Oct. 1, 2010
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - The fourth-ranked Penn State women's volleyball team (12-2, 2-1 Big Ten) defeated Michigan State, 3-0 (25-21, 25-17, 25-17), Friday night in from on 3,213 Nittany Lion fans. Penn State is back in action tomorrow at 6 p.m. in Rec Hall against No. 19 Michigan. The match will be broadcast live on the Big Ten Network.
Three Nittany Lions posted double-digit kills including senior Arielle Wilson (Broadview, Ill.) and freshman Deja McClendon (Louisville, Ky.) who tallied 14 apiece. Senior Blair Brown (Purcellville, Va.) rounded out the trio with 10. Sophomore Kristin Carpenter (Mechanicsville. Va.) dished out 36 assists and had two blocks, including one solo. Senior Alyssa D'Errico (Byron, N.Y.) led the team in digs with seven, while Brown and senior Fatima Balza (Merida, Venezuela) led the Nittany Lions with five blocks each.
Penn State closed out the night with a .293 attack percentage and held Michigan State to just .095. The Lions totaled 47 kills, four aces, 28 digs and 12.5 total team blocks and held the Spartans to 30 kills, one ace, 31 digs and 11.0 team blocks.
Kills by Wilson, junior Katie Kabbes (Raleigh, N.C.) and Brown gave Penn State an early 3-1 lead. The Nittany Lions held on to at least a one-point edge until midway through the set when the Spartans tied it up at 13-13 with two straight kills. A block by McClendon and Balza put the Lions back in front, but MSU knotted the score at 16-16 with a kill and a block. Wilson put down a kill and teamed up with Brown for a stuff to move Penn State ahead by two, 18-16. The Spartans tied it up one final time at 18-18, but a Brown kill and a triple block by Kabbes, Balza and Brown put Penn State in the lead for good. Michigan State called a timeout and registered a kill. However, Penn State used a 4-0 run to be in set-point position. The Spartans managed two additional points before a joint block by Balza and McClendon closed out set one for PSU, 25-21.
Penn State took a 4-1 lead to start set two and used an 8-2 run for a comfortable 11-3 advantage. A kill by Becca Zlabis cut off the Penn State run with a kill, but a block by Balza and Carpenter and a D'Errico ace had Penn State ahead by nine, 13-4. By the midpoint of the set, Penn State had a 15-6 lead and despite a Spartan timeout, the Nittany Lions' lead grew to 10, 16-6. The Spartans used two kills and a PSU attack error to cut Penn State's lead to seven, 16-9. Penn State's lead grew to ten, 24-14, as the set came to a close. A PSU service error followed by another Zlabis kill and a Spartan block held the Nittany Lions at set-point and allowed the Spartans within seven, 24-17. After a Lion timeout, McClendon put down a kill for a 25-17 second set win.
The Nittany Lions jumped out to a 7-3 lead in set three. Wilson, Brown, McClendon and D'Errico contributed to the early lead for Penn State. The Nittany Lions maintained at least a three-point edge as the set continued, but the Spartans cut the PSU lead to just one, 15-14, thanks to two Penn State errors. A McClendon kill sparked a 4-0 Nittany Lion run that gave Penn State a 19-14 lead. Natalie Emro notched a kill for the Spartans, but Penn State used a 7-2 run to close out the set, 25-17. Wilson had three kills in the final stretch to aid Penn State to victory.
What's Next?
Penn State is back in action on Saturday, Oct. 2 against No. 19 Michigan at 6 p.m. in Rec Hall. The match will air live on the Big Ten Network.
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.