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Oct. 15, 2015
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -- Fifth-ranked Penn State women's volleyball (15-2, 4-2) returns home this weekend for a pair of Big Ten conference matches.
The Nittany Lions are set to square off against Indiana (12-6, 2-4) Friday, Oct. 16 at 7 p.m., before taking on No. 18 Purdue (15-2, 6-0) Saturday, Oct. 17 at 7 p.m. in Rec Hall.
PROMOTIONAL SPOTLIGHT: Penn State will pay tribute to service members on military appreciation night Friday evening. The Nittany Lions will host a postgame sitting volleyball match featuring the PSU men's volleyball team and Penn State Ability Athletes. Following the match on Saturday, Penn State will host a postmatch autograph session for Nittany Lion fans on the court in Rec Hall.
QUICK SETS
* Penn State split the third week of Big Ten conference play, 1-1, pushing past No. 13 Illinois in four sets before coming up short in a 3-2 loss at Northwestern.
* The Nittany Lions moved to 5-1 this year against teams ranked within the Top 25 of the AVCA Coaches' Poll after defeating the Illini. This weekend's matchup against the No. 18 Boilermakers marks Penn State's fifth meeting against a top 25 opponent in its last eight matches.
* With 19 digs in the victory at Illinois, senior Megan Courtney surpassed the 1,000 career digs mark (1,038). Having already reached the 1,000 career kills plateau, Courtney is just the eighth Nittany Lion in program history to reach the 1,000 career kills/1,000 career digs milestone and the first since Deja McClendon in 2013.
* Penn State has earned 13 of its 15 victories this year by way of a 3-0 sweep, while also limiting its opponents to a .139 hitting percentage. The mark ranks seventh nationally and leads the Big Ten.
* Averaging 3.09 blocks per set on the year, Penn State has commanded a 179.0 - 79.5 advantage in the blocking margin against its opponents in 2015. The average ranks fourth nationally and leads the Big Ten. Individually, sophomore Haleigh Washington's 1.53 blocks per set ranks 11th nationally and second in the Big Ten.
* Penn State's .291 hitting clip ranks seventh in the NCAA national standings and second in the Big Ten. Helped out by Haleigh Washington's team-high .454 hitting clip, her efficiency ranks third nationally and leads the Big Ten.
* Veterans senior Megan Courtney and redshirt senior Aiyana Whitney are among the group of top Nittany Lion attackers with 189 and 179 kills, respectively. Averaging 3.26 kills per set, Courtney has had double-doubles (kills/digs) in each of the last six straight matches. Whitney's averaging 3.09 kills per set with double digit kills in eight of the last nine matches.
* In the win against St. John's, Haleigh Washington led a group of five multi-block performers with a career-high 11 total blocks. Her tally is the second highest single-match total in a 3-set match in Penn State program history.
* Penn State moved to No. 5 in the AVCA Top 25 Coaches' Poll. Prior to the move, Penn State was ranked No. 3, having spent the first six straight weeks of the season atop the standings.
* Including Penn State, more than half of the Big Ten teams in the conference are featured in this week's AVCA Top 25 poll, including a season-high eight in the top 25 for the fifth week.
* The Nittany Lions have won their last eight straight matches against Indiana, posting straight set wins in the three most recent outings. The Hoosiers have not visited Penn State since Nov. 9, 2013.
* Penn State has also won its last eight consecutive matches against Purdue, including a close five-set victory on the road in West Lafayette in the most recent meeting Oct. 17, 2014. Saturday's match will be the Boilermakers' first trip to Happy Valley since Nov. 8, 2013.
AT THE TOP OF THE CLASS
Senior Kendall Pierce has been selected as a candidate for the 2015 Senior CLASS Award. Pierce is one of 30 women's volleyball student-athletes to be named a candidate, along with one other from the Big Ten conference. The Senior CLASS Award focuses on the total student-athlete and encourages students to use their platform in athletics to make a positive impact as leaders in their communities. A health policy and administration major, she was honored as a 2014-15 Big Ten Distinguished scholar. Pierce also earned back-to-back Academic All-Big Ten selections from 2013-14.
WEEK 8: AVCA TOP 25 COACHES' POLL UPDATE
After splitting the third week of conference play, Penn State moved to No. 5 in the AVCA Top 25 Coaches' Poll. Prior to the move, Penn State was ranked No. 3, having spent the first six straight weeks of the season atop the standings at No. 1. Including PSU, this week's poll features more than half of the Big Ten conference teams with eight teams in the top 25. Two additional teams (Michigan State, Northwestern) are also receiving votes.
WELCOME TO THE BLOCK PARTY
Penn State's commanded the advantage in the blocking margin against its opponents this year. To date, Penn State has out-blocked its opponents 179.0 - 79.5, averaging 3.09 blocks per set, which ranks fourth nationally and leads the conference. Individually, sophomore Haleigh Washington's 1.53 blocks per set ranks 11th nationally and second in the Big Ten. Sophomore Heidi Thelen's 1.16 blocks per set ranks second on the team and 10th in the league.
DEFENSIVELY SPEAKING
Penn State has limited its opponents to .139 hitting this season, which ranks first in the Big Ten standings and seventh nationally. PSU has held nine opponents to .097 or lower hitting efficiency. The Nittany Lions have limited four squads to hitting clips between .210-.267. Only Stanford (.267) and Iowa (.283) have hit .250 or better against the Nittany Lions. At the Golden Dome Invitational, Penn State held back-to-back teams to negative team hitting clips. Eastern Kentucky hit -.012, while Mississippi State hit -.010.
HERE COME THE BROOMS
Penn State has earned 13 of its 15 victories this season by way of a 3-0 sweep. Penn State has also limited Eastern Kentucky, Mississippi State and St. John's to less than 45 total points in a single match, holding the Colonels to a season-low 41 total points. The Red Storm had 43 and Bulldogs had just 42.
OPTIONS ON OFFENSE
Redshirt freshman setter Bryanna Weiskircher has directed the Nittany Lions to a .291 hitting percentage, which ranks seventh nationally and second in the Big Ten. Weiskircher has also paced three of her top attackers to .258 or better hitting, led by sophomore Haleigh Washington's .454 hitting clip, which ranks third nationally and leads the Big Ten conference.
Redshirt senior Aiyana Whitney's .327 hitting percentage is second on the team and 11th in the conference, while senior Megan Courtney's .258 clip is fourth on the team. Averaging 3.26 kills per set, Courtney has had double-doubles (kills/digs) in each of the last six straight matches. Whitney's averaging 3.09 kills per set with double digit kills in eight of the last nine matches.
PROTECT THIS HOUSE
Including an 8-1 mark in 2015, Penn State owns a 572-32 (.947) all-time record at home in Rec Hall. After splitting the most recent week at home, Penn State is 261-18 all-time in conference matches on the court at Rec Hall. Only Ohio State has defeated the Nittany Lions on their home court more than three times, having topped PSU five times. Illinois, Minnesota, Michigan State and Nebraska are the only four teams to beat PSU at home more than once.
COURTNEY REACHES CAREER MILESTONE
Against Iowa, senior Megan Courtney's 12 kills lifted her to the 1,000 career kills milestone. With 19 digs at Illinois, she surpassed the 1,000 career digs mark (1,038). Achieving the mark, Courtney is just the eighth Nittany Lion in program history to reach the 1,000 career kills/1,000 career digs milestone and the first since Deja McClendon in 2013.
Penn State All-Time 1,000 kill/1,000 Nittany Lions
1. 2,142/1,150 Megan Hodge, 2006-09*
2. 1,842/1,005 Terri Zemaitis, 1994-97
3. 1,631/1,176 Deja McClendon, 2010-13*
4. 1,438/1,522 Noelle Zientara, 1987-90
5. 1,245/1,278 Laura Cook, 1994-97
6. 1,234/1,167 Vida Kernich, 1983-86
7. 1,136/1,153 Carrie Shonveld, 1996-99
8. 1,036/1,038 Megan Courtney, 2012-Pres.*
* indicates rally scoring era
LAST TIME OUT
Oct. 18, 2014 - (25-11, 25-19, 25-15)
PSU 3, IND 0 - Bloomington, Ind. - University Gym
Then-No. 7 Penn State topped Indiana 3-0 on the road at University Gym. Six Nittany Lions recorded five or more kills in the victory, led by Megan Courtney, who posted a team-high nine kills on .500 hitting. Nia Grant and Haleigh Washington finished close behind with eight kills apiece, hitting at least .700 or better. Grant also anchored the blocking unit with five blocks, while Washington finished tied for second with three.
The Nittany Lions have won their last eight straight matches against Indiana, posting straight set wins in the three most recent outings. The Hoosiers have not visited Penn State since Nov. 9, 2013.
Oct. 17, 2014 - (26-24, 23-25, 22-25, 25-23, 15-9)
PSU 3, PUR 2 - West Lafayette, Ind. - Holloway Gym
Helped out by three double-digit kill performances, then-No. 7 Penn State handed Purdue its first conference loss in five sets on the road. Aiyana Whitney led the team with a career-high 18 kills. Ali Frantti followed close behind with 16 kills, adding seven digs. Five recorded at least three blocks in the win, led by a career-high eight blocks from Haleigh Washington. Megan Courtney finished second with five blocks, while also tallying 14 digs.
Penn State has also won its last eight consecutive matches against Purdue, including a close five-set victory on the road in West Lafayette in the most recent meeting Oct. 17, 2014. Two of the last three matches between PSU and Purdue have been decided in five sets. Saturday's match will be the Boilermakers' first trip to Happy Valley since Nov. 8, 2013.
WHAT'S NEXT?
Penn State hits the road next week, traveling to the state of Michigan for a pair of Big Ten conference matches. The Nittany Lions travel to Michigan for a midweek matchup Wednesday, Oct. 21, at 7 p.m. before visiting Michigan State Saturday, Oct. 24 at 8 p.m. Wednesday's match will broadcast live on the Big Ten Network.