MADISON, Wisc. – No. 14 Penn State took a 2-1 lead on No. 3 Wisconsin but dropped the final two sets in a 3-2 (25-27, 32-30, 20-25, 25-23, 15-7) loss in Big Ten women's volleyball action Saturday night at the UW Field House.
The Lions, who were playing a nationally-ranked conference opponent on the road for the third straight match, saw their record dip to 13-6 overall and 7-3 in the conference. The Badgers improved to 17-1, 9-1.
A late comeback gave Penn State the win in set one. The Lions trailed 24-21 before going on a 4-0 run to take the lead at 25-24. The first three points came on kills by Erika Pritchard, Jonni Parker and Adanna Rollins. The Lions took the lead on a Wisconsin attack error and went on to win the set 27-25 on a solo block by Rollins.
Kaitlyn Hord and Parker had five kills apiece in the opening set, while Allie Holland was strong at the net with five block assists. Pritchard entered with the Lions trailing 22-19 and had three kills on the team's final eight points.
Penn State made another big comeback in set two but couldn't close it out on two chances at set point. The Lions trailed 19-13 before going on a 5-0 run – with four of those points coming with Quinn Menger at the service line – to get within one at 19-18. With Wisconsin leading 22-21, the teams traded the next 11 points before Penn State took the lead at 28-27 on a kill by Pritchard. Pritchard also had a kill that put the Lions up 29-28 and another that tied the score at 30-30. Julia Orzol and Dana Rettke had kills to finish the set in favor of the Badgers.
Hord led the way in set two with seven kills. Pritchard had five kills, Holland added three more blocks to give her eight through just two sets, and Hampton tacked on seven more digs.
Penn State didn't need a comeback in set three but did have to hold off an attempt by Wisconsin. The Lions took a commanding 20-13 lead, but the Badgers scored seven of the next eight points out of a timeout to get within one at 21-20. A Wisconsin service error started a 4-0 Penn State run that included one kill by Hord and two by Parker.
The Lions nearly erased a big deficit one again in set four. They trailed 20-14 before rallying all the way to get within one at 24-23 on a Wisconsin attack error. Orzol tied the match at 2-2 with a kill on the next point. Things then got away from Penn State in a lopsided loss in set five that secured the win for the Badgers.
Hord was strong in the middle once again for Penn State, finishing with 21 kills on .475 hitting in addition to seven total blocks. Holland joined her in the middle with eight blocks, all of which came in the first two sets. The Lions totaled 18 blocks as a team. Parker had five, while Rollins and Blossom contributed four apiece.
Penn State had 70 digs in the match, including a career-high 27 from Hampton. Parker recorded a double-double with 21 kills and 14 digs, as did Blossom with 53 assists and 13 digs. Pritchard finished with 10 kills and seven digs.
Dana Rettke, the 2019 Big Ten Player of the Year, lived up to the hype with her performance for the Badgers, hitting .512 while leading all players with 24 kills. Devyn Robinson registered a double-double with 11 kills and 10 blocks, Sydney Hilley had one with 65 assists and 18 digs, and Lauren Barnes had a match-high 29 digs.
Penn State is home for its next four matches, starting with Maryland on Friday, Oct. 29, at 7:30 p.m. The Lions host Illinois the following day at 4 p.m.
