Aug. 28, 2009
SAINT LOUIS, Mo. - The top-ranked Penn State women's volleyball team increased its NCAA-record winning streak to 65 matches Friday night with a 3-0 (25-15, 25-12, 25-9) victory against Miami University (Ohio) at Saint Louis University's Active Ankle Challenge opener. The Nittany Lions improved their all-time record against the RedHawks (0-1) to 4-0.
Freshman Darcy Dorton (Muncie, Ind.) in her collegiate debut led all players with 15 kills attacking at a .565 clip. Senior Megan Hodge (Durham, N.C.) and junior Arielle Wilson (Broadview, Ill.) tallied seven kills apiece, while senior Alisha Glass (Leland, Mich.) paced the Nittany Lion offense with 30 assists. Hodge led Penn State with nine digs, while junior transfer Fatima Balza (Merida, Venezuela) totaled five block assists.
The Nittany Lions recorded a .347 hitting percentage and held the RedHawks to -.087. Penn State outblocked Miami 11.0-1.0 and outdug the RedHawks, 35-21.
After Miami took a 3-1 lead in the first set on two kills and a Penn State attack error, a RedHawk serving error and a block by Glass and Wilson allowed the Nittany Lions to tie the game, 3-3. After four ties, the Nittany Lions finally grabbed a slim 8-7 lead on a Miami ball handling error. Penn State remained in control for the remainder of the set. Balza tallied her first kill as a Nittany Lion to give Penn State a 10-8 advantage with junior Alyssa D'Errico (Byron, N.Y.) notching an ace on the next play to give Penn State a little breathing room. Back-to-back kills from Hodge and Dorton gave PSU a 17-13 lead and forced Miami to take a timeout. The timeout failed to slow Penn State as the Nittany Lions increased their advantage to 24-14 before Miami recorded another point. Brown closed out the first set with a kill to give Penn State a 1-0 lead in the match.
The Nittany Lions jumped out to a 4-1 lead before two Penn State errors brought the RedHawks within one, 4-3. Penn State responded immediately with two blocks and a Glass kill for a 7-3 advantage. From there, Penn State extended its lead to eight before the RedHawks recorded another point. Penn State kept the heat on and was up 15-4 after two RedHawk errors and back-to-back kills from Dorton and Wilson. Miami took a timeout hoping to slow the Nittany Lions and it seemed to work momentarily as the RedHawks tallied three points off a kill, a block and a PSU attack error. However, Dorton shut off the RedHawks run with a kill to bring the score to 17-7 in favor of the Nittany Lions. Dorton kept the Nittany Lions going with another kill, and two Miami errors kept Penn State in firm control of the second set. Penn State won the second set, 25-12, after tallying four straight points.
After a close start, a Miami service error followed by Dorton's 10th kill of the night sparked an eight point streak to give the Nittany Lions a 13-4 advantage early in the third set. A Penn State attack error gave Miami the chance to serve, but kills from Wilson and Dorton followed by a Dorton/Balza block increased the Nittany Lions lead to 16-5. Following two more PSU points, RedHawk Michele Metzler notched a kill to bring the score to 18-6 in Penn State's favor. Back-to-back kills by Dorton put the Nittany Lions up by 14, 20-6. Despite a Miami kill and two Penn State errors, the RedHawks were unable to take control. The Nittany Lions closed out the set on a Hodge kill and an ace from freshman Marika Racibarskas (Chatham, N.J.).
The Nittany Lions continue play in the Active Ankle Challenge in Saint Louis University's Chaifetz Arena on Saturday, Aug. 29. Penn State takes on Alabama at 1 p.m. followed by No. 20 Saint Louis at 7 p.m. Fans can follow both matches online via livestats at www. GoPSUSports.com.