Sept. 4, 2010
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - The No. 1 Penn State women's volleyball team extended its record-breaking winning streak to 108 straight matches with a 3-0 (25-13, 25-12, 25-12) sweep of VCU (1-6). Penn State (6-0) is back in action at the Nike Big Four Volleyball Classic Sept. 10-11 in Gainesville, Fla.
Seniors Arielle Wilson (Broadview, Ill.) and Blair Brown (Purcellville, Va.), freshman Deja McClendon (Louisville, Ky.), VCU's Marisa Low, Colgate's Kaylee Dougherty and Seton Hall's Sarah Osmun made up the Hampton Inn Classic All-Tournament Team.
Sophomore setter Kristin Carpenter (Mechanicsville, Va.) led a balanced offense attack with 39 assists. Three Nittany Lions tallied double-digit kills, including McClendon and junior Katie Kabbes (Raleigh, N.C.) who had 13 kills apiece, and Brown who had 12. Senior libero Alyssa D'Errico (Byron, N.Y.) had a match-high 17 digs, while freshman Katie Slay (Raleigh, N.C.) posted a team-best four blocks.
Penn State attacked at a .422 clip totaling 49 kills, 46 assists, five aces, 50 digs and 7.0 total team blocks. The Nittany Lions held the Rams to just .053 hitting, 21 kills, 21 assists, one ace, 25 digs and 4.0 team blocks.
The Lions took a 8-3 lead to start the match, capitalizing on four VCU errors and kills by Brown, Wilson, Kabbes and senior Fatima Balza (Merida, Venezuela). After a VCU timeout, the Rams fought to within two, 8-6. A McClendon kill and a VCU error pushed Penn State back ahead by four, 10-6. A 6-1 Nittany Lion run, with two Brown kills and back-to-back D'Errico aces, gave Penn State a comfortable 16-8 advantage and forced another VCU timeout. A kill by VCU's Mariel Frey followed the timeout, but three consecutive PSU kills and a block by Wilson and Carpenter put the Nittany Lion lead into double-digits, 20-9. The two squads traded points with the Rams cutting Penn State's lead to nine, 21-12. Two McClendon putdowns and a Carpenter ace secured set one for PSU, 25-13.
Penn State jumped out to the same 8-3 lead in set two, but never allowed the Rams to come closer than six points. By midway through the set, Penn State led 13-6 and VCU called its first timeout. The teams went back and forth and the Rams failed to develop any momentum. With a 17-11 lead, Penn State embarked on an 8-1 run to win set two, 25-12. Slay and Brown teamed up for three blocks during the run, Brown posted two kills, McClendon had one kill and the Rams notched two errors.
VCU opened the third set taking a slim 2-0 lead, but the Nittany Lions tallied five straight points to take a 5-2 lead. The Rams kept the Nittany Lions close, until a 5-1 PSU run put the Lions up by eight, 15-7. The Rams used a Frey kill and block by Kristin Boyd and Kelsie Clegg to come within five, 15-10. A Kabbes kill sparked a 5-0 run with kills by Wilson and Brown. VCU called a timeout, but it failed to faze the Lions. A dual block by Boyd and Courtney Hott was the final point for the Rams as Kabbes, Brown and McClendon each tallied a kill to close out the set, 25-12.
What's Next?
Penn State is back on the road next weekend at the Nike Big Four Volleyball Classic where they will take on Florida on Friday, Sept. 10 and either Texas or Stanford on Saturday, Sept. 11.
For more information on the Penn State women's volleyball team, please visit GoPSUsports.com. The Penn State women's volleyball 2010 season is presented by Rockvale Outlets and The Outlets at Hershey.