Illinois volleyball had a weekend of mixed emotions in Indiana as it lost to No. 14 Purdue Friday but fought back Saturday at Indiana to earn a Big Ten victory.

Illinois is now 4-6 in the Big Ten and 13-7 on the season.

The Boilermakers swept the Illini in three games with scores of 30-16, 30-28, and 30-26. Outside hitter Kayani Turner was back in the game on Friday after sitting out last Sunday against Penn State. Her 18 kills were not enough to keep the Illini in the game.

Turner was ranked 15th in the nation for kills per game with 4.98; she pushed her average to 5.0 per game at Purdue.

The Illini began the match slow as they lost the first four points and fell behind 20-7 in the first game. Purdue never allowed the Illini to take the lead in games one or two, but the Illini put up a fight in game three and led for much of the game.

“We lost our composure early and fought to get it back,” head coach Don Hardin said. “You can’t go down like that against a team like Purdue and rebound in time.”

Serving also belonged to Purdue, posting six of its seven aces in game one. Illinois had two aces for the match, one posted by freshman libero Ashley Edinger.

Junior middle blocker Vicki Brown recorded 11 kills for the match.

Junior outside hitter Amy Palash added nine kills on the night, and sophomore setter Lizzie Bazzetta continued to fuel the Illini with 44 assists in the match.

Saturday’s match began the same for the Illini, with a 15-5 deficit to Indiana. But they were able to come back in the final three games and win the match with scores of 26-30, 30-24, 30-16, and 30-20.

The Illini took over in game two, led by freshman outside hitter Kylie McCulley. She recorded a career-best 22 kills in the match. McCulley came in for Turner, who experienced pain from a leg injury.

Saturday’s match was a preview of what McCulley is capable of, Hardin said.

“Kylie is turning into a true player on the road,” Hardin said.

Serving was also a bright spot in the match, unlike the match against Purdue. Palash led the Illini in aces by posting three, accompanied by 11 kills.

“It was a great team effort,” Hardin said. “We served tough, we had seven aces; we only got aced once in four games, which was a great attribute to our passers.”

Hardin said senior defensive specialist Beth Vrdsky played incredible defense.

“Beth was steady as steady can be,” Hardin said. “Her digging was phenomenal, her serving was phenomenal. But then we had Ashley Edinger back there who was unbelievable, too.”

Vrdsky recorded 17 defensive digs for the match, and Edinger posted 21 digs and two aces.

Junior outside hitter Stephanie Alde recorded 15 kills on the night. Brown and senior middle blocker Meghan Macdonald each posted 13 kills.

Even though many individuals shined, Hardin said the win against Indiana was a team effort as the Illini stayed aggressive and steady throughout the final three games.