Purdue Sports Update: Shondell extends contract

Purdue volleyball will continue to  Dave Shondell as the leader of the program through the 2029 season.

“We are proud to have Coach Dave Shondell continue to lead our volleyball program into the future,” said Executive Vice President and Director of Intercollegiate Athletics Mike Bobinski. “Dave’s ability to adapt and evolve as a coach was never more evident than during this past season and we’re excited to see that continue during the term of his contract extension.

“It was very satisfying to sign a contract extension that will provide me the amazing opportunity to coach Purdue Volleyball for four more years,” Shondell said. “I am thankful to Mike Bobinski and Calvin Williams for their confidence, our coaching and support staffs for their amazing contributions to our success, and remain Ever Grateful to the players who have sacrificed so much to create an elite program at Purdue while maintaining the Boilermaker’s relevance on the national stage for over twenty years.”

The contract extension comes after capping off the 2025 season with a Regional Final berth, a third-place Big Ten finish (27-7, 15-5 Big Ten record) and three All-America honorees –improvements in all areas from a season ago, despite preseason projections. Meanwhile, numerous program records were also set, including 10 wins against ranked opponents, five All-Big Ten honorees, three reverse sweeps and three NCAA tournament All-Region honorees, not to mention the second-highest hitting percentage in Purdue single-season history (.290).

“The 2025 team is a shining example of why I love this job,” Shondell remarked. “Boilermakers rise to the occasion..”

Following the successful season, Shondell is tied with men’s basketball legend Gene Keady as the winningest head coach in Purdue Athletics history with 512 wins, having reached the history-making threshold with the team’s comeback in the Regional Semifinals vs. No. 2 seed SMU.

Since the season concluded, Purdue was slated at No. 8 in the AVCA final poll, the highest finish since 2021. Meanwhile, Shondell’s associate head coach – recruiting coordinator Kathy Jewell was named AVCA National Assistant Coach of the Year. Furthermore, he promoted John Klanac to assistant head coach and Carrie Gurnell to director of volleyball operations. Additionally, he signed Georgia Tech transfer Lameen Mambu, who led the Yellow Jackets’ offense as a freshman.

BIG WEEK: Women’s Basketball Sweeps Wisconsin, No. 23 Washington

Purdue used a huge second half to pick up its first road and conference win of the year with a 75-67 victory at Wisconsin on Thursday night.

The Boilermakers (9-7, 1-4) took nine 3-pointers in the second half and made eight of them, while shooting a blistering 63.6% from the field overall. In the fourth, the Boilermakers iced the game out going 8-of-10 from the field and connecting all three 3-point attempts.

Purdue connected on a season-high 12 3-pointers in the win. It was the ninth time in the last 25 years Purdue had four players knock down multiple 3-pointers. Six of those have come under Katie Gearlds. 

Reentering the starting lineup, Nya Smith paced Purdue on the offensive end with her first 20-point performance as a Boilermaker. The sophomore was 7-of-11 from the field and matched her career high with four 3-pointers and added seven rebounds.

Madison Layden-Zay inched closer to the Purdue career 3-point record, connecting three times from the outside. The fifth year finished with 18 points on 4-of-7 shooting, 3-of-5 from deep and a 6-of-7 at the line. Layden-Zay finished with nine points with two triples and 3-pointers.

Tara Daye notched her 11th game in double figures with 10 points, all in the first half.

The Boilermakers turned Wisconsin (11-5, 3-2) over 17 times with eight steals to score 20 points. It was the eighth game with 20 or more points off opponent miscues. While Purdue committed 14 turnovers, the Boilermakers held the Badgers to just 16 points.

Purdue won the battle on the glass 35-33. Purdue scored 15 points on nine second chance opportunities, while limiting Wisconsin to 14 points after 14 offensive rebounds.

Smith and Layden-Zay combined for 28 of Purdue 45 points in the second half with 12 coming from Smith. Layden-Zay led the barrage from the outside with a trio of triples, Smith and McKenna Layden both connected twice and Kiki Smith tacked on the eighth to seal the game in the fourth.

Lana McCarthy saved her best for last with six points in the fourth on 3-of-3 shooting with two assists and one rebound.

Purdue Wins 16 of 17 Events vs. SIU

A quartet of Boilermakers all won multiple individual events as Men’s Swimming & Diving was victorious in all but one of the 17 events contested, cruising to a 207-103 victory vs. Southern Illinois in dual meet action Friday at the Morgan J. Burke Aquatic Center.

Jānis Dzirkalis (50 and 100 free), Jonny Hinnes (500 and 1650 free), Blake Rowe (100 and 200 back) and Evan Mackesy (200 and 400 IM) all won multiple individual events as the Boilers improved to 4-1 in dual meets this season. Dzirkalis and Rowe continue to lead the team with eight individual event wins apiece this season.

Max Miller and Tyler Wills both posted 420-point lists while teaming up for a sweep of the springboard diving events. Wills moved into 10th place on the program’s all-time leaderboard with his best 3-meter list score (426.90) as a Boilermaker, a mark that doubled as a team season best. Holden Higbie registered season-best 400-point lists on both 1-meter and platform (non-scored exhibition). He moved into ninth place all-time on 1-meter (411.75).

Hines posted a pair of season-best times in the distance events and his first two collegiate event wins. Fellow freshmen Jonah Lee (100 breast) and Biko Hooper-Haviland (200 fly) were also victorious in their premier events Friday. The 100 butterfly was the only event Purdue did not win.

Headlined by having the top six finishers on 1-meter, the Boilermakers went 1-2-3 in five events and enjoyed six more 1-2 showings. Dzirkalis and Nathaniel Thomas finished 1-2 in both freestyle sprints; Rowe and Dylan Burau did likewise in both backstroke events.

Dzirkalis also contributed to both relay winners and has now been part of a team-high 10 relay victories this season.

Purdue’s final home weekend concludes Saturday with the annual Senior Day meet, beginning with the ceremony recognizing 21 student-athletes at 10:30 a.m. The meet starts at 11 a.m. with the Purdue women hosting Illinois and the men’s swimmers competing in a three-team intrasquad.

Senior Day Features a Bevy of Boilermaker Victories at the Pool

Highlighted by 10 1-2 finishes, Women’s Swimming & Diving won 14 of 16 events to win handily 194-101 at Saturday’s Senior Day dual vs. Illinois at the Morgan J. Burke Aquatic Center.

The Purdue men also competed at home for the final time this season after joining the women in the annual Senior Day ceremony before the meet. The men competed in a three-team intrasquad, with The Pete’s winning five events to finish atop the team scoring (invitational meet style).

Men’s Intrasquad Team Scores
1.) The Pete’s – 48.5
2.) Saturn V – 39.5
3.) Full Steam Ahead – 39

The Purdue women improved to 5-0 in dual meet action this season and have now won six straight duals vs. Illinois since the current annual home-and-home series began in 2021.

Daryn Wright (3-meter diving), Meghan Sharma (100 breast) and Matt Rose (1000 free) all posted marks that went into the team record books while winning events Saturday.

Wright swept the springboard diving events for the fourth time this season and continues to lead the team with 10 event victories. She posted a lifetime best list score of 374.48 on 3-meter, improving on the seventh best mark in program history, and teamed up with Avery Worobel for a 1-2 finish on 1-meter.

Sharma won the 100 breaststroke with a lifetime best mark of 1:01.99, improving on her 15th best time in program history.

Rose was the only freshman to win an event Saturday, moving into 13th place on the men’s all-time leaderboard with a time of 9:17.48 in the 1000 freestyle.

Senior Abby Marcukaitis swept the backstroke events against Illinois for the second year in a row, leading the way as Purdue had the top three finishers in the 100 and the top four in the 200.

Senior Reagan Mattice swept the distance freestyle events, leading a 1-2-3-4 finish in the 500. Lara Phipps was victorious in the 100 free and 100 fly, leading a 1-2 finish for Purdue in both events.

The Boilermakers also enjoyed 1-2 finishes in the 50 free, 200 free, 200 fly and 400 free relay. The 200 breast and 200 IM were the only events Purdue did not win Saturday.

The Boilermakers are back in action Saturday, Jan. 24 for the annual rivalry dual vs. Indiana. This year’s edition is for a 10 a.m. start at the Counsilman-Billingsley Aquatics Center in Bloomington.

Boilers Earn 4 Top 3 Finishes on Saturday

Track & Field wrapped up its first meet in 2026 with four top three finishes on Saturday at the Rod McCravy Memorial.

Men’s Notes
• Seamus Malaski continued his strong collegiate debut meet with a second-place finish in the shot put (18.33m / 60-01.75). He took fifth in the weight throw on Friday.
• Kamryn Harry ran 33.51 in the 300m to finish third. The time is the fastest by a Purdue freshman and third fastest overall since at least 2009.
• Joel Gates finished seventh in the shot put (16.62m / 54-06.50). It was his first time throwing shot put indoors after his outdoor personal best was 14.81m (48-07.25) last season at Tennessee.
• Warner Papillon, Purdue’s lone multi on the men’s side, competed in five events in the last two days. His top finish was in 11th in the 60mH (8.41).

Women’s Notes
• Zoe Sullivan finished third in the 60mH finals (8.26). She qualified for the finals after a second-place finish in the prelims and fifth-place finish in the semis on Friday.
• Britannie Johnson rolled to a third-place finish, second among collegiate competitors, in the shot put (15.57m / 51-01.00). Her mark entered Purdue’s top 10 at No. 7.
• Blessing Gideon jumped 12.41m (40-08.75) in the triple jump to finish sixth. The jump is Purdue’s third-best mark in the last 10 seasons.
• Ashley Odiase finished 10th in the first 300m of her career (38.25). It is the top time by a Boilermaker since at least 2009.
• Angeline Amefia competed in all five of the events that make up the pentathlon, while Leena Pfister competed in four events. Amefia earned a personal best in the shot put (11.07m / 36-04.00).

Next Up
Purdue splits the squad Jan. 16-17 between the Corky Classic in Lubbock, Texas and the Hoosier Horsepower Classic in Indianapolis, Indiana.

Blaze Dominates Top-10 Showdown in #20 Purdue’s Loss at #7 Nebraska

Wrestling lost 36-3 at No. 7 Nebraska on Friday night in the Bob Devaney Sports Center.

No. 4 Joey Blaze (165 lbs) took the only match victory of the night for the Boilermakers (7-2, 0-1 B1G), defeating No. 8 LJ Araujo in an 8-2 decision that never felt as close as the score indicates.

Two first-period takedowns for Blaze were wiped off the board after successful challenges from the Nebraska corner, but the All-American junior dictated the match, notching a takedown and reversal midway through. He scrambled out of a failed head pinch for one more takedown in the final seconds for good measure.

The win was Blaze’s first over a top-10 opponent this season and the ninth of his career. He improved to 13-0 with a 42-0 takedown ratio on the year.

No. 16 Brody Baumann also looked impressive in the 174-pound match against 2025 All-American, No. 6 Christopher Minto. The Husker built an early 4-1 lead, but Baumann went on the attack in the second period and scored a takedown and two-point near-fall, nearly pinning Minto on his back. But Minto slithered out and landed the last two takedowns of the match, including the match-clincher with eight seconds to go, winning an 11-8 barnburner.

The Cornhuskers (8-3, 1-0 B1G) feature a talented lineup as the defending NCAA runner-ups from last March. Five bonus point wins, including two falls and three major decisions, propelled them to victory.

UP NEXT

Purdue returns to the East Coast next week for two more Big Ten duals at Maryland and Rutgers. The Boilermakers battle the Terrapins on Friday at 7 p.m. ET before facing the Scarlet Knights on Sunday at 1 p.m. ET.

Both duals will be live on B1G+.

Gurnell Promoted to Director of Volleyball Operations

Following her fifth season overseeing operations for the volleyball program, Carrie Gurnell has been promoted from supervisor to director of operations, announced by Art and Connie Euler women’s volleyball head coach Dave Shondell.

“I’m so pleased to learn that Carrie has been elevated to the position of Director of Volleyball Operations,” Shondell said. “She has earned this promotion with her effort, performance, and unparalleled commitment to our program. It’s very special to have a volleyball alumni as a significant member of our staff. Carrie is creative, assertive, and very loyal to Purdue. I feel extremely fortunate to have her by my side as we battle through every season with the best student-athletes in the land.”

In her role, Gurnell oversees the program’s scheduling throughout the year, team travel, assists in recruiting efforts and more.

Gurnell, who played for Purdue under Shondell from 2006-2009 as an outside hitter/middle hitter, is a member of the program’s 1,000 kill club and led the team’s offense her senior season.

Shondell Elevates Klanac to Assistant Head Coach

The Art and Connie Euler women’s volleyball head coach Dave Shondell has announced the elevation of John Klanac to assistant head coach.

Klanac has been a member of the Boilermaker coaching staff since January 2024. In his two seasons, he has helped Purdue amass a 54-14 record (79 win %), including 14 wins against ranked opponents, back-to-back Regional appearances and a pair of top-four finishes in the Big Ten standings.

“John has been everything our program needed after losing a 21-year associate head coach and a fixture in our program two years ago. John Klanac is a rising star in our game. He has a big heart but is a fierce competitor. I’m excited that our administration has elevated his role as assistant head coach. John is great in the gym, and our athletes respond very well to his teaching methods. Purdue volleyball is fortunate to have him.”

The Boilermakers are coming off one of its most successful seasons in their storied history, seeing a program record 10 wins against ranked opponents, a record-setting five All-Big Ten honorees and the program’s second-highest single-season team hitting % ever.