GOLDANDBLACK EXPRESS • VOLUME 25, EXPRESS 28 • 10
side of the ledger. But not according to
a selection committee that nuked the
Boilermakers, then didn't speak publicly
about its process afterward.
But Shondell could speak to the snub.
"I had a really strong feeling we
were going to be on the outside looking
in," he said, citing Purdue's less-than-
ideal RPI. "I told the team that to try to
prepare them, but when you're part of
a program and have been recruited to
a program that is in the tournament all
the time, it's hard to believe that you're
not going to be part of it. They took it
pretty hard, as did the staff."
Purdue finished the last week of the
season ranked No. 19 in the AVCA Top
25 poll, ending the year with a 22-10
overall record and fifth-place showing in
the Big Ten. It had two wins over Top 25
teams, five vs. RPI top 50 opponents and
five against NCAA Tournament teams.
But the Boilermakers' Big Ten schedule
wasn't particularly helpful. Of Purdue's
12 conference wins, four came against
Maryland and Rutgers, the two worst teams
in the league. And Purdue dropped a match
at Iowa, which finished 12th in the Big Ten.
The snub ended the careers of KiKi
Jones and Val Nichol, two highly decorated
players who led Purdue to 97 wins, two
NCAA Sweet 16 appearances and an Elite
Eight during their four years.
j
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Trent Johnson, Agent
Tom Campbell
Senior KiKi Jones saw her Purdue career come to a disappointing end when
the NCAA kept the Boilermakers from the tournament.
