Nov. 19, 2009
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UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - The top-ranked Penn State women's volleyball team heads on its final regular season road trip this weekend to Purdue and Indiana. The Nittany Lions face the Boilermakers at 7 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 20, followed by the Hoosiers on Saturday, Nov. 21 at 7 p.m.
With a 3-0 victory against Northwestern on Nov. 14, the Nittany Lions reached their 92nd consecutive win to tie with the North Carolina women's soccer team (1990-94) for the second longest NCAA Division I winning streak. More than 5,300 loyal Penn State fans were on hand for the win.
A win on Friday at Purdue would give Penn State at least a share of the 2009 Big Ten title. Should the Nittany Lions win on Saturday, as well, Penn State would clinch its seventh consecutive outright Big Ten title and its 13th overall.
Live stats for both matches this weekend will be available via a link at GoPSUsports.com.
Penn State Preview
The top-ranked Nittany Lions improved to 28-0 and 16-0 in conference play after sweeping both nationally-ranked Illinois and Northwestern on Nov. 13-14. Penn State remains in sole possession of first place in the Big Ten standings and the only undefeated division I team in the country.
Penn State attacked at a combined .354 clip in matches against the Illini and Wildcats. The Nittany Lions averaged 15.00 kills per set, 14.17 assists per set, 1.17 aces per set, 12.50 digs per set and 3.00 blocks per set. Junior Blair Brown led the offense with 26 kills averaging 4.33 kps. Senior setter Alisha Glass paced the offense with a 12.67 assists per set average and juniors Alyssa D'Errico and Cathy Quilico led the back row with 19 digs apiece (3.17 dps). Junior Arielle Wilson was a force at the net in both matches totaling seven total blocks for an average of 1.17 bps.
The Nittany Lions extended their NCAA-record winning streak to 92 consecutive matches and their Big Ten winning streak to 61 straight. Penn State sits atop the all-time Big Ten consecutive wins list and owns the top three spots. Penn State's home-match winning streak currently sits at 70 and their road-match winning streak is at 47.
Scouting the Boilermakers
Heading into this weekend, the Boilermakers have lost four of their last five matches. Purdue's last win came at Indiana with the Boilermakers defeating the Hoosiers in four sets (20-25, 25-23, 25-20, 25-19). The Boilermakers have since suffered setbacks to Minnesota (3-0), Michigan (3-2) and Michigan State (3-0).
Penn State vs. Purdue
Penn State owns a 42-5 record against the Boilermakers. The Nittany Lions haven't lost a match to Purdue since Dec. 4, 1987. Earlier this season, Penn State defeated the Boilermakers 3-0 (25-13, 25-15, 25-12).
Scouting the Hoosiers
Indiana ended a seven-match losing streak on Nov. 13 with a 3-2 victory at Michigan State. However, Michigan would hand the Hoosiers their 12th conference loss a day later in five sets in Ann Arbor.
Penn State vs. Indiana
The Nittany Lions have never lost a match to the Hoosiers. PSU is 39-0 all-time against Indiana. Earlier this season, Penn State swept the Hoosiers by set scores 25-19, 25-13 and 25-17.
What's Next?
The Nittany Lions return home on Nov. 27-28 to close out the regular season. Penn State hosts Michigan State on Friday, Nov. 27 at 7 p.m. followed by Michigan on Saturday at 7 p.m. The match with Michigan will be taped by the Big Ten Network and broadcast on Sunday, Nov. 29 at 6 p.m.
For more information on the Penn State women's volleyball team, please visit www.GoPSUsports.com. The Penn State women's volleyball 2009 season is presented by Rockvale Outlets and The Outlets At Hershey.