Nov. 30, 2017
| ||||||||||||||||||
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - The No. 1 Penn State women's volleyball team, who claimed the No. 1 overall seed in the NCAA Bracket for 2017, will open up the NCAA Tournament with a First Round match versus Howard at 7:30 p.m. ET on Friday evening inside of Rec Hall on Penn State's campus.
PARKING & TRAFFIC
Women's Volleyball fans will have free parking in the Nittany Parking Deck, as well as in the Red A lots off North Atherton Street at White Course Drive. The gates will be open at both the entrance and the exit to the Deck.
TICKETS
All-session tickets for the 2017 NCAA Tournament First and Second Rounds at Penn State will go on sale to the general public Monday, November 27 at 10:00 a.m. Current Penn State women's volleyball season ticket holders and NLC members will have the option to purchase all-session tickets now through their account manager on TicketMaster.com. All-session tickets are priced at $12 for adults and $10 for students and youth ages 12 and under. Groups of 20 or more may purchase tickets at a discounted rate of $8.
Fans can purchase tickets by calling 1-800-NITTANY or by visiting the Athletic Ticket Office in the Bryce Jordan Center from 10:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday.
Single-match tickets will only be sold at the door the night of each match. Tickets are $8 for adults and $6 for students and youth ages 12 and under. Groups of 20 or more may purchase tickets at a discounted rate of $5. Doors will open at 4:00 p.m. Friday, December 1 and 5:00 p.m. Saturday, December 2.
VOTE, VOTE, VOTE
Haleigh Washington and Simone Lee were both named as Senior CLASS Award finalists. There are only ten finalists in the Women's Volleyball category, and fans' votes will be credited towards 1/3 of the winner's selection. Since the award's inauguration in 2010, Penn State has only had two finalists up to this point. Ariel Scott won in 2013, and Arielle Wilson was a First Team honoree in 2010. It is a Nittany Lion first with two in the final ten. VOTE
LAST TIME VS. HOWARD
Sept. 17, 2016 - PSU, 3-0; 25-16, 25-12, 25-16
The Nittany Lions had a balanced attack, with four players posting seven or more kills in the match. Outside hitter Simone Lee led the way for Penn State, this time with 12 kills. Haleigh Washington posted eight kills on .467 hitting while tacking on a team-best four blocks.
The duo of Ali Frantti and Heidi Thelen each posted seven kills. Frantti tacked on six digs and two blocks, while Thelen put up a pair of blocks as well.
Penn State holds a 3-0 advantage in the all-time series against Howard and has the same record for matches played at home in Rec Hall.
NOTABLES
>> For the seventh-straight week, the Penn State women's volleyball team has earned the No. 1 ranking in the American Volleyball Coaches Association and the Nittany Lions have earned all 64 votes for a unanimous selection. They are the first team this season that has received all 64 votes.
>> The marks the 73rd week the Nittany Lions have been at No. 1 in the poll since the end of the 2006 season, and the 97th time in the history of the poll. The Nittany Lions' first No. 1 Ranking came on Sept. 2, 1997, and the poll was started in 1982.
>> Penn State has racked up 12 Big Ten weekly awards as Simone Lee has a Player and Defensive honor to her name, while Haleigh Washington has picked up five Player of the Week honors, Kendall White has earned three Defensive Player of the Week awards, Ali Frantti snagged a Player of the Week honor, and Tori Gorrell closed out the season with a Defensive Player of the Week mark.
>> Against Rutgers (11/18), Simone Lee set a Penn State record for hitting percentage. The Penn State record required a minimum of 20 attempts, and the outside put down 17 kills with one error on 20 swings for a .800 clip to set the record.
>> Haleigh Washington is hitting the nation's best .515, which is on pace to be the 2nd best hitting percentage from 2008-Present in a season.
>> Washington is also on pace to have one of the top-three career hitting percentages in NCAA history (.461).
>> Haleigh Washington was named CoSIDA Academic All-District for 2017. She has two CoSIDA Academic All-American honors to her name and is now looking for a third.
>> Penn State has three active 1,000 kill club members as Ali Frantti was the first on Aug. 26 at West Virginia, and Simone Lee followed on Oct. 6 at Ohio State, and Haleigh Washington eclipsed the mark on Oct. 21 at Indiana. The last time Penn State had three active 1,000 kill club members was in 2008. Entering the season, Megan Hodge and Nicole Fawcett were already past the mark, but on Sept. 5, 2008, Christa Harmotto joined the club as well.
>>Haleigh Washington became the 7th athlete in Penn State volleyball lore to reach 1,000 kills and 500 blocks on Oct. 25. She was the first in seven seasons to reach 500 blocks, as the last to achieve this feat was Arielle Wilson (2007-10).
>>Twice this season, the Nittany Lions have had four players with double-digit kills. Against Stanford (9/1): Abby Detering (11k), Ali Frantti (10k), Haleigh Washington (10k), and Simone Lee (11k), and against Purdue (10/20): Ali Frantti (15k), Heidi Thelen (14k), Simone Lee (13k), and Haleigh Washington (10k).
>> The Nittany Lions are one of only two NCAA Division I women's volleyball programs to comÂpete in all 36 NCAA Tournaments since 1981. In tournament play, the Nittany Lions own a 94-29 all-time record, having made 12 appearances in the final four.
>> Since 2007, Penn State has made more appearances in the national semifinals than any other program. PSU has participated in eight of the last 10 final fours.
FIRST ROUND FACTS
PSU is set to host the first two rounds of the NCAA tournament for the 31st time since 1981, welcoming three teams to Rec Hall for the 28th consecutive year. Penn State improved to 31-5 all-time record in opening matches of the tourney last season, after sweeping LIU Brooklyn. The Nittany Lions have not surrendered a single set to a first round opponent since 1989, having posted sweeps in its last 27 consecutive first-round victories
WHAT'S NEXT FOR PENN STATE?
With a pair of wins this weekend, Penn State would host the NCAA Regional rounds at Rec Hall on Dec. 8 and 9.