UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – Kashauna Williams hit .368 with 20 kills to lift No. 14 Penn State to a second-straight win over a nationally-ranked opponent as the Lions took down No. 9 Minnesota 3-1 (25-18, 25-18, 20-25, 27-25) in Big Ten women's volleyball action Friday at Rec Hall.
Penn State bolstered its resume as it looks to earn a top-16 seed and hosting rights for the first two rounds of the NCAA Tournament, improving to 22-6 overall and 11-6 in the Big Ten with its fifth-consecutive victory. The Lions are 4-4 against teams in the latest AVCA Coaches Poll, with wins over No. 8 Stanford, No. 9 Minnesota, No. 12 Oregon, and No. 19 Purdue.
Minnesota had its four-match winning streak snapped as it fell to 17-8 overall and 12-5 in the Big Ten. The Gophers are in fourth place in the conference standings but are now just one match ahead of the fifth-place Lions.
Williams' big night helped her reach a big career milestone as her fifth kill of the night was the 1,500th of her career. She now goes into the next match against No. 3 Wisconsin on Saturday with 1,515 career kills.
Penn State won a wild fourth set to clinch the victory. The Lions went up 21-17 on a kill by Katie Clark, but Minnesota battled back to tie it at 22-22. The Lions took a 24-23 lead on a block by Allie Holland and Alexa Markley and went up again 25-24 on a kill by Zoe Weatherington. Both chances at match point were denied by the Gophers.
A chaotic sequence ensued that eventually led to Penn State scoring back-to-back points to get the ranked win. With the score tied 25-25, a Weatherington attack was called out, but the call was overturned after a Penn State challenge. Minnesota then challenged that it was an illegal backrow attack by Weatherington. That challenge failed, giving the Lions a one-point lead.
That failed challenge by Minnesota proved crucial. Penn State scored on a kill by Holland that was called a touch on a Gophers' blocker at the net. The play never went to review as Minnesota had used its final challenge on the previous point.
Markley, the reigning Big Ten Freshman of the Week, had another big match for Penn State, hitting .321 with 11 kills and three blocks. Weatherington finished with 10 kills and four blocks, Clark had nine kills and five blocks, and Holland totaled seven kills and seven blocks.
Holland fueled Penn State's quick start with four kills on six swings in a 25-18 first-set win. The second set had an identical score, but this time it was Williams and Markley carrying the load. The pair put up matching numbers of five kills on .333 hitting.
As she has so many times in Penn State's big wins this season, Williams took over in the final set, hitting .444 with six kills. It was also Weatherington's best set of the night with three kills on six swings.
Similar to Penn State's 3-1 win over nationally-ranked Purdue in its most recent match, Seleisa Elisaia guided the offense while Maddy Bilinovic anchored the defense. Elisaia tallied 48 assists in addition to eight digs while leading the Lions to a .273 hitting percentage. Bilinovic led all players with 15 digs. Gillian Grimes joined her in double-digits with 10 digs. Cassie Kuerschen and Anjelina Starck added seven and six digs, respectively.
Bilinovic and Grimes also led Penn State at the service line. Bilinovic had three of the team's seven aces. Grimes was right behind her with two.
Taylor Landfair did the most damage for Minnesota with 17 kills, nine digs, and four blocks. Melani Shaffmaster recorded a double-double with 40 assists and 10 digs.
Penn State upped its record to 114-35 all-time against nationally-ranked opponents at Rec Hall.
The Lions get another crack at a top-10 opponent in Rec Hall when it hosts No. 3 Wisconsin on Saturday at 8 p.m. The contest, which is the team's annual Silent Set match, will air live on B1G Network.
