MATCH STATS
- #18 Penn State defeats Northwestern in 3 (27-25, 25-17, 25-17)
- Penn State (10-3, 2-0), Northwestern (7-7, 0-2)
The Penn State Nittany Lions, No. 18 ranked, took down the Northwestern Wildcats in 3 (27-25, 25-17, 25-17) on the road in their second match of Big Ten conference play.
Penn State’s offense spread out kills, with five players earning at least 5 kills each. Junior Lion Simone Lee led the team with 10 kills. Junior Heidi Thelen’s 4 blocks were the highest output of the team, and added 9 kills.
This is the Lions last away game for a while, with a four-match streak at home.
Northwestern put up a fight in the first set, gaining a 7-3 lead over Penn State. The Nittany Lions were able to close the gap a little, trailing 8-5. Errors from the Wildcats helped to tie the set 12-12. The Wildcats went on a 4-point run to lead 16-12, but Penn State had a 4-1 scoring streak and forced a NU timeout with just a 1-point lead. The Nittany Lions took their first lead of the match, ahead 20-19. The teams stayed close for the remainder of the game. Thelen hit a pair of kills to give PSU the 27-25 lead.
Northwestern didn’t fight back during the final sets, allowing Penn State to claim the 25-17, 25-17 wins.
Courtesy of Penn State Athletics
EVANSTON, Ill. – The No. 18 Penn State women’s volleyball team (10-3, 2-0 Big Ten) earned its second win in league play at Northwestern (7-7, 0-2 Big Ten), 3-0 (27-25, 25-17, 25-17), on Sunday afternoon in Welsh-Ryan Arena.
Penn State held a balanced attack in the match, with five players logging five or more kills. Junior outside hitter Simone Lee led the way once again, posting 10 kills in the match along with eight digs and four aces. Junior right side Heidi Thelen played a key role in the victory, notching nine kills and a team-best four blocks. Redshirt freshman Tori Gorrell added six kills and matched Thelen’s blocking output.
The Nittany Lions return home for a four-match home stand following the win. Penn State hosts a pair of matches next weekend in Rec Hall, beginning with Michigan State on Friday, Sept. 30 at 7 p.m. The team will follow the match the next night, welcoming Michigan at 8 p.m.
The first set opened with two straight points from Northwestern. A kill from junior outside hitter Simone Lee put the Nittany Lions back on track, as she aced the opposition two points later to tie the match. Northwestern responded with four straight points, forcing a Penn State timeout as the Nittany Lions trailed, 7-3. Junior right side Heidi Thelen hammered down a kill out of the break before an errant attack from Northwestern closed the gap to three at 8-5. NU made a 3-0 run before a pair of Wildcat errors and a block from junior setter Abby Detering and Haleigh Washington led Northwestern to use its first timeout with just a two-point lead. A pair of kills from Lee and errors from the Wildcats brought the match to a 12-12 tie before Northwestern opened a 4-0 run to take the lead once again, 16-12.
A kill from Thelen and an ace from libero Kendall White launched a 4-1 scoring run for the Nittany Lions, prompting a Northwestern timeout at 18-17. PSU took the lead following a block from Detering and Washington for a 20-19 lead. Northwestern scored two in a row after a kill off the slide from Washington knotted the match once again at 21-21. The teams swapped points with Lee tying the set once again at 22-22 with her third kill of the day. A quick kill from the middle gave NU set point, before Lee hammered down yet another kill to tie the match. The junior followed the kill with an ace, but an error tied the set at 25-all. Thelen came up big when needed the most, supplying a pair of kills to close out the opening frame, 27-25.
Back-to-back aces from Detering highlighted a 4-1 run to open the second set. Northwestern called timeout following the initial run, forcing an error before middle blocker Tori Gorrell got on the board with a kill of her own. White added the third ace of the match for a 7-3 PSU lead. A pair of kills from Washington and Lee made the score 10-7. A pair of kills from Gorrell and Thelen made it 12-8 in PSU’s favor, causing a Northwestern timeout.
Gorrell struck again out of the break before a 3-0 NU run. Junior outside hitter Ali Frantti looked to turn the tide, striking a ball down the line for a 15-12 PSU advantage. A kill from Washington and a trio of errors from Northwestern opened a six-point gap at 20-14. Northwestern scored twice before two blocks involving Gorrell, Lee and Thelen gave Penn State set point. NU fended off set point once before Lee smashed the winner for a 25-17, set two victory.
Washington, Lee and Gorrell each charted kills in the opening portion of the third. A block from Thelen gave PSU a 4-3 lead before NU responded with a kill. Lee quickly added two more kills and an ace, while Gorrell logged a stuff to give PSU an 8-5 lead and force a Northwestern timeout. Gorrell and Thelen combined for a block before Gorrell hit another kill down the middle for a five-point lead. Northwestern burned its second timeout as PSU led, 10-5.
A pair of kills from Washington and junior Ali Frantti helped guide PSU to a 13-8 lead. The sides swapped points before strikes from Lee and Thelen opened the gap to six at 18-12. After a pair of errors from the Wildcats, Gorrell slammed down a kill and Frantti logged a solo block for an eight-point lead, 22-14. Frantti notched a final kill before an NU service error ended the third, 25-17.
NOTES:
Team
– No. 18 Penn State defeated Northwestern, 3-0 (27-25, 25-17, 25-17), inside Welsh-Ryan Arena on Sunday afternoon.
– The win extends the Nittany Lions’ winning streak to eight-straight and their eighth straight-set victory of the season.
– Five members of the PSU squad logged atleast five kills. Lee led the way with 10, Thelen posted nine. Gorrell and Washington had six each while Frantti added five.
– Penn State’s at the net defense continued to shine. The second best team in the country at limiting opponent hitting percentage, Penn State held Northwestern to .093 hitting efficiency.
– The Nittany Lions out-blocked Northwestern, 8.0-4.0. Gorrell and Thelen posted four blocks each, while Detering, Washington and Lee all added a pair of stuffs.
Series
– Penn State moves to 50-9 in the all-time series against Northwestern.
– The Nittany Lions currently have a two-match winning streak against the Wildcats.
Players
– Simone Lee, junior outside hitter: Lee recorded 10 kills in the match, marking her twelfth double-figure kill performance of the season. She led PSU in hitting for the eleventh time in 2016, while adding eight digs, four aces, a pair of blocks and an assist.
– Heidi Thelen, junior right side: Thelen finished second best on the team in kills (9) and hitting percentage (.438). She added a team-best four blocks.
– Tori Gorrell, redshirt sophomore middle blocker: Gorrell posted six kills while matching Thelen’s four blocks for a team-high.
– Haleigh Washington, junior middle blocker: Washington posted six kills on a team-best .455 hitting efficiency. She added a pair of blocks and a dig.
– Abby Detering, junior setter: Detering dished out 32 assists while adding six digs, two aces and two blocks.
– Kendall White, freshman defensive specialist: White led the team in digs for the eleventh time this season with 10 total.
Up Next: Penn State will host Michigan State Friday, Sept. 30 at 7 p.m., and will face Michigan on October 1 at home, with first serve set for 8 p.m.
Follow the Nittany Lions on Facebook, Twitter @PennStateVolleyball and Instagran @pennstatevball
Courtesy of Northwestern Athletics
EVANSTON, Ill. – Symone Abbott and Gabrielle Hazenregistered double-digit kills, and Taylor Tashima climbed ever higher in the record books, but No. 18 Penn State bested Northwestern in the Wildcats’ home opener on Sunday afternoon.
Abbott has recorded 10 or more kills in every match this season. She needs just 24 more to become the 22nd player in program history to reach 1,000 in a career. Hazen hit .444 on the day to lead the ‘Cats.
“Symone is going to be one that everyone keys on,” head coach Shane Davis said. “It is a growing process for her, and we are asking her to do a lot. It is about how she can manage that and hopefully she can thrive.”
The Wildcats are 7-7 on the season.
Junior setter Taylor Tashima continued her ascent through the record book. Her 26 assists on Sunday moved her into seventh place all-time in program history with 2,486 for her career. She passed Kelli Meyer, who recorded 2,466 assists from 1999-2002.
The Wildcats traded blows with the Nittany Lions in the first set and jumped out to an 18-14 lead. With the score tied at 23-all, the ‘Cats grabbed the first set point of the match but could not convert. After trading set points, Penn State came away with the first set 27-25.
The Nittany Lions claimed an early five-point lead in the second set at 14-9. The ‘Cats responded with a run to cut the lead to 16-14, but Penn State won nine of the next 12 points to take the second set 25-17.
Northwestern hung tough early in the third set, but Penn State continued to hit the ball well en route to a 25-17 third set victory.
What’s Next: The Wildcats continue Big Ten play on Wednesday, Sept. 28, when they travel to Columbus, Ohio, to face the No. 17 Ohio State Buckeyes. That match will be nationally televised on Big Ten Network.
Wildcat Stats
Symone Abbott (10 kills, 1 ace, 6 digs, 1 block)
Gabrielle Hazen (10 kills, 1 block)
Rafae Strobos (6 kills, 2 digs)
Follow the Wildcats on Facebook, @NUVball on Twitter and Instagram @nuvball
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