Previewing women's volleyball against Indiana and Purdue

After dropping two matches in straight sets last week, Maryland will look to play a more competitive brand of volleyball this weekend as they play their first two conference road matches of the season.

Led by redshirt senior Adreene' Elliott, Coach Aird and company hope to figure out a way to put more points on the board against some bigger and stronger teams.

Indiana:

Just like Maryland, the Hoosiers have opened conference play with an 0-2 record. They lost in straight sets to Michigan State and lost 3-1 against Michigan.

Indiana was 10-2 coming into conference play. Their schedule included Virginia Tech (def. 3-0), Texas State (def. 3-2), and Northern Arizona (def. 3-2).

The Hoosiers are led by senior outside hitter Amelia Anderson. Anderson is Indiana's go-to player on offense, as she averages 3.91 kills per set. Although Michigan State was able to hold her to a -.059 hitting percentage, she rebounded nicely and tallied 16 kills in IU's latest match against Michigan.

Anderson can be very hard to stop once she starts rolling. She has had 20 kills four times this season. Her season high is 26, which she tallied against Bowling Green in the opening match of the season and then again against Northern Arizona. Her 219 total kills lead the team. 

The Terps may be able to take advantage of service errors by the Hoosiers. IU has 148 service errors on the season compared to Maryland's 113. Despite their serving issues, the Hoosiers do not allow opponents to serve aces against them. They have only allowed 41 aces all season but they've scored 83 aces themselves.

Maryland will have to rely on strong service play from players like Abby Bentz, Amy Dion, and Ashlyn MacGregor. IU is a strong team who plays very well on their home court. It will be an uphill battle for the Terps but it is a match they should be competitive in.

Purdue:

The Boilermakers (11-2) return home this weekend on a five-match winning streak. Last weekend they defeated the ranked Michigan Wolverines in straight sets and the Michigan State Spartans 3-1. Their only two losses this season have come against No. 12 BYU and the University of Miami.

Purdue has won in straight sets in all but three of their victories this year. They defeated St. Louis, Notre Dame, and Michigan State by 3-1 scores. Purdue's last loss came on September 12th against Miami where they lost 3-2.

The Boilermakers enjoy the confines of Holloway Gymnasium where they have yet to lose a match this season. In fact, Purdue only dropped three matches at home last year, two of which came against Big Ten champion Wisconsin and eventual national champion Penn State.

At 6'4", Annie Drews is a monster on offense for the Boilermakers. The senior outside hitter averages over four kills a set and has 186 on the season. Her match-high this season is 33, making her the first Purdue player to record over 30 kills in a match since 2000. Drews was an All-Big Ten selection last year and was named as an honorable mention All-American. She is Purdue's main force on offense and has yet to face an opponent this season who has thrown her off her game.

Purdue's defense could cause issues for the Terrapins, as they rank third in opponents' hitting percentage in the Big Ten. They also lead the conference in service aces. Faye Adelaja is another player to watch. She is third in the Big Ten in hitting percentage.

Thoughts:

As expected, this is going to be another challenging weekend for Maryland. They are playing on the road against two solid volleyball teams. Winning a set, much less a match, is going to very tough but as Aird has said before, the focus is on the process and making sure that the team plays hard and competes. Expect to see a better overall product from the Terps this weekend.

Match Info:

WHO: Maryland @ Indiana

WHEN: Friday, October 2nd. 7PM

HOW TO FOLLOW: BTN Plus, @TerpsVolleyball on Twitter.

WHO: Maryland @ #18 Purdue

WHEN: Saturday, October 3rd. 7PM

HOW TO FOLLOW: BTN Plus, purduesports.com live stats, @TerpsVolleyball on Twitter.