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Sept. 2, 2017
COLLEGE STATION, Texas - The No. 5 Penn State women's volleyball team outlasted tournament host Texas A&M in a scrappy five-set match, as the Nittany Lions took the game by a score of 3-2; 24-26, 25-19, 25-23, 24-26, 15-12, in Reed Arena on Saturday evening.
In a back-and-forth match, the host team took an 8-5 lead, but after a side out, the Nittany Lions went on a seven-point run behind the serve of Bryanna Weiskircher (Loves Park, Ill.), and Penn State was able to keep their composure and put the match away.
Simone Lee (Menomonee Falls, Wis.) found her offensive rhythm early against the Aggies and tallied 12 kills through the first two sets alone. The senior finished the match with 30 at a clip of .456. She was reliable through each set, providing offense both in the front row and with a thundering back row attack.
In the crucial third set win, it was Haleigh Washington (Colorado Springs, Co.) who led the Nittany Lions to take the set. The senior put away seven kills in the set alone and finished the match with 12. She also added six blocks.
Penn State saw Ali Frantti (Spring Grove, Ill.) consistent production as she recorded her second-straight double-double with a season-high 16 kills and 13 digs. Weiskircher also finished with her second consecutive double-double with 31 assists and 11 digs. She also dished out three timely aces, including one during her serving run to bring the Nittany Lions back in the final set.
Abby Detering (Mentor, Ohio) finished with a team-high 32 assists, adding six digs, three blocks, and three kills.
Kendall White (Indianapolis, Ind.) was an anchor on the back line, keeping the Nittany Lions in system to run their offense productively, while also scooping up a team-best 15 digs.
The team put down 71 kills in the five-set match on a clip of .325.
Penn State returns to action on Sept. 9 in the Big Ten/ Pac-12 Challenge in Champagne, Ill., as they take on Colorado at 5:30 p.m. ET.
Notables
>> Lee's 30 kills is her season-high and her highest total since Oct. 5. 2016, when she also put down 30 in a five-set match against Minnesota.
>> This was the first five-set win for the Nittany Lions since the Oct. 5, 2016, match at home against Minnesota. This is the first road five-set win since Oct. 21, 2015, when Penn State beat Michigan in Ann Arbor.
>> This marks Frantti's sixth career double-double.
>> Frantti also moved into 25th all-time with 1,026 career kills, passing Cassy Sayler (2003-06).
>> This was Weiskircher's 13th career-double-double.