Oct. 28, 2009
The top-ranked Penn State women's volleyball team earned its 87th straight win Wednesday evening with a 3-0 (25-21, 25-11, 25-20) victory against Ohio State (17-7, 5-6). The Nittany Lions (23-0, 11-0) are just one win away from tying the UCLA men's basketball team winning streak of 88 consecutive games, which is the fourth longest NCAA Division I winning streak.
Senior Megan Hodge (Durham, N.C.) led all players with 17 kills on .424 hitting. She was also second on the team in digs with 11. Junior Blair Brown (Purcellville, Va.) tallied 13 kills, while freshman Darcy Dorton (Muncie, Ind.) posted 10 to round out the top hitters for PSU. Junior libero Alyssa D'Errico (Byron, N.Y.) notched a team-high 13 digs, while junior defensive specialist Cathy Quilico (Thousand Oaks, Calif.) had a career-high four service aces. Senior Alisha Glass (Leland, Mich.) paced the Nittany Lion offense with 41 assists, while also recording nine digs.
Penn State had a .327 hitting percentage for the match and held the Buckeyes to .184. The Nittany Lions had 49 kills, nine aces, 45 digs and 5.0 total team blocks. Ohio State closed out the match with 32 kills, one ace, 36 digs and 4.0 total team blocks.
The Nittany Lions took an early 2-0 lead in the first set after a block by Dorton and junior Fatima Balza (Merida, Venezuela) and a kill from Brown. The Buckeyes answered right back with two kills of their own to tie it up, 2-2. Brown put the Nittany Lions back in the lead with a kill and Penn State would remain in front for the remainder of the set. Penn State worked up to a four-point lead after two kills by Hodge and one from Brown. Ohio State answered back with a kill by Katie Dull and another from Emily Danks, but PSU was back up by four, 10-6, when the Buckeyes took a timeout. Following the timeout, OSU fought back to tie the score at 13-13, but Brown once again put the Lions back in charge with a kill. An attack error by Dull and two aces from Quilico gave PSU some breathing room at 17-13. Despite a kill from Danks, the Nittany Lions stayed ahead by four, 19-15, when the Buckeyes called a second timeout. Ohio State's Kristen Dozier and Danks teamed up for a block after the short break, but back-to-back PSU kills gave Penn State a five-point lead, 21-16. The Buckeyes came as cut the lead to three, 23-20, but two swings by Brown and one from Dorton secured a 25-21 first set win for Penn State.
A kill by Brown and two consecutive aces from D'Errico gave the Lions an early 3-0 lead before the Buckeyes got on board with a kill from Dull. Brown went on to tally two straight points for PSU to bring the score to 5-1 in Penn State's favor. The Buckeyes came within two of the Nittany Lions, but Brown kept the Buckeyes at bay with a kill for a 9-6 edge. Penn State went on to register eight straight points for a 17-7 lead before OSU's Anna Szerszen cut off the run with a kill. Dull posted another kill for OSU, but two from Hodge and one from junior Arielle Wilson (Broadview, Ill.) prevented the Buckeyes from gaining any momentum. Three errors by Ohio State and a Hodge ace gave PSU a 25-11 second set triumph.
The Buckeyes led the way in the third set after a kill from Kelli Barhorst, but Brown followed suit with a kill of her own to put PSU on the board. The Nittany Lions grabbed its first lead of the third set, 4-3, after a kill from Hodge and an error by Szerszen. The Buckeyes, however, didn't back off and soon tied the Nittany Lions at 6-6 on a block by Dull and Barhorst. Ohio State took the lead moments later with another block. Penn State regained control taking an 11-10 lead after two kills by Hodge and one from Wilson, but the Buckeyes stayed in it and tied the set at 15-15, thanks to two PSU errors and an ace from Chelsea Noble. The squads would tie it up four more times before two straight errors by Ohio State gave Penn State a 22-20 lead and the momentum it needed to put the set away. Hodge, Wilson and Dorton each tallied a kill for a 25-20 third set win.
The Nittany Lions are back in action on Friday, Oct. 30 against No. 7 Minnesota at 7 p.m. in Rec Hall. It's the second meeting between the two teams this season. Penn State won the first match, 3-0, on Oct. 11 in Minneapolis. All fans are encouraged to dress up for the Halloween costume contest. Prizes include a $150 gift card to the Penn State Bookstore for first place, $100 gift card for second place and $75 gift cards for third, fourth and fifth place. There will also be a "Dress Like A Rockette" contest. The winner will receive four tickets to the Radio City Christmas Spectacular at the Bryce Jordan Center on Nov. 20-21.