The first two sets told a story of Purdue’s early dominance. The Boilermakers hit .400 and .500, exploiting gaps behind the Spartan block while forcing defensive scrambles and service errors. MSU called timeouts and tried to adjust and break momentum, but the visitors were efficient and composed.

"We made some lineup changes, which I thought were helpful," Kelsay said. "Our block started to understand the assignments a little better, and we were able to contain them more — that helped our offense get going."

The adjustments paid off. MSU’s defense tightened, Purdue’s hitting dropped getting contained to .200, and the Spartans began finding space for clean kills.

"In the last three sets I started playing on the right side." said Freshman Bianca Mumcular. "I’ve played as an opposite before in my life, so I know that position. When we were struggling, Kristen put me on the right side. They had trouble blocking me there because I’ve never played there before — they don’t know what I like to hit from that side. They’ve never seen me, so I think that was one of the factors that helped."

Mumcular’s attack became a spark plug, slicing through Purdue’s defense and keeping rallies alive. She finished the night with 19 kills.

The third set then saw MSU fully in control. Setter Malayah Long distributed the ball to middle blockers Zuzzana Kulig and Carmen Waye, keeping Purdue off balance and stretching their block. Karolina Staniszewska and Evie Doezema added critical kills, and after a tense back-and-forth, the Spartans took the third 27–25.

"Character isn’t always built in the fire — but it’s shown in it," Kelsay said. "And tonight, we showed a lot of it."

The fourth set was another test of resilience. Each serve at the hands of the Spartans aimed to disrupt the rhythm, giving MSU’s back-row defenders more opportunities to dig and reset. They also mixed in off-speed tips and back-row attacks, stretching Purdue’s defense across the court. Down 13–8, MSU fought back behind strong serving from Lia Schneider and clutch kills from Mumcular, winning 25–23 to force the fifth set.

The fifth set opened as a tight, cutthroat battle. Purdue came out fast, 2–0, but MSU equalized immediately behind aggressive serves from Schneider and precise sets from Long.

Karolina Staniszewska’s early kill gave MSU a slight edge, followed by an attack error from Purdue to make it 6–3. The Spartans pushed to 10–7, riding a mix of quick sets to the middle and high outside swings from Mumcular, but Purdue clawed back. Three late Spartan errors at 12–12 allowed the Boilermakers to take the set 15–12.

"When you’re 12–12 with a ranked team, you have to give it everything," Mumcular said. "The game didn’t go our way, but the fact that we even brought it to 12–12 was crazy."

Looking ahead to tomorrow’s matchup, Kelsay’s message was simple: keep the same commitment, no matter the opponent.

"You have to back up what we did tonight," she said. "It doesn’t matter the name, the team, the colors, the crowd — our commitment doesn’t change."

MSU Volleyball now will gear up to take on Rutgers on Saturday night at the Breslin Centre, with Coach Kelsay hoping this young teams finds their footing soon.