UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – No. 12 Penn State got back on track with a 3-1 (25-17, 22-25, 25-22, 25-16) win over Michigan State in Big Ten women's volleyball action Sunday afternoon at Rec Hall. The Lions improved to 13-2 overall and evened their Big Ten record at 2-2. The Spartans fell to 10-5, 1-3 B1G.
Kashauna Williams used a strong start on her way to 15 kills on .310 hitting. Zoe Weatherington also reached double-figures with 11 kills. Penn State's middle blockers were efficient as Taylor Trammell tallied seven kills on .312 hitting and Allie Holland hit .357 with six kills.
Williams took over early in the match. She hit .400 with six kills in set one and then added four kills on .429 hitting in set two. She helped Penn State close the match with three kills on .500 hitting in set four.
The Lions hit .370 in the final set. Seven different players had at least one kill, including four by Weatherington. Alexa Markley joined Williams with three.
After the teams traded set wins to tie the match at 1-1, Penn State seized momentum with an important win in a close third set. Freshman Mandi Morioka, who picked up her first career start in the back row, put the Lions up 17-16 with an ace. The score remained close the rest of the way until Weatherington put her team up 24-21 with a kill. The Lions then took a 2-1 lead in the match thanks to a service error by Michigan State.
Michigan State was plagued by service errors throughout the match, totaling 18 over four sets. Penn State had 13 service errors of its own but countered that with seven aces. Seleisa Elisaia had three aces, Holland contributed two, and Anjelina Starck and Morioka tallied one apiece. Morioka's was her third of the weekend, adding to the two she had at Wisconsin on Friday.
Despite just six blocks, Penn State held Michigan State to .156 hitting. Maddy Bilinovic had 10 digs to reach double-digits for the 13th time in 15 matches this season. Starck finished with eight digs, while Morioka came through with a season-high six. Elisaia added seven digs to her 41 assists.
Aliyah Moore put together a solid match for Michigan State, hitting .364 with 15 kills and two blocks. Nalani Iosia led all players with 17 digs.
Fans can catch Penn State's next match on B1G Network as the Lions travel to play No. 6 Ohio State on Friday at 6:30 p.m. The Lions, who are 2-1 against nationally-ranked opponents this season, then host Illinois on Sunday at 1 p.m.
Ohio State is 7-5 overall and 3-1 in the Big Ten following 3-1 wins over Michigan and Indiana. Illinois is 7-7 overall and 1-1 in the conference after falling in five sets to Wisconsin on Sunday.
The 2022 Penn State women's volleyball season is presented by McLanahan's.
