Oct. 8, 2014
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| Rec Hall | University Park, Pa. | |
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UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - A pair of double-digit kill performances from redshirt junior Aiyana Whitney and junior Megan Courtney propelled the No. 5 Penn State women's volleyball team (16-2, 4-1) to a straight set (25-20, 25-17, 25-17) victory against No. 24 Northwestern (13-3, 3-2) Wednesday evening at Rec Hall.
Whitney led the offense with 12 kills on .500 hitting, adding a match-high seven blocks. Courtney tallied 10 kills on .400 hitting, posting eight digs and two blocks. Senior Nia Grant finished third on the team with seven kills on .500 hitting, notching five blocks. Senior Dominique Gonzalez anchored the defense with 10 digs.
Senior Micha Hancock paced the offense to a .340 team hitting clip, dishing out 30 assists while also logging seven digs, three blocks and a match-high four aces.
Penn State and Northwestern traded a pair of points to tie the match early, 2-2, before Courtney sparked a 5-1 streak with back-to-back kills to lift the Nittany Lions ahead, 6-3. The Wildcats answered with a 3-1 spurt to jump within one, 7-6, but PSU followed with a 5-2 strike to stretch the lead to three, 12-9.
Unable to shake Northwestern for good, the Wildcats responded with a 7-4 run to arrive within one, 17-16. Whitney fired back with a kill before posting up with Courtney for a block to give the Nittany Lions a three-point cushion, 19-16. NU halted the momentum with a kill, 19-17, but PSU used a 6-3 run featuring kills from Whitney, Courtney and Grant to secure set one, 25-20.
Trailing by two in set two, 5-3, Penn State surged ahead on an 8-2 scoring streak, bolstering the lead to as many as four, 11-7. The Wildcats cut off the rhythm with a kill, but an NU service error and two consecutive kills from Frantti and Whitney sparked a 4-1 strike that brought the Nittany Lions up by six, 15-9.
Northwestern narrowed the gap to four with a quick 3-1 spurt, 16-12, but PSU responded with a 7-3 streak to make it 23-15. The Wildcats looked to mount a comeback with a kill, 23-16, but an error made it set point, 24-16. NU held off just one attempt before an attack error handed the Nittany Lions a 25-17 decision in set two for a 2-0 lead in the match.
Penn State came out of the intermission battling point-for-point with Northwestern in the early part of the third frame. Down by one, 6-5, the Nittany Lions regrouped with a 7-2 run to take control of a four-point lead, 12-8. The Wildcats put an end to the scoring strike with a kill, 12-9, but PSU tallied the next six consecutive points to construct a nine-point advantage, 18-9.
Northwestern looked to get back on track with three straight points, 18-12, but the Nittany Lions followed with a 4-0 run capped off by kills from Whitney and Lee to push the lead into double digits, 22-12. The Wildcats used a 2-1 burst to trim the deficit to nine, 23-14, but Courtney smacked a kill to make it match point, 24-14. Making one final attempt at a comeback, NU held off three consecutive attempts before Grant locked up a 25-17 win in the third frame to complete the sweep.
Next up, Penn State remains home welcoming another Big Ten opponent to the court in Rec Hall. The Nittany Lions host No. 15 Illinois Saturday, Oct. 11 at 4 p.m.