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Nov. 18, 2015
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -- Despite taking an early lead in the match, No. 4 Penn State women's volleyball (24-4, 13-4) came up short in a 3-1 (25-14, 22-25, 22-25, 22-25) loss to Michigan (18-10, 8-9) Wednesday evening at Rec Hall.
Three Nittany Lions recorded double figure kills, led by 12 kills from sophomore Haleigh Washington. Washington led the team with a squad-best .714 hitting percentage, while also finishing second on the team with five total blocks.
Sophomore Ali Frantti and redshirt senior Aiyana Whitney finished second on the team with 10 kills each. Frantti chipped in one ace, while Whitney powered the blocking unit with a team-high seven total blocks, including two solo stuffs.
Senior Megan Courtney logged nine kills and three blocks, while also tying for first on the team with 12 digs. Freshman Keeton Holcomb posted 12 digs, while redshirt freshman Bryanna Weiskircher also added 12 digs, along with 38 assists for a double-double.
Penn State won the advantage in the blocking margin, out-blocking Michigan 14.0-8.0, led by multi-block performances from six Nittany Lions.
The Nittany Lions also out-aced the Wolverines 7-4, helped out by aces from four. Sophomore Simone Lee led the way with a career-high three service aces.
Penn State shot out to a 7-3 lead for an early advantage in the opening frame. Looking to regroup, Michigan called a timeout, but the Nittany Lions answered with an 8-3 run to take over a nine-point lead, 15-6. The two teams traded service errors out of the break, 16-7, before three straight Wolverine kills brought Michigan within six, 16-10.
A kill and a solo stuff from Courtney quickly sparked a 7-3 scoring stretch that pushed the Nittany Lion advantage into double digits, 23-13. The Wolverines looked to get back on track with a kill, 23-14, but back-to-back Penn State blocks from Washington and Frantti and Whitney secured a 25-14 win in the first set.
The Nittany Lions constructed a four-point lead in the second set, 14-10, capped off by a pair of kills from Frantti and Whitney, causing Michigan to use its first timeout of the stanza. The Wolverines put down a kill out of the break, 14-11, but Whitney and Courtney responded with back-to-back kills to bring PSU ahead, 16-11. Penn State continued to hold off the Wolverines, pulling ahead by as many as five points, 22-17.
Michigan came storming back with six unanswered points to erase the Nittany Lion advantage, taking over a 23-22 lead, forcing Penn State to call a timeout. The Nittany Lions could not regroup as a kill and a block from the Wolverines out of the break handed Michigan a 25-22 win in the second set to tie the match, 1-1.
Trailing by two in the third set, 9-7, a kill from Washington and two more from Frantti pushed PSU ahead by one, 10-9. Michigan looked to cut off the streak with a kill, but a service error and block from Weiskircher and Whitney gave the Nittany Lions a two-point cushion, 12-10. The Wolverines answered back with a 7-1 run to take over a four-point lead, 17-13. Penn State called a timeout and rallied out of the break with a 6-2 streak, featuring two kills from Whitney, to tie the score, 19-19.
Michigan called a timeout and came out of the huddle with a kill to put the Wolverines on top, 20-19. A U-M service error and a kill from Frantti gave PSU the edge, 21-20. Michigan answered back with a block and an ace to jump ahead, 22-21. A kill from Washington knotted the frame, 22-22, but Penn State could not sustain the momentum as Michigan responded with three straight kills to take set three, 25-22.
Penn State and Michigan traded points early in the fourth set to knot the score, 6-6. The Nittany Lions cracked open the tied frame with a kill from Frantti and a block from Frantti and Whitney, 8-6. Michigan looked to cut off the streak with a kill, 8-7, but PSU regrouped with a 5-1 streak to surge ahead, 13-8, causing Michigan to call a timeout.
The Wolverines came out of the break firing, using a 9-2 run to take over a two-point lead, 17-15, prompting Penn State to call a timeout. Holcomb broke up the streak with an overpass dig-kill, 17-16, but the Wolverines pulled away with a 6-3 run to make it 23-19. Two U-M errors brought Penn State within two, 23-21, but a Michigan kill made it match point, 24-21. A Wolverine service error held off the attempt, but one more kill gave Michigan a 25-22 win in the fourth set to end the match.
Penn State closes out the week at home, hosting Maryland Saturday, Nov. 21 at 7 p.m. in Rec Hall. The matchup marks the second meeting of the 2015 season, as the Nittany Lions claimed a 3-1 win in the first outing on the road earlier this season.