AVCA Honors 4 Boilermakers
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – Awards continue to pour in for Purdue as the AVCA selects four Boilermakers to this year’s AVCA All-Northeast Region Team. This is the first time Ashley Evans, Sherridan Atkinson and Azariah Stahl have earned the honor and the third time for Danielle Cuttino.
A total of 28 student-athletes garnered all-region honors this season and Purdue is one of five programs with four or more student-athletes named to all-region teams. Purdue’s four all-region selections are the most the program has had since the 2013 season when the Boilermakers advanced to the Elite Eight.
This is Cuttino’s third straight season earning the award and it follows her second consecutive unanimous All-Big Ten selection. The senior out of Indianapolis, Indiana, did it all for the Boilermakers as she began the season as an outside hitter but was moved to the middle in order to get her more involved in Purdue’s blocking scheme on Oct. 20, against No. 1 Penn State. She finished her final collegiate season as the Big Ten’s most feared hitter, leading the conference overall with 475 kills and 4.09 kills per set average. She finished as the Big Ten’s statistical champion with a 4.17 kills per set average and 300 kills in conference play.
Atkinson created havoc for opposing defenses in a breakthrough All-Big Ten season for the 6-5 right side out of Long Beach, California. She set career best totals in every statistical category in 2017, earning 394 kills and a 3.40 kills per set average on 855 swings to earn a .322 hitting percentage, along with 23 aces, 108 digs and 86 blocks over the course of 116 sets. In league play she posted similar numbers with 252 kills, 3.50 kills per set, a .329 hitting percentage to go along with 15 aces, 71 digs and 46 blocks in 72 sets. This is her first all-conference selection.
One of the best offenses in the country all season long had Ashley Evans to thank as she set the Boilermakers to a .301 hitting percentage on the season to rank ninth in the nation. Coming off of her first All-Big Ten campaign, Evans became the first Boilermaker in program history to earn 4,000 assists and 1,000 digs in her career. She ranks third in the Big Ten this season with an 11.48 assists per set average while hitting .366 with 110 kills and averaging 2.26 digs per set with 264 digs. She also aced opponents 30 times on the season and earned 50 blocks. In conference play she was even better, averaging 11.65 assists per set to rank second in the Big Ten as she hit .343 with 62 kills, 16 aces, 166 digs, a 2.31 digs per set average and 33 blocks.
Stahl was an honorable mention as Purdue’s six-rotation outside hitter after earning 273 kills, a 2.33 kills per set average and a .249 hitting percentage to compliment her efforts from the service line and on defense. The Elkhart, Indiana, native aced opponents 25 times and averaged 2.38 digs per set with 278 digs along with 58 blocks.