 20 points. She added six rebounds, four on the offensive end, a block and a steal in 17 minutes of work. The freshman started strong with six points on 3-of-4 shooting in the opening three minutes of the game.

Madison Layden-Zay added to her career 3-point record, matching her career high with six triples to finish with 18 points. The fifth year nabbed four boards, dished out two assists and had one steal. The Kokomo, Ind., native is now two steals shy of 200 for her career.

Hila Karsh was back in double figures for the second straight game with 10 points, including a pair of 3-pointers. Tara Daye nearly pulled off a non-point double-double, going for nine rebounds and eight assists. The redshirt junior added five points, and two blocks to her tally.

For the game, the Boilermakers (11-10, 3-7) shot 38.3% from the field and went 8-of-27 from distance. Led by Daye’s eight helpers, Purdue dished out 17 assists on 23 made field goals.

The hosts continued to compete deep into the game, winning the second half 42-36. Purdue scored 25 points in the final frame on 8-of-17 shooting with four 3-pointers.

Michigan State (19-2, 8-2) went 50.8% from the floor and 7-of-21 from distance on the night. The Spartans were led by Grace VanSlooten’s 17 points. 

UP NEXT
Purdue returns to Mackey Arena on Wednesday night to square off with Penn State for a 7 p.m. tip on B1G+.

#18 Wrestling falls to Wisconsin in Mackey Mania

Wrestling fell in its annual dual inside Mackey Arena on Sunday, 30-12 to Wisconsin.

Purdue fans turned out 2,568 strong to create a great atmosphere for wrestling.

The Boilermakers (9-4, 2-3 B1G) won three of 10 matches with stars Joey Blaze (No. 4 at 165 lbs), Greyson Clark (No. 33 at 141) and James Rowley (No. 26 at 184) earning individual victories.

The Badgers (11-3, 3-3 B1G), ranked No. 25 in the InterMat dual rankings, notched three technical falls, three decisions and a pin.

In Clark’s second match back from injury, the Wisconsin native picked up where he left off last week to the tune of a 14-2 major decision over Peter Tomazevic.

Blaze improved to 15-0 this season with just his latest clinic over a nationally ranked wrestler, No. 24 Cody Goebel. Blaze, the 2025 national runner-up, has been too slippery to give up even a single takedown yet this season and he continued his streak on Sunday.

Blaze added four takedowns, a four-point near-fall and a reversal to his season tally, winning an 18-3 tech. fall at the 6:35 mark. His season takedown margin sits at 51-0 heading into two top-10 bouts in the next couple of weeks.

Rowley set a new career high with 11 wins this season, securing a 5-1 decision over Matthew Jens. Rowley scored a takedown halfway through the first period and ended with 2:25 of riding time and an escape point.

Rowley, who spent his redshirt season at Wisconsin, is a winner in three of his last four Big Ten matches by a combined score of 39-14.

UP NEXT

The Boilers return to their standard home venue in Holloway Gymnasium on Sunday, Feb. 8. Purdue will battle a talented Illinois team that’s ranked No. 10 in the dual rankings.

First match is set for 1 p.m. ET with the broadcast on B1G+.

Boilers Produce 5 Champions at Wabash Open

Purdue sent 12 wrestlers to compete at the Wabash Open tournament on Saturday and came away with five champions, four of which are true freshmen.

Six Boilermakers wrestled attached to Purdue while the other six wrestled unattached. Ashton Jackson (125 lbs), Vincent Paino (133), Isaiah Schaefer (141), Brody Saccoccia (157) and Noah Weaver (197) all went undefeated to claim titles.

It was Schaefer’s first collegiate title and the second for Jackson, Paino, Saccoccia and Weaver.

First-year assistant coach Matt Ramos (133), Purdue’s two-time All-American from 2021-25, competed in the open tournament for the sake of getting reps as he continues to train for the 2028 Olympics.

Ramos dominated his first two matches to the tune of 17-2 and 15-0 technical falls, but forfeited in the finals to Paino, the freshman Boilermaker.

Ramos was the only non-underclassman that Purdue sent to the event, which isn’t considered a regular varsity event. The fact that so many came away with impressive showings bodes well for the future of the program.

Three other true freshmen Boilers earned runner-up finishes. Ty Henderson (125) finished second, falling only to his elder teammate, Jackson, via 10-2 major decision in the finals. Adrian Pellot (165) went 2-1 with a 20-5 tech. fall in the first round and a 12-3 major in the semifinals. Tyson Russell earned three wins at heavyweight, registering two pins and a 6-4 decision.

Redshirt freshman Quinn Herbert (184) tied for a team-high four wins to place third in his weight class. Fellow redshirt freshmen Ethan Popp (165) and RJ Powers (184) each went 2-3 to place sixth.

Boilermakers Win 8 Events at B1G Triple Duals

Led by two-time event winners Blake Rowe and Tyler Wills, the Swimming & Diving teams were victorious in eight events while closing out their dual meet schedules against Minnesota and Northwestern at the annual two-day Big Ten Triple Duals.

The Purdue men scored a decisive victory vs. Minnesota and went toe-to-toe with No. 20 Northwestern in a dual decided by only nine points.

FINAL TEAM SCORES
Men Purdue 208.5, Minnesota 144.5 #20 Northwestern 181, Purdue 172 #20 Northwestern 214, Minnesota 139	Women #23 Northwestern 213, Purdue 140 Minnesota 242.5, Purdue 110.5 Minnesota 186, #23 Northwestern 166

The Purdue men posted just their second victory vs. the Golden Gophers since the 2011-12 campaign. They also bested Minnesota in January 2021 as part of a triple dual hosted by Wisconsin.

Both the Purdue men and women went 5-3 in dual meet action this season.

Rowe and Wills won an event on both Friday and Saturday. Rowe was victorious in the 200 individual medley Friday and his premier event, the 200 backstroke, Saturday. Purdue hosted the diving events this weekend and Wills continued his winning ways this month with a victory on platform Friday and 3-meter Saturday. Wills was victorious twice in both events in January.

The Purdue men had the top four finishers on 3-meter and three of the top four on platform. The men also had three of the top five finishers in the 50 freestyle, 100 free and 100 back. The Purdue women did likewise in 3-meter diving.

Abby Marcukaitis repeated as the event winner of the 200 back at the Big Ten Triple Duals. Her team season-best time of 1:54.70 was the Purdue women’s first NCAA Championships qualifying time of the campaign. Friday, she was the runner-up in the 100 back, again (52.89) making a run again at the program record (52.72) she has been chasing.

Jānis Dzirkalis won the 50 free Friday with a pool record time of 19.53 at NU’s Norris Aquatics Center, teaming up with Alex Hotta (19.57) for a 1-2 finish. Both Boilermakers eclipsed the pool record (19.59) entering the race. Hotta has added his named to Purdue’s all-time leaderboards in five events – 50 and 100 free, 100 and 200 fly, 100 back – this season.

Reagan Mattice (9:47.16) and Jonny Hines (9:09.14) posted lifetime bests in the 1000 free for the second weekend in a row, moving up among Purdue’s all-time top five in the event.

Campbell Scofield won the 200 butterfly for the sixth time this season, posting a team season-best time of 1:57.13. She was just .02 hundredths of a second shy of the NCAA Championships qualifying standard and .11 hundredths of a second off her lifetime best (1:57.02) from the Big Ten Championships last year.

Already the owner of the Purdue men’s freshman record while ranking second all-time in the 200 fly, Biko Hooper-Haviland’s lifetime best of 47.49 in the 100 fly Saturday added his name to the team’s all-time leaderboard in that event as well.

The Boilermakers now turn their full attention to the Big Ten Championships over the final two weeks of February. Minnesota hosts the women’s meet Feb. 18-21 and Wisconsin hosts the men’s meet the following week (Feb. 25-28).

Timpf Fires Career-Low 68, Paces Purdue in Puerto Rico

Just like the first day of the Purdue Puerto Rico Classic, the final round featured another career best by a Boilermaker. Twenty-four hours after Samantha Brown carded a 68 (-4), fellow sophomore Lauren Timpf fired a career-low 68 of her own to soar up the leaderboard and lead the women’s golf team at Grand Reserve Golf Club.

The Boilermakers (-1) finished under par as a team for the first time this season, placing 10th out a competitive 18-team field. No. 4 Arkansas (-23) captured the team title, besting No. 10 Vanderbilt and No. 15 Ole Miss by six shots.

Despite the conclusion of the tournament getting moved up due to heavy rain in the forecast, the showers stayed away for most of Monday morning to allow the event to be completed. Timpf took advantage, playing the best golf of her collegiate career and matching Brown for Purdue’s lowest round of the 2025-26 season.

Timpf finished tied for 24th at 2-under (75-71-68—214), leaping 33 spots up the leaderboard on the last day. The Macomb, Michigan, native made six birdies during the round, including three deuces on the par-3s. She played the short holes 3-under throughout the tournament to rank fourth in the 101-player field in par-3 scoring.

After shooting even par in the first two rounds, Ashley Kim and Ella Weber carded rounds of 73 (+1) and 75 (+3), respectively. Kim’s final round was highlighted by an eagle at the par-4 14^th, finding the bottom of the cup with an 8-iron from 133 yards out. It was her first eagle as a Boilermaker. Following a rocky start, Weber bounced back by playing her final eight holes bogey free while adding a pair of birdies along the way.

Freshman Luana Valero contributed to the team’s final round tally, shooting a 73 (+1) for the second consecutive round. She began her day 2-under through the first nine holes without making a bogey.

Up next, the Boilermakers have two weeks off before teeing it up at the Spartan Sun Coast Invitational in Sarasota, Florida (Feb. 15-16).

BOILERMAKERS
T-24. Lauren Timpf: 75-71-68—214 (-2)
T-36. Ashley Kim: 72-72-73—217 (+1)
T-44. Samantha Brown: 68-72-78—218 (+2)
T-49. Ella Weber: 72-72-75—219 (+3)
T-68. Luana Valero: 76-73-73—222 (+6)

*T-68: Michaela Headlee: 76-73-73—222 (+6)
*T-83. Ida Lindqvist: 75-76-75—226 (+10)

*Competing as an individual

TEAM LEADERBOARD

1. #4 Arkansas: 279-275-287—841 (-23)
   T2. #15 Ole Miss: 285-281-281—847 (-17)
   T2. #10 Vanderbilt: 288-280-279—847 (-17)
   4. LSU: 283-279-288—850 (-14)
   5. #14 North Carolina: 276-279-297—852 (-12)
   6. Kansas State: 284-284-289—857 (-7)
   7. #20 Northwestern: 281-284-294—859 (-5)
   8. Michigan State: 283-284-294—861 (-3)
   9. North Florida: 285-290-287—862 (-2)
   10. Purdue: 287-287-289—863 (-1)
   11. North Texas: 286-287-292—865 (+1)
   12. Iowa: 286-293-290—869 (+5)
   T13. Minnesota: 289-291-294—874 (+10)
   T13. UNCW: 290-290-294—874 (+10)
   15. Iowa State: 287-292-299—878 (+14)
   16. Michigan: 291-293-303—887 (+23)
   17. Furman: 293-295-301—889 (+25)
   18. Georgia Southern: 294-296-302—892 (+28)

Papillion Produces #9 Heptathlon in School History at DeLoss Dodds Invitational

Track & Field’s Warner Papillion completed his two-day competition in the heptathlon with the No. 9 performance in school history to conclude the DeLoss Dodds Invitational.

Papillion Notes
• The freshman, in his first collegiate heptathlon, earned 5,136 points to finish 10th at the DeLoss Dodds Invitational and enter Purdue’s top 10. He was the fifth-highest scoring freshman at the meet.
• His competition concluded with his best finish in fifth during the 1000m (2:40.67). He earned his highest event point total (872) after running 8.45 in the 60mH and finishing seventh.
• Both of Purdue’s freshman multis, Papillion and Leena Pfister, entered the program’s top 10 in the heptathlon and pentathlon, respectively, in their multis collegiate debut.

Next Up
The Boilers return to action Feb. 6-7 at the Windy City Invite in Chicago.

Women’s Tennis Falls in Ivy League Battles

Purdue picked up two singles victories as the Boilermakers fell 2-5 at Columbia on Saturday afternoon.

Singles wins included Ece Gencer’s first ranked victory of the year, downing No. 107 Malak El Allami in comeback style: 4-6, 7-5, 11-9 to remain undefeated this season (3-0). Meanwhile, Kayal Gownder picked up a win at the No. 4 position behind a 5-7, 6-4, 11-9 result.

In the team’s first road test of the season, the women’s tennis squad fell to Yale, 1-4. With the result, Purdue suffered its first lost of the season, moving to a 2-1 record.

Sophomore Ece Gencer picked up a 7-5, 6-3 victory at the No. 1 singles position to imrpove to 3-0 on the season and 32-11 overall in her career.

Purdue returns to action for an away and homematch, beginning next Friday, February 6 at Notre Dame. Then, Purdue will be back home at Schwartz Tennis Center on Sunday.

Men’s Tennis Loses at Harvard

The men’s tennis team dropped a close battle at Harvard, falling 3-4.

No. 76 ranked Nour Fathalla picked up his second ranked win of the season after downing No. 109 Benji Privara: 1-6, 6-4, 6-2. Meanwhile, the Boilermakers secured two super tiebreak victories: Maj Premzl: 4-6, 7-6, 10-7 and Juan David Velasquez: 7-5, 6-7, 12-10.