Iowa at No. 5 Penn State | Saturday, Oct. 5 - 7 p.m. | Live Stats | Listen | BTN+ ($)
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – No. 5 Penn State looks to bounce back from a tough road loss as it returns to Rec Hall to take on Iowa in a Big Ten women's volleyball match on Saturday at 7 p.m. The teams will meet for the 54th time in program history, and the Lions are unbeaten at 53-0 in the series.
Penn State dropped to 9-3 overall and 2-1 in the Big Ten with a 3-1 loss at No. 13 Wisconsin on Wednesday. It was the team's fifth match against a top-25 opponent this season. Kaitlyn Hord finished with 10 kills on .471 hitting and had five blocks.
Iowa is 7-7 overall and 1-2 in the Big Ten. The Hawkeyes opened league play with a 3-1 win over Northwestern before dropping back-to-back matches against Illinois and Minnesota. They did take a set from the seventh-ranked Gophers.
The Lions are 27-0 at Rec Hall in the series with the Hawkeyes.
PENN STATE
Record: 9-3
Big Ten: 2-1
2018: 26-8 (14-6 Big Ten)
Head Coach: Russ Rose
At Penn State: 1,281-209 (41st)
Overall: 1,281-209 (41st)
Location: University Park, Pa.
IOWA
Record: 7-7
Big Ten: 1-2
2018: 15-16 (7-13 Big Ten)
Head Coach: Vicki Brown
At Iowa: 7-7 (first)
Overall: 7-7 (first)
Location: Iowa City, Iowa
FULL NOTES: Iowa at No. 5 Penn State
PENN STATE AGAINST THE BIG TEN
The Nittany Lions are 489-74 all time in Big Ten play, posting a winning percentage of .870. Penn State has had a winning record in Big Ten play every season since joining the conference in 1991. The Lions went undefeated with a 20-0 record against conference opponents in six of those seasons.
STRENGTH IN THE MIDDLE
Sophomore middle blockers Kaitlyn Hord and Serena Gray rank first and third in the Big Ten in hitting percentage. Hord is hitting .442, good enough for sixth in the nation, while Gray his hitting .423, which is good enough for 13th in the nation.
TOP-FIVE ATTENDANCE
Penn State currently ranks fourth in the nation in home attendance, averaging 3,752 fans through eight matches at Rec Hall. The Big Ten holds five of the top 10 spots in the national home attendance rankings.
NATIONALLY RANKED
Penn State remained at No. 5 in the AVCA Coaches Poll after sweeping Michigan State and Rutgers last week. The Nittany Lions have been ranked in 448 consecutive polls dating back to the end of the 1988 season.
PENNSYLVANIA LEADS THE WAY IN COLLEGE VOLLEYBALL
Pennsylvania is one of seven states with multiple teams ranked in the ACVA Top 25, but is the only state with two teams ranked in the top five with Pittsburgh at No. 4 and Penn State at No. 5.
WHITE NEARS DIGS RECORD
Senior Kendall White ranks third in program history with 1,676 career digs. She needs just 10 to pass Kim Kumfer (1989-92) for second and needs 282 to pass Kaleena Walters (2002-05) to become the all-time leader.
WIN AGAINST EIGHT CONFERENCES
Penn State's nine wins this season have come against teams from eight different conferences, including the CAA, Patriot League, American Athletic Conference, Big 12, SEC, Pac 12, ACC, and Big Ten.
BIG TEN AWARDS
Kaitlyn Hord won the team's lone Big Ten weekly award through four weeks of the season with Player of the Week recognition following the second weekend of play. She earned the award after being named the MVP at the Cyclone Invitational, where the Lions swept Iowa State and LSU.
