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GOLDANDBLACK EXPRESS • VOLUME 25, EXPRESS 6 • 39 BY TRAVIS BAUGH TBaugh@Purdue.edu V olleyball coach Dave Shondell is well-aware of the current states of the Maryland and Rutgers volleyball programs. The teams failed to win a set against a Power Five school in non-conference play. The teams combined to win two sets last weekend against Illinois and Northwestern. The teams rank 13th and 14th in the conference in hitting percentage, assists and kills. Regardless, Shondell is quick to shrug off any notion that this weekend is an easy one for the No. 15 Boilermakers. "It doesn't matter who you're playing," Shondell said. "We found that out already this year. Nobody thought we were go- ing to drop one at Western Kentucky. Nobody thought we were going to lose one at home against Saint Louis and we found a way to do that. I think we learned that lesson, that anybody can beat you at any time." Those early-season losses and past Big Ten losses to teams near the bottom of the conference have taught outside hitter Annie Drews that no wins on the schedule come easily. "One thing that's always been true in the Big Ten since I've been here has been you can't count on winning certain games just because you're favored to win," Drews said. "We have to take this weekend as seriously as any, especially this early in the Big Ten. We need to rack up as many wins as we can to get the seed we want and get where we want to go." While Shondell has seen a majority of the players in the conference on the recruiting trail or in previous seasons, the lack of familiarity with Maryland and Rutgers provides a chal- SHONDELL, BOILERS TAKING NO MATCHES FOR GRANTED Purdue Azariah Stahl (left), Danielle Cuttino (center) and Annie Drews give Purdue three powerful hitters on its front line. Drews leads the Big Ten with 4.27 kills per set, while Stahl and Cuttino are seeing their playing time increase weekly as the freshmen get more comfortable in Purdue's system.