It wasn't supposed to be this way.
For seniors Whitney Bays and Liza Clemons, after having endured on and off the court the last several years, going out as a winner was probably a more deserving fate. But it wasn't meant to be, not on a Boilermaker team that has struggled mightily during their senior seasons.
Purdue's lost nine straight games and sunk to the bottom of the Big Ten, with only senior day remaining: The Boilermakers (10-18 overall, 3-14 in the Big Ten) host Michigan State (14-14, 6-11) at 2 p.m. Saturday.
"It definitely is rough, ending a season the way it's been," Clemons said. "But we still have time, more games to go, and playing as hard as we can is all we can ask for. And I feel like playing with this group of girls, that's all you could ask for. I love my teammates no matter if we're winning or losing, I know they'll always be there for me and me for them."
Coach Sharon Versyp is appreciative of the sacrifices the senior captains have made over the years: Bays battled back from severe knee injuries that nearly derailed her career, and Clemons' personal struggle after the death of her fiancé more than a year ago, plus numerous injuries over the years.
"They try to do everything to be out on the court, no matter what ails them," Versyp said. "And they know they only have one shot at it. They've stayed the course. They continue to help everybody else and know that your season isn't over until the last game."
Following is a glance at the careers of Bays and Clemons:
Whitney Bays
Bays will go down as having played one of the greatest individual seasons in Purdue history, averaging a double-double in her second year as a Boilermaker.
And to think, Bays' career nearly ended before it ever got started. She was at Huntington High School in West Virginia when she first tore her ACL, an injury that forced her to miss her senior season, then redshirt her freshman year at Maryland. She played that second year as a Terrapin, but not well, still struggling with a knee that wouldn't recover.
Another surgery, and transfer to Purdue, brought her new life, but Bays didn't know if she could return to the form that made her a top-25 recruit nationally as a high school junior.
She did so, especially this season. The 6-foot-2 forward has averaged team-highs of 14.6 points and 10.0 rebounds per game, the latter of which would be the second-best all-time at Purdue. Her career mark for rebounds, an average of nine per game, will shatter the previous program record of 7.4 set by Cathey Tyree from 1984-87.
Plus, Bays has 14 double-doubles this season, setting a Purdue mark, and her 22 in two years as a Boilermaker is third all-time.
"With all her double-doubles and the things that she's done, she'll leave herself in the record book," Versyp said. "She was part of the Big Ten Championship (while sitting out as a transfer), but didn't get to be totally a part, which is tough for a kid."
But Bays was part of Purdue's run to the NCAA Tournament last season, and might have been the best player on the court in its two games there in Mackey Arena. In the second, the Big Ten's Sixth Player-of-the-Year nearly got the Boilermakers to the Sweet 16, with a 21-point, 13-rebound effort in a loss to Oklahoma State.
"She's a fighter, literally a fighter," Clemons said. "She's battled through everything from her life situations off the court, on the court. She's an inspiration. She might look up to me, but I look up to her as well. And I feel like we relate to each other. It's been great playing with her, but it's not the end of our friendship."
Bays has had great games this season, twice scoring a career high 27 points and having nine consecutive double-doubles.
"My time here as been great," she said. "Obviously this season hasn't been going the way you'd want your senior year to be. But I still have hope that we can do big things in the (Big Ten) Tournament and finish the season out strong."
Liza Clemons
Clemons endured tremendous personal loss a year-and-a-half ago, when her fiancé, Jay Upshaw, was murdered outside an apartment in their hometown of Fort Wayne.
Clemons had briefly left the scene, just before the still unsolved incident, but returned only to find chaos. But in the months that followed, she pushed through, playing her junior season in memory of her longtime boyfriend. Her Purdue family certainly helped.
"I definitely believe that," the 6-2 forward said. "Life has thrown things at me that I couldn't dodge. Definitely being here with my coaches, my teammates and being away from my family - not far, but away - they've been my second family to help me through things when I've needed to talk.
"Coach has been there for me. After class, I'd be like 'Coach, I need to talk' and I'd just sit on her couch and cry and she's talk to me. It's been one crazy experience, but I wouldn't want to go through it with anyone else."
Clemons has been a two-year starter for the Boilermakers and will finish with more than 600 points, 400 rebounds, 100 assists and near 100 blocks.
"Liza has been part of championships here, has done a lot, this is probably a different type of season for all of us, but you shouldn't be defined by just one season," Versyp said. "Her four years here were amazing. All the personal trials and tribulations she went through, she can walk away with her head held high."
Clemons says it's hard to believe her career at Purdue is nearly over. She was warned, she said, by former teammate KK Houser before the season, when Houser told her that the year would be over too quickly.
"In a blink of an eye it'll be over," Clemons said. "And that's literally what happens. It went by way too fast."
At least a couple games remain, vs. MSU, then in the Big Ten Tournament starting Wednesday.
"It'll definitely be emotional," Bays said of the last game in Mackey, "but I think when we're on the court, we'll be trying to take care of business. We've both gone through life experiences and grown closer. It's always fun to play with her, she has the same passion as me. It's going to be fun."
For seniors Whitney Bays and Liza Clemons, after having endured on and off the court the last several years, going out as a winner was probably a more deserving fate. But it wasn't meant to be, not on a Boilermaker team that has struggled mightily during their senior seasons.
Purdue's lost nine straight games and sunk to the bottom of the Big Ten, with only senior day remaining: The Boilermakers (10-18 overall, 3-14 in the Big Ten) host Michigan State (14-14, 6-11) at 2 p.m. Saturday.
"It definitely is rough, ending a season the way it's been," Clemons said. "But we still have time, more games to go, and playing as hard as we can is all we can ask for. And I feel like playing with this group of girls, that's all you could ask for. I love my teammates no matter if we're winning or losing, I know they'll always be there for me and me for them."
Coach Sharon Versyp is appreciative of the sacrifices the senior captains have made over the years: Bays battled back from severe knee injuries that nearly derailed her career, and Clemons' personal struggle after the death of her fiancé more than a year ago, plus numerous injuries over the years.
"They try to do everything to be out on the court, no matter what ails them," Versyp said. "And they know they only have one shot at it. They've stayed the course. They continue to help everybody else and know that your season isn't over until the last game."
Following is a glance at the careers of Bays and Clemons:
Whitney Bays
Bays will go down as having played one of the greatest individual seasons in Purdue history, averaging a double-double in her second year as a Boilermaker.
And to think, Bays' career nearly ended before it ever got started. She was at Huntington High School in West Virginia when she first tore her ACL, an injury that forced her to miss her senior season, then redshirt her freshman year at Maryland. She played that second year as a Terrapin, but not well, still struggling with a knee that wouldn't recover.
Another surgery, and transfer to Purdue, brought her new life, but Bays didn't know if she could return to the form that made her a top-25 recruit nationally as a high school junior.
She did so, especially this season. The 6-foot-2 forward has averaged team-highs of 14.6 points and 10.0 rebounds per game, the latter of which would be the second-best all-time at Purdue. Her career mark for rebounds, an average of nine per game, will shatter the previous program record of 7.4 set by Cathey Tyree from 1984-87.
Plus, Bays has 14 double-doubles this season, setting a Purdue mark, and her 22 in two years as a Boilermaker is third all-time.
"With all her double-doubles and the things that she's done, she'll leave herself in the record book," Versyp said. "She was part of the Big Ten Championship (while sitting out as a transfer), but didn't get to be totally a part, which is tough for a kid."
But Bays was part of Purdue's run to the NCAA Tournament last season, and might have been the best player on the court in its two games there in Mackey Arena. In the second, the Big Ten's Sixth Player-of-the-Year nearly got the Boilermakers to the Sweet 16, with a 21-point, 13-rebound effort in a loss to Oklahoma State.
"She's a fighter, literally a fighter," Clemons said. "She's battled through everything from her life situations off the court, on the court. She's an inspiration. She might look up to me, but I look up to her as well. And I feel like we relate to each other. It's been great playing with her, but it's not the end of our friendship."
Bays has had great games this season, twice scoring a career high 27 points and having nine consecutive double-doubles.
"My time here as been great," she said. "Obviously this season hasn't been going the way you'd want your senior year to be. But I still have hope that we can do big things in the (Big Ten) Tournament and finish the season out strong."
Liza Clemons
Clemons endured tremendous personal loss a year-and-a-half ago, when her fiancé, Jay Upshaw, was murdered outside an apartment in their hometown of Fort Wayne.
Clemons had briefly left the scene, just before the still unsolved incident, but returned only to find chaos. But in the months that followed, she pushed through, playing her junior season in memory of her longtime boyfriend. Her Purdue family certainly helped.
"I definitely believe that," the 6-2 forward said. "Life has thrown things at me that I couldn't dodge. Definitely being here with my coaches, my teammates and being away from my family - not far, but away - they've been my second family to help me through things when I've needed to talk.
"Coach has been there for me. After class, I'd be like 'Coach, I need to talk' and I'd just sit on her couch and cry and she's talk to me. It's been one crazy experience, but I wouldn't want to go through it with anyone else."
Clemons has been a two-year starter for the Boilermakers and will finish with more than 600 points, 400 rebounds, 100 assists and near 100 blocks.
"Liza has been part of championships here, has done a lot, this is probably a different type of season for all of us, but you shouldn't be defined by just one season," Versyp said. "Her four years here were amazing. All the personal trials and tribulations she went through, she can walk away with her head held high."
Clemons says it's hard to believe her career at Purdue is nearly over. She was warned, she said, by former teammate KK Houser before the season, when Houser told her that the year would be over too quickly.
"In a blink of an eye it'll be over," Clemons said. "And that's literally what happens. It went by way too fast."
At least a couple games remain, vs. MSU, then in the Big Ten Tournament starting Wednesday.
"It'll definitely be emotional," Bays said of the last game in Mackey, "but I think when we're on the court, we'll be trying to take care of business. We've both gone through life experiences and grown closer. It's always fun to play with her, she has the same passion as me. It's going to be fun."
