Penn State Set To Michigan State, Michigan

Press Release courtesy of Penn State Athletics

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UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – The No. 3 Penn State women’s volleyball hosts No. 10 Michigan State on Friday evening at 7 p.m. in a Big Ten Network game, and they close out the weekend by hosting Michigan at 7 p.m. on Saturday evening. Both matches will be at Rec Hall.

PARKING
For parking at the Nittany Deck, Intercollegiate Athletics, in partnership with Transportation Services, sponsors a period of free parking for Women’s Volleyball attendees that begins 1.5 hours before the start of each match and ends approximately 1.5 hours after the match has ended. For any additional time parked before or after the match, each attendee will be responsible for the standard $1 per hour parking fee. Intercollegiate Athletics will continue to provide parking free of charge in parking lot Red-A on the back side of Rec Hall beginning one-hour prior through 2:00 a.m. No special permit is needed.

SCOUTING THE SPARTANS
Michigan State enters the weekend with a 12-3 overall record, and a 5-1 Big Ten record, but are currently 2-3 in away matches. The Spartans skyrocketed in the polls earlier this season when they took down then-No. 5 Wisconsin in Madison, and then-No. 1 Minnesota in Minneapolis. Offensively, MSU averages 14.2 kills per set on a clip of .255. The Spartans have three players averaging 3.00-plus kills per set in Brooke Kranda (3.31), Autumn Bailey (3.14), and Holly Toliver (3.12), while Alyssa Garvelink is at 2.42 with a team-best .346 hitting percentage. Defensively, Sparty is holding its opponents to just .153 hitting on the season, averaging 2.55 blocks per set and 16.06 digs.

SCOUTING THE WOLVERINES
Michigan heads into the weekend with a 12-6 record, and a 2-4 conference record before taking on Rutgers on Friday evening. The Wolverines are currently on a two-game slide, falling to both Iowa and Minnesota. Michigan is hitting .260 on the season with 14.0 kills per set, while their opponents are hitting .223 at 12.6 kills per set. Carly Skjodt is averaging 3.81 kills per set on .238 hitting, while Adeja Lambert follows with 2.82 and .235 hitting. Defensively, UM tallies 2.4 blocks per set, while scooping up 13.2 digs. Jenna Lerg leads the team at 4.13 digs per set.

FIRST SERVE
>> The second RPI rankings of the 2017 season were released by the NCAA on Monday, and Penn State maintained its’ No. 1 slot based on the team’s strength of schedule and their results so far this season.
>> In the week seven American Volleyball Coaches poll, Penn State moved up to No. 2. The Big Ten was represented by five other programs as Nebraska followed the Nittany Lions at No. 4. Minnesota rolled in at No. 6, while Michigan State broke into the top-10 at No. 10. Wisconsin followed at No. 11, and Purdue rounded out the ranked league members at No. 16.
>> Haleigh Washington, who was honored as the Big Ten Player of the Week for the third time this season, joins Penn State alumnae Nicole Fawcett (2005-08) and Megan Hodge (2006-09) as the only three players in Nittany Lion history with eight Big Ten Player of the Week selections. All three are tied for second in the history of the award in all of the Big Ten, trailing Stacey Gordon (OSU, 2001-04) who finished her career with 16.
>> Haleigh Washington currently leads the nation with a 0.509 hitting percentage, leading the Nittany Lions to the top team percentage in the nation at .352.
>> Penn State women’s volleyball seniors Haleigh Washington and Simone Lee were named to a list of 30 Division I women’s volleyball candidates for the 2017 Senior CLASS Award on Tuesday evening. To be eligible for the award, a student-athlete must be classified as a NCAA Division I senior and have notable achievements in four areas of excellence: community, classroom, character, and competition.
>> Abby Detering is one of six standouts in the NCAA this season to record a triple-double. In the Nittany Lions’ 3-1 victory over then top-ranked Stanford on Sept. 1, Detering posted 23 assists, while adding 11 kills and 10 digs.
>> Based on past opponents’ winning percentage, Penn State has played the third-toughest schedule in the nation, while Wisconsin has played the sixth-toughest schedule. Nebraska is ninth on the list and Minnesota checks in at No. 10.

RECORD AGAINST 2017 OPPONENTS
Penn State owns a 600-115 (.839) combined series record against its 2017 opponents, including a 454-66 (.873) mark in Big Ten matches since joining the conference in 1991. The Nittany Lions own a 539-104-1 (.840) mark all-time against current Big Ten opponents.

BIG TEN COACHES SELECT PENN STATE TO WIN 2017 CONFERENCE TITLE
Penn State opens the season ranked No. 1 in the Big Ten Preseason Poll, released by the conference early this week. The Big Ten Preseason poll is selected by votes from all 14 conference head coaches.

NITTANY LIONS IN THE NEWS

Haleigh Washington in Elite Company with her 8^th Big Ten Player of the Week honor

Kendall White’s Enthusiasm Driving Women’s Volleyball

NOTEBOOK: Penn State women’s volleyball senior Haleigh Washington nears milestone

17 Unbelievable Liberos In College Volleyball

UP NEXT
Penn State heads to Purdue for an 8 p.m. match on Friday, Oct. 20, and then heads to Indiana for a 7 p.m. match on Saturday, Oct. 21.