INDIANAPOLIS – IUPUI volleyball picked up its first win of the season with a sweep of Purdue Fort Wayne on Tuesday (Aug. 28).

IUPUI (1-3) had a tough battle on their hands through the first two sets against the Mastodons, winning the first set 26-24 and taking set two 28-26. Things changed after the break as IUPUI opened a large lead at the beginning of the third set and cruised to a 25-17 set win.

"It is always tough to get that first win," said head coach Steve Payne. "Now that we have that taken care of we know what it is like to get a win and I think the girls are going to use that to jumpstart them for this weekend."

The offense, which had struggled over the first weekend of play, was better against the Mastodons as the Jags finished with 42 kills. Senior Maggie Gibson, who has been stuffing the stat sheet early this season, continued her hot play leading the Jags with 13 kills and also tallied nine assists and seven digs.

"We knew [Gibson] could always hit and now we have Becca [Schlechte] as a setter so we can use Maggie as a hitter on the front row," said Payne. "She is one of our most explosive hitters…it's a lot of hard work but she is doing a great job."

Following Gibson on the offensive end was fellow senior Elizabeth Scott, who added nine kills, and junior McKayla Wright who finished the match with seven kills, including five in the first set. Rebecca Schlechte guided the offense with 24 assists.

On the defensive end, IUPUI held Purdue Fort Wayne to a .075 hitting percentage. Freshman Rachel Hickey, making her second career start as the libero, posted a career-high 24 digs and Wright also finished with double-digit digs with 14. Junior Haley Hoffman and Scott each finished with four blocks for IUPUI.

The first set was back-and-forth with the largest lead begin two until IUPUI took a 12-9 lead after a kill by Scott and an error on the Mastodons. The Jags pushed the lead to five after a kill and block by Kaitlyn Johnson and a kill by Hoffman. After back-to-back aces by Elli Gaskill, IUPUI took a 19-12 lead and looked to have control of the set but Purdue Fort Wayne battled back with five-straight to pull within two. Two blocks by the Mastodons knotted the set at 20.

After IUPUI took a 24-21 set lead, Purdue Fort Wayne fought off three set points and tied the set at 24. A kill by Gibson gave the Jags their fourth set point and Scott finished things off with a kill.

IUPUI began the second set with a 6-1 run that featured kills by Gibson, Scott and Shakana Norfleet. After the Jags took an 11-6 lead off of an error, the Mastodons scored the next five points to pull within one. Later in the set, three-straight points by Purdue Fort Wayne gave the Mastodons a three point lead. IUPUI would battle back to tie the set at 17 with kills by Johnson and Norfleet.

An ace by Purdue Fort Wayne made the score 23-19 in favor of the Mastodons and had the Jags on the ropes but three-straight errors pulled the Jags to within one. Purdue Fort Wayne earned set point on the next point but a Gibson kill and block from Scott and Norfleet tied the set at 24. IUPUI fought off two more set points with a kill by Gibson and another block by the duo of Scott and Norfleet.

A kill by Hoffman gave the Jags set point and Scott again finished off the set with another kill to give the Jags a 28-26 set win and a 2-0 lead in the match.

Set three started with the Jags taking control early scoring six-straight points after Purdue Fort Wayne scored the opening point. After the Mastodons scored the next point, IUPUI ripped off another 6-0 run to take a commanding 12-2 lead. The Jags remained in control, taking a 12 point lead after kills by Wright and Scott.

After Purdue Fort Wayne pulled within six at 23-17, IUPUI quickly stopped any chance for a comeback with a kill by Hoffman and an error by the Mastodons that ended the match.

In the third set, IUPUI successfully challenged a call on the baseline and the call was overturned after video review. Purdue Fort Wayne also won its only challenge of the game in the third set.

IUPUI will be back in action over the weekend as the Jags host the Hampton Inn Invitational. The tournament with feature Northern Arizona, SIUE and Western Michigan. IUPUI's first match will be on Friday night at 6:30 p.m.