LINCOLN, Neb. – No. 13 Penn State Women's Volleyball saw both its winning streak and unbeaten run to start the Big Ten schedule come to an end with a 3-0 (25-22, 25-22, 25-19) loss to No. 2 Nebraska on Saturday night at the Devaney Center.
The Nittany Lions, who entered the much-anticipated match with nine consecutive wins, dropped to 13-4 overall and 7-1 in the Big Ten. It was their first loss in over a month, with their last defeat coming on the road to then-No. 2 Louisville on Sept. 10.
The Cornhuskers remained unbeaten on the season, moving to 17-0 overall and 8-0 in the conference. They are tied with Wisconsin atop the Big Ten standings, while Penn State is third and holds a two-match lead over the fourth-place teams.
Penn State struggled to get the attack going, hitting just .117 compared to .269 for Nebraska. A big factor in that low hitting percentage was the play of standout libero Lexi Rodriguez. She racked up an impressive 18 digs in the three-set match, including 12 in the first set alone.
Jess Mruzik led Penn State with 12 kills and added six digs and four blocks. Allie Holland was efficient with five kills and no errors on eight swings for a .625 hitting percentage. Holland was also strong at the net as she was in on seven of the team's 10 blocks.
Defensively, the Nittany Lions were paced by Gillian Grimes with 15 digs. Anjelina Starck had seven digs, while Maddy Bilinovic chipped in with six.
Merritt Beason and Lindsay Krause powered Nebraska to the win. Beason hit .333 with 13 kills and three blocks, while Krause hit .300 with 13 kills, two aces, and two blocks.
All four of Penn State's losses this season came away from Rec Hall. The Nittany Lions lost two road matches to teams ranked No. 2 in the nation at the time of the match and lost two neutral-site matches to teams that were ranked in the top 20 at the time of the match.
Set 1
Rodriguez carried the defense with her 12 digs, while Krause and Beason combined for 15 kills in Nebraska's 25-22 win in the opening set. The Cornhuskers jumped out to a 5-0 lead and held a six-point advantage at 18-12. Penn State made a solid comeback attempt, using a 4-0 run to get within two at 18-16 and then back within two at 19-17 on a kill by Mruzik. They again got back within two at 24-22 on another kill by Mruzik, but Beason put the set away with a kill off a set from Rodriguez.
Set 2
Penn State raced to an 8-1 lead to start the second set, scoring eight straight points after Nebraska struck first. Mruzik played a role in the final three points of that run, recording a kill, a solo block, and a block assist alongside Holland. The Cornhuskers chipped away at their deficit slowly but surely before finally tying the score at 18-18 on a kill by Bergen Reilly. Alexa Markley gave the Nittany Lions the lead back with a kill coming out of a timeout, but the Cornhuskers kept pace until taking their first lead since 1-0 with a kill by Krause that put them up 22-21. That was a part of a 4-0 run that saw them take a 24-21 lead. They later won the set on a kill by Beason.
Set 3
Hannah saw time at both pins and had four kills in the final set, and Zoe Weatherington came off the bench and tallied three kills. But it wasn't enough for Penn State as Nebraska took the match with a 25-19 win. The Cornhuskers took the lead for good at 2-1. They led by as much as eight at 23-15. The final point came on a kill by Krause off a set from Rodriguez.
Up Next
No. 13 Penn State is back at Rec Hall for its next two matches. The Nittany Lions host Iowa on Friday at 7 p.m., and welcome No. 19 Purdue for their annual Dig Pink Match on Sunday at 1 p.m.