UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – Sophomore Kaitlyn Hord was named the Big Ten Women's Volleyball Player of the Week after leading No. 4 Penn State to the title at the Cyclone Invitational at Iowa State this past weekend.
Hord hit .545 while averaging 3.33 kills/set and 1.17 blocks/set as Penn State swept both Iowa State and LSU. The Nittany Lions have swept all five of their opponents this season.
Penn State opened the tournament with a 3-0 (25-22, 25-16, 25-16) win over the host Cyclones behind 12 kills, .647 hitting, and two blocks from Hord. She then led the Nittany Lions to a 3-0 (25-16, 25-11, 25-16) victory over LSU, recording eight kills, .438 hitting, and five total blocks.
The two wins helped Penn State jump two spots in the national rankings. The Lions were ranked eighth in the preseason, moved to sixth after week one, and are now fourth after two weeks of play.
No. 1 Stanford, No. 2 Nebraska, No. 3 Texas, and No. 5 Baylor round out the top five.
Hord was joined on the Cyclone Invitational All-Tournament Team by teammates Jonni Parker and Kendall White.
The Lions have an exciting weekend of matches coming up as they host No. 1 Stanford and No. 10 Oregon for the Big Ten/Pac 12 Challenge at Rec Hall on Friday and Saturday. Friday's match will air live on the Big Ten Network. No. 8 Minnesota will also play the two Pac 12 teams at the event.
2019 Big Ten Players of the Week
Sept. 3
P: Dana Rettke, Jr., WIS
D: Jayme Cox, Jr., MSU
S: Sydney Hilley, Jr., WIS
F: Kenzie Knuckles, NEB
Sept. 9
P: Kaitlyn Hord, So., PSU
D: Karysa Swackenberg, Sr., RU
S: Kylie Miller, Sr., MINN
F: Temi Thomas-Ailara, NU
