TAMPA – The University of South Florida volleyball team faced off against its fourth ranked team of the season Saturday night, hosting No. 22 Purdue inside The Corral in the USF Invitational Finale.

Despite a strong showing from the Bulls in the second set, the Boilermakers swept their way to the Tournament Championship, out-hitting USF .283-.095 and out-blocking the Bulls 12-5 to take the match, 25-12, 25-21, 25-19.

After a slow start in which Purdue hit .545 and steamrolled its way to a 25-12 win, the Bulls adjusted nicely. USF picked things up defensively, collecting 16 digs and three blocks in the second set to hold the Boilermakers to a .139 hitting percentage. Junior transfer Carissa Whalen collected three kills on four swings in the set, including a kill to tie the set at 20 – the ninth tie of the set between the teams.

Purdue rallied late however, using an ace and two kills to head into the break with a 25-22 win and 2-0 match lead. The Boilermakers would go on to win the match in three sets, using 12 blocks to seal the victory.

Erin Fairs led the Bulls with 10 kills, and Amy Van Sant was the lone player to eclipse 10 digs, grabbing 13. Natalia Soares recorded 17 assists and seven digs in the loss.

Andrea Rodriguez Gomez was named to the All-Tournament Team following the match, joining Purdue's Val Nichol, Kiki Jones and Annie Drews, along with Pittsburgh's Jessica Winn and Lindsey Zitzke. FAU's Darija Sataric rounded out the All-Tournament selections.

The Bulls head to Chicago next weekend for the Wildcat Invitational to take on IUPUI, Miami (Ohio) and Northwestern. Stay tuned to GoUSFBulls.com for inside information on the team and upcoming weekend throughout the week.