NEW BRUNSWICK, N.J. – Tori Gorrell hit .529 with 12 kills, and Serena Gray had three of the team's 10 aces as No. 8 Penn State swept Rutgers 3-0 (25-14, 25-19, 25-12) in a Big Ten women's volleyball match Sunday afternoon at the College Avenue Gymnasium.
Penn State improved to 23-4 overall and 16-2 in the Big Ten with its 14th win in 15 matches. Rutgers dropped to 8-21 overall and 2-16 in the conference.
Gorrell led the way as the Lions hit .351 with 44 kills. She was joined in double-digits by Jonni Parker with 11 kills. Gray added seven on .312 hitting and contributed five digs. Kaitlyn Hord tallied five kills on .357 hitting.
Gorrell got off to a hot start in set one, recording kills on each of her first four swings. She finished the set with five kills on six swings, while Gray added five kills on eight attacks. Neither player had an attack error in the set.
Gorrell continued her success on the attack in set two, adding four more kills. She was at .538 hitting on nine kills at the conclusion of two sets. Freshman Gabi Bailey made her third appearance of the season and added three kills on four swings.
Amanda Phegley made her first appearance of the match in set three and came through with three kills on five swings. Parker had four kills in the set, while Gorrell added three more on four attacks.
Jenna Hampton finished with a team-high 11 digs. It was just the third time this season and the first since Sept. 22, that Kendall White didn't lead the team in digs. White finished with eight, giving her 1,910 for her career. Gabby Blossom and Keeton Holcomb added six and four digs, respectively.
The team's 10 aces came from five different players, including two apiece from Parker, Blossom, and White. Emily Sciorra added one ace.
Rutgers was held to 23 kills in the match. Tali Marmen and Anastasii Maksimova had six apiece.
Penn State's win sets up a huge weekend of matches to close the regular season as four teams will have a chance to win at least a share of the Big Ten regular season title. The standings as of the end of the Lions' match have Wisconsin on top at 16-1, Penn State in second at 16-2, Nebraska in third with a record of 15-2, and Minnesota in fourth at 15-3. Nebraska and Wisconsin play each other today.
The Lions control their own destiny as they will play two home matches against those teams to finish off the regular season. They will play Wisconsin on Friday at 6:30 p.m., and host Minnesota on Saturday at 8 p.m.
The 2019 Penn State women's volleyball season is presented by McLanahan's.
