Oct. 3, 2014
Final Stats (PDF) I Final Stats
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - Despite double-digit kill performances from freshman Ali Frantti and junior Megan Courtney, No. 3 Penn State women's volleyball (14-2, 2-1) came up short in a 3-1 (25-12, 22-25, 20-25, 23-25) loss on the road at No. 8 Nebraska (9-3, 3-0) Friday evening at the Devaney Center.
Frantti led the team with a match-high 19 kills on .486 hitting, adding nine digs and two blocks. Courtney finished second on the team with 11 kills, adding one ace, seven digs and three blocks. Senior Nia Grant followed close behind with nine kills on .389 hitting, while also tallying a team-high five blocks.
Seniors Dominique Gonzalez and Lacey Fuller fueled the defensive effort with double-digit digs. Gonzalez led the team with a match-high 17 digs, while Fuller matched a career-high mark with 13 digs.
Penn State jumped out to a 6-1 lead in set one capped off by an ace from Hancock, causing the Huskers to call an early timeout. Frantti and Whitney came out of the break with a block to make it 7-1, but Nebraska answered with back-to-back kills to narrow the gap to four, 7-3. Courtney sparked a 3-0 spurt to push the Nittany Lions up by as many as seven, 10-3.
The Huskers cut off the momentum with a kill, but Penn State answered with a 5-1 streak to push the advantage into to double-digits, 15-5. Sophomore Taylor Krause looked to keep the offensive rhythm alive with an ace, but NU held off the attempt with a kill, 17-5.
The Nittany Lions did not let Nebraska get any closer, as Penn State cruised to a 25-12 win in the first set, finished off by a kill and an ace from Courtney to go up 1-0 in the match.
With Penn State leading by one in set two, the Cornhuskers used a 5-0 run to take over a four-point lead, 7-3. PSU halted the momentum with a 4-1 spurt to arrive within one, 8-7, but Nebraska tallied two consecutive kill to remain on top, 10-7. Despite trading points, the Cornhuskers managed to maintain the lead, 17-14.
Down by three, 17-14, Hancock sparked a 3-0 strike with a kill that tied the frame, 17-17, causing the Cornhuskers to call a timeout. Nebraska came out of the break with three unanswered points to remain on top, 20-17. Frantti followed with a kill and a block with Whitney to bring Penn State within one, 20-19, but a Cornhusker kill and a PSU attack kept NU ahead, 22-19.
Rallying, Frantti and Courtney teamed up for two consecutive kills to lift the Nittany Lions back within one, 22-21, but Penn State could not carry the momentum as the Huskers responded with a 3-1 stretch to take set two, 25-22, evening the match, 1-1.
Trailing by four in set three, 6-2, Lee put down two consecutive kills to move Penn State within two, 6-4. The Huskers cut off the run with a kill, but Penn State continued to chip away the advantage, using a 4-3 stretch to tie the frame, 9-9. A PSU service error and two Cornhusker kills quickly brought NU back up by three, 12-9.
Penn State went point-for-point with Nebraska to remain within two, 14-12, until a Husker service error pushed PSU within one, 14-13. Unable to spark a run, Nebraska put together a 5-2 streak to widen the Husker lead to four, 19-15, forcing Penn State to call a timeout. Regrouping, PSU came out of the break with a 3-1 strike capped off with a solo stuff from Whitney to trim the margin back to two, 20-18.
Nebraska came out of the break swinging, tallying two consecutive kills to remain ahead, 22-18, causing the Nittany Lions to use their final timeout of the frame. Grant came out of the break with a kill, but the Huskers follow with a kill to make it set point, 24-19. An NU service error held off the attempt, but the Cornhuskers put down another kill to take set two, 25-20 to go up 2-1 in the match.
Penn State opened set four on a 5-2 run for an early lead. The Huskers cut off the streak with a kill and block to arrive within one, 5-4. A kill from Grant and a Husker attack error kept the Nittany Lions on top, 7-4, Nebraska battled with a 4-3 stretch to tie the frame, 9-9.
Whitney connected on a kill to pull Penn State ahead, 10-9, but the Huskers responded with a 3-0 streak to go up by two, 12-10. PSU answered with a 3-1 strike capped off by back-to-back kills from Courtney, but a pair of attack errors sent the Nittany Lions into the media timeout trailing 15-13.
Courtney and Grant came out of the break with a block to push Penn State within one, 15-14, but a PSU error and a Cornhusker kill brought Nebraska back on top, 17-14. Rebounding, Frantti pounded two consecutive kills to spark a 3-1 run the brought PSU back within one, 18-17. Nebraska followed with a kill, but two more errors tied the set, 19-all.
The Huskers broke away with a two-point lead, 21-19, helped out by two consecutive kills. Courtney looked to spark a streak with a kill, 21-20, but a service error and a kill from the Cornhuskers moved NU up, 23-20. Lee followed with a kill to keep the Nittany Lions close behind, 23-21, but another service error made it set point, 24-21. A kill from Grant and a Cornhusker attack error held off two attempts, but another costly PSU service error gave Nebraska the edge, 25-23.
Next up, Penn State travels to Iowa to round out the second consecutive week of Big Ten road play. The Nittany Lions and the Hawkeyes square off Saturday, Oct. 4 at 8 p.m. ET in Carver-Hawkeye Arena. Fans can stream the broadcast live on BTN Plus with a paid subscription.