Dec. 7, 2016
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UNIVESRITY PARK, Pa. - The 16-seed Penn State women's volleyball team (24-9) advanced to the Regional semifinal following victories over LIU Brooklyn, 3-0 (25-8, 25-16, 25-6) and Pitt, 3-1 (20-25, 25-16, 25-13, 25-18), in the opening weekend of the NCAA tournament. The Nittany Lions are now slated to face the top-seeded Nebraska Cornhuskers (29-2) in Lincoln, Nebraska on Friday, Dec. 9 at 12 p.m. ET. The match is set for broadcast on ESPNU, with Paul Sunderland and Karch Kirlay on the call.
FIRST SERVE
» With a win over the Cornhuskers, Penn State would advance to the Regional Final, facing the winner of eight-seed Washington (28-4) and Arizona (20-14).
» With the selection as a host seed, Penn State has now served as a first and second round site in each of the past 27 seasons. With the selection to the NCAA tournament Penn State, along with Stanford, is one of just two programs to make appearances in all 36 NCAA tournaments.
» The AVCA announced its All-Region award winners on Tuesday. Simone Lee and Haleigh Washington earned spots on the All-Region Team, while Frantti was named an honorable mention.
» Penn State saw four members of the team land postseason Big Ten honors, with juniors Simone Lee and Haleigh Washington both earning unanimous All-Big Ten honors, while freshmen Tori Gorrell and Kendall White made the All-Freshmen Team.
» Junior outside hitter Ali Frantti eclipsed the 900 career kill benchmark with nine kills in the most recent outing against the Ohio State Buckeyes. She is now just 32 kills short of becoming the 26th member of Penn State's 1,000 kill club. Frantti enters Friday's match after posting 16 kills last weekend.
» Following a 14 kills performance against Pitt, Simone Lee earned the third spot on the Penn State single season kills leaderboard during the 25-point rally scoring era.
» Juniors Haleigh Washington and Simone Lee both rank among the nation's best in statistical categories at the end of the regular season. Washington ranked second in the country in hitting percentage (.43), while Lee's 4.17 kills per set ranked 37th in NCAA Division I. Both Washington and Lee's numbers lead the Big Ten conference.
» Three Penn State players in Lee, Washington and redshirt freshman Tori Gorrell all have chances to place among the top-five during the 25-point rally scoring era in single-season statistical categories. Lee (average kills/set) and Washington (hitting percentage) would rank third and tied for fifth, respectively, in their categories if the season ended today. Gorrell (total block solos, 22) is poised to crack the top five as well.
» PSU finds itself among the top 35 in the country in a pair statistical categories as a team at the end of the regular season. The Nittany Lions have hit the ball at a .290 clip entering the tournament, coming in first in the Big Ten and third nationally. Penn State averages 2.53 blocks per set, coming in fourth in the Big Ten and 35th among Division I programs.
PENN STATE AGAINST LINCOLN REGIONAL OPPONENTS
Penn State enters the weekend with a 10-18 record all-time against the Cornhuskers. Nebraska has been the winner of the past three, with Penn State pushing the team to five sets in Rec Hall earlier this season before being swept by Nebraska in the Bob Devaney Sports Center last time the two sides faced one another. If Penn State wins Friday afternoon, the team will face the winner of No. 8 Washington and Arizona. Penn State is 2-2 all-time against the Huskies and hold a 2-1 edge in matches against the Wildcats.
NCAA ROUNDUP: PENN STATE PASSES LIU BROOKLYN, PITT
Penn State advanced to the Regional round of the NCAA tournament after taking down LIU Brooklyn (3-0) and Pitt (3-1) in the opening weekend of postseason play. Junior Simone Lee led the way for the offense with 26 total kills, while classmates Ali Frantti and Haleigh Washington added 16 kills each. Redshirt freshman Tori Gorrell added 13 kills on a team-best .550 hitting among the team's regular attackers. Washington led the team with nine blocks while Gorrell added eight.
Through the first weekend of postseason play, PSU ranked second among the 64 teams included in both opponent hitting efficiency (.068) and total blocks (23.5). Junior setter Abby Detering led Penn State to a .351 hitting percentage, good for seventh among the tournament teams. With five aces in two matches played, Detering ranked second among all players in the tournament.
HOW SWEET IT IS
Penn State makes its 28th appearance in the regional semifinals against top-seed Nebraska on Friday afternoon, with a 16-11 record in the Regional semifinals all-time. Since the expansion of the tournament to 64 teams, Penn State has held a 15-5 mark in regional semifinal matches. Penn State has been 4-1 in the last five sweet 16 appearances, with the lone loss coming last season in a 3-0 sweep by Hawaii last season.
LEE, WASHINGTON, FRANTTI GARNER AVCA ALL-REGION RECOGNITION
A trio Penn State women's volleyball juniors were named to the AVCA Northeast Region team on Tuesday morning, as announced by the organization's office. Outside hitter Simone Lee and middle blocker Haleigh Washington were both named to the regional team, while classmate Ali Frantti was named an honorable mention.
Lee paced Penn State's offense throughout the season, averaging 4.15 kills per set, good for best in the Big Ten. The junior had a standout season on offense, posting 481 total kills, ranking third in single season kills during the 25-point rally scoring era. She also added 182 digs, 60 blocks and 17 service aces over the season. Lee was also named the ESPNW National Player of the Week on Oct. 12 following a 30-kill performance against then No. 1 Minnesota. The honor marks Lee's first AVCA recognition.
Washington continues to be one of the most consistent hitters in the college game, leading Penn State and the Big Ten while ranking second in the nation in hitting percentage with a startling .435 clip. The percentage is also the best among all players from Power Five institutions. Washington has led the team in blocks, posting 133 total while adding 281 total kills, good for second on the team. The Colorado Springs, Colorado native added 71 digs on the season and 24 service aces, good for second best on the team. The selection marks Washington's third AVCA end-of-year distinction - she was named to last year's All-Region list before also being named a first-team All-American.
After a slower start than she had anticipated, Frantti turned around the season in the second half as she launched up the offensive ranks to finish third on the team in kills with 274 this season. Frantti finds herself just 32 kills shy of the 1,000 kill club now, with 968 to date. The junior outside has also added 204 digs, 56 blocks and 16 service aces this season. Frantti is no stranger to earning AVCA awards - the Spring Grove, Illinois, native was named the AVCA's National Freshman of the Year in 2014 along with second team All-America distinctions and a spot on the All-Region team that year. Frantti also earned All-Region honors in 2015 before going on to earn an honorable mention for All-America status.
FOUR NITTANY LIONS GARNER POSTSEASON B1G HONORS
Penn State saw four members of the team land postseason Big Ten honors, with juniors Simone Lee and Haleigh Washington both earning unanimous All-Big Ten honors, while freshmen Tori Gorrell and Kendall White made the All-Freshmen Team.
The honor markeds Lee's first time being names to the All-Big Ten Team. Washington's selection marks her fourth annual Big Ten honor - she was a unanimous All-Big Ten selection in 2015 and named B1G Freshman of the Year as well as a member of the All-Big Ten Team in 2014.
Gorrell, a redshirt freshman middle blocker, earned a spot on the All-Freshman team after posting 185 kills and a team second-best 110 total blocks. With 21 solo rejections, Gorrell leads the team and is just three short of ranking tied for fifth in the 25-point rally scoring era for Penn State. Gorrell's 110 blocks were also good for second best among freshmen in the Big Ten.
White started all of the 2016 season at libero for the Nittany Lions, leading the team's back row defense with 438 total digs. Averaging 4.18 digs per set in conference play, White finished third in the conference behind Illinois' Brandi Donnelly and Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year Justine Wong-Orantes. White added 69 assists and 11 aces during the regular season of her rookie campaign.
MR. 1,200
With a 3-0 win over Michigan State on Sept. 30, Russ Rose became the first active Division I volleyball coach to reach the 1,200-win mark. Rose holds the title of winningest coach in Division I, tallying a 1,213-195 record to date. Rose is joined by only Hawaii's Dave Shoji in active coaches with 1,200 or more wins.
LEE ETCHES MARK IN SINGLE SEASON RECORDS
With her seventh kill against Northwestern on Nov. 25, junior Simone Lee etched her name in the Penn State record books, cracking the top-five for single season kills in the 25-point rally scoring era. Lee has since climbed to 455 total kills on the season. With 14 kills against Pitt, Lee sprang into third place on the single season leaderboard. She now sits 40 short of tying for second place.
25-POINT RALLY SCORING SINGLE SEASON TOTAL KILLS
Rank K Name, Year
1. 560 Megan Hodge, 2009
2. 521 Blair Brown, 2010
3. 481 Simone Lee, 2016
4. 470 Megan Hodge, 2008
5. 469 Ariel Scott, 2012
LEE, WASHINGTON ON TRACK FOR RECORD SEASONS; GORRELL CLIMBING LEADERBOARD
Having impressive seasons thus far, junior classmates Simone Lee and Haleigh Washington are both on-track for seasons that rank among the best during the 25-point rally scoring era. Lee, averaging 4.15 kills per set currently, would rank third during the era for single-season kills per set. Washington, currently hitting at a .435 clip, would finish fifth in single-season hitting efficiency if the season ended today.
Redshirt freshman Tori Gorrell has a team-best 22 solo stuffs so far in 2016. With just two more she could match Haleigh Washington's output from 2015 with 24 to tie for the fifth-most in the 25-point rally scoring era.
25-POINT RALLY SINGLE SEASON TOTAL BLOCK SOLOS
Rank TB Name, Year
1. 32 Megan Courtney, 2012
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4. 27 Katie Slay, 2011
5. 24 Haleigh Washington, 2015
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22 Tori Gorrell, 2016
FRANTTI CLOSING IN ON 1,000 KILL CLUB
After logging 11 kills in the second round of the NCAA tournament against Pitt, junior Ali Frantti finds herself 32 kills away from being the 26th Nittany Lion with 1,000 career kills. Currently averaging 2.75 kills per set over her career, Frantti will likely break the milestone next season, but could do so with a few big games or a deep tournament run. Frantti would become the first Penn State volleyball player to join the 1,000 kill ranks since Megan Courtney did so last season, ending her career with 1,154 kills.
ALL-TIME CAREER KILLS LEADERBOARD
Rank TK Name, Year
1. 2,282 Lori Barberich, 1981-84
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24. 1,069 Zeynep Ton, 1992-95
25. 1,016 Cassy Sayler, 2003-06
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968 Ali Frantti, 2014-Pres.
NITTANY LIONS AMONG THE NATION'S ELITE IN EFFICIENCY
Penn State has been extremely successful keeping its offense among the top in the country. Following the regular season, the Nittany Lions rank first in the Big Ten and fifth in Division I in hitting efficiency, attacking a .290 clip. Junior Haleigh Washington continues to be one of the most consistent offensive threats in the country in 2016, ranking among the best in the nation in hitting efficiency. Hitting at a .438 clip in all matches this season, the Colorado Springs, Colorado, product leads the Big Ten and ranks second among NCAA Division I players in hitting percentage.
The Nittany Lions not only excel at having one of the most efficient offenses in the country, but also at limiting those of the opposition. PSU ranks 48th nationally and ranks second in the Big Ten in limiting opponents hitting, holding foes to a .173 clip. The team also has contributed an impressive blocking performance thus far, finishing regular season action averaging 2.53 blocks per set, good for fourth in the conference and 35th nationally.
NITTANY LION ALUMS EARN BRONZE WITH TEAM USA
Penn State women's volleyball All-American alums Alisha Glass and Christa (Harmotto) Dietzen earned a Bronze medal with the United States Women's National Team at the Olympic Games in Rio.
Having played key roles for Team USA throughout the event, Glass and Dietzen helped the United States to a 3-1 (25-23, 25-27, 25-22, 25-19) win against the Netherlands to clinch The Americans' second Bronze medal since the 1992 games in Barcelona, Spain. Team USA went 6-0 through Pool play before a close 3-2 loss to Serbia in the semifinals moved the United States to 6-1 heading into the Bronze medal match.
Penn State women's volleyball now has four Olympic medalists in Nittany Lion program history as Glass earns her first and Dietzen picks up her second consecutive. Having previously earned Silver with the U.S. at the 2012 Games in London, Dietzen is Penn State's first women's volleyball alum to win two Olympic medals as a member of the 12-woman roster.
From Hopewell Township, Pa., Dietzen was a two-time first-team All-American and the 2008 CoSIDA Academic All-American of the Year in women's volleyball. From Leland, Mich., Glass also was a two-time first-team All-American for the Nittany Lions. Glass was a member of the initial three national title squads and Dietzen was a member of the first two squads, playing for Hall of Fame Coach Russ Rose.
WHAT'S NEXT?
With a win over Nebraksa, Penn State would move on to the Regional final, taking on the winner of Arizona and No. 8 Washington. A win would also give Penn State a 16-5 record in Regional semifinal matches all-time.