Oct. 22, 2010
Complete Release in PDF Format
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - The No. 9 Penn State women's volleyball team is back on the road traveling to Evanston, Ill. to take on No. 22 Northwestern at 8 p.m. ET on Saturday, Oct. 23.
Live stats will be available for all matches via a link at GoPSUsports.com.
Nittany Lion Preview
The three-time defending national champion Penn State women's volleyball team travels to Northwestern on Saturday, Oct. 23 for a meeting with the Wildcats to close out the first half of the conference slate.
The Nittany Lions improved to 16-4 overall with a 6-3 record in league play with a 3-0 sweep against Ohio State and a sweep of Iowa last weekend. So far this season, three Nittany Lions are averaging 2.76 kills per set or more, including senior Blair Brown who leads the team with 3.72 kills per set. Freshman Deja McClendon is not far behind with 3.50 kills per set and senior Arielle Wilson is averaging 2.76 kills per set. Sophomore Kristin Carpenter has been the primary setter this season, averaging 10.56 assists per set. She has guided three of her primary hitters to a .300 hitting percentage or better. Senior libero Alyssa D'Errico has a team-high 3.85 digs per set, while there are three middle hitters averaging at least 1.19 blocks per set including Wilson (1.27 bps), senior Fatima Balza (1.19 bps) and freshman Katie Slay (1.39 bps).
Penn State vs. Northwestern
The Nittany Lions are 38-8 all-time against the Wildcats dating back to 1981. Penn State has won the last 14 straight meetings, with only one match going beyond three sets. Only 12 matches between the two squads have gone beyond three sets, with eight of those matches occurring in the first ten meetings. Last season the Nittany Lions swept Northwestern twice.
Scouting the Wildcats
No. 22 Northwestern is 15-4 overall with 5-3 record in Big Ten action. The Wildcats are one of five Big Ten teams ranked in the nation's top 25, joining Illinois, Penn State, Michigan and Minnesota. The squad opened the season going 4-1 until surprising then No. 14 Tennessee in a 3-2 victory. The Wildcats went on to win their next seven matches until a 3-2 setback at nationally-ranked Illinois. Northwestern defeated then No. 16 Minnesota, 3-1, but suffered a 3-1 loss to nationally-ranked Michigan and a 3-0 loss to Michigan State. The Wildcats take on Ohio State on Friday, Oct. 22 before hosting Penn State on Saturday.
Penn State Recap
The Nittany Lions earned a convincing 3-0 sweep of Ohio State on Wednesday, Oct. 20 in St John Arena. Senior Blair Brown led the team with 13 kills, while freshman Deja McClendon and senior Arielle Wilson each registered nine kills. Wilson led the team in hitting at .600 with zero errors in 15 attempts. Sophomore setter Kristin Carpenter dished out 35 assists and was second on the team with eight digs. McClendon led the team with nine digs, while Wilson had a team-best two blocks.
What's Next?
The Nittany Lions are halfway through the Big Ten season. Penn State heads into its second meetings with Indiana and Purdue on Oct. 29 and Oct. 30, respectively, at home in Rec Hall.
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.