No. 7 Women's Volleyball Set for Top-10 Matchup at No. 9 Kentucky
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa.- No. 7 Penn State Women's Volleyball is set to play a ranked team for the third time in the first four matches of the season when it travels to Lexington for the Kentucky Invitational this weekend. The Nittany Lions take on the ninth-ranked host Wildcats on Friday at 7 p.m., and then play Ball State on Saturday at 5 p.m.
Each of Penn State’s matches this weekend take place at Memorial Coliseum. Friday’s match against Kentucky will air live on SEC Network. There is no video available for Saturday’s match against Ball State.
HOW TO FOLLOW
Friday, Sept. 6 – 7 p.m.
#7 Penn State (3-0, 0-0 B1G) at #9 Kentucky (3-1, 0-0 SEC) | Live Stats | SEC Network
Saturday, Sept. 7 – 5 p.m.
#7 Penn State (3-0, 0-0 B1G) vs. Ball State (2-1, 0-0 MAC) | Live Stats
OPENING NOTES
• Penn State heads to Lexington for the Kentucky Invitational where it will take on the ninth-ranked Wildcats and Ball State. The match against Kentucky marks the Nittany Lions’ second-straight match against a top-10 non-conference opponent.
• Friday’s match against Kentucky is Penn State’s third time on TV in its first four matches. The Nittany Lions played •T ennessee on ESPNU, Louisville on B1G Network, and now the Wildcats on SEC Network.
Penn State has won seven straight matches against non-conference opponents, including postseason, dating back to last season.
SERIES HISTORY - KENTUCKY
• Penn State is 6-1 in the all-time series with Kentucky. The teams first played in 1982.
• The Nittany Lions have won five straight matches in the series, but the teams haven’t played since 2012.
• Penn State is 1-1 against Kentucky on the road. It will be the first matchup in Lexington since 1985.
• Two players on the roster have played against Kentucky. Taylor Trammell played the Wildcats while with Purdue in the 2020-21 NCAA Tournament. Maggie Mendelson played the Wildcats in Lexington while with Nebraska during the 2022 regular season.
SCOUTING KENTUCKY
• Kentucky is ranked ninth in the nation after winning three straight matches over Northern Kentucky (3-0), Western Kentucky (3-1), and Morehead State (3-0).
• The Wildcats are the defending champion in the SEC and have made 18 consecutive NCAA Tournaments. They won the 2020-21 NCAA Tournament title.
• Kentucky was picked to finish third in the 15-team conference. Senior setter Emma Grome, senior libero Eleanor Beavin, and sophomore outside hitter Brooklyn DeLeye were voted Preseason All-SEC.
• Grome was a second-team All-America selection last year.
SERIES HISTORY – BALL STATE
• Penn State is 2-0 in the all-time series with Ball State.
• Both matches were played in 1994. The Nittany Lions won 3-1 on the road and 3-0 at Rec Hall.
SCOUTING BALL STATE
• Ball State is 2-1 following a 3-0 loss at FAU. The Cardinals have 3-0 wins over Seton Hall and Bryant.
• The Cardinals were picked to finish third in the 12-team MAC. Redshirt sophomore outside hitter Aniya Kennedy and senior setter Megan Wielonski were voted Preseason All-MAC.
• Kennedy was the MAC Freshman of the Year and first-team all-conference last season. Wielonski also made the first team.
STREAKS TO WATCH
Gillian Grimes
• 3 straight matches with at least one ace
Team
• 7 straight wins against non-conference opponents (including postseason) dating back to last season
AGAINST THE #9 TEAM
• Penn State is 8-8 all-time against opponents that were ranked No. 9 in the nation at the time of the match.
• The Nittany Lions haven’t played a team ranked ninth in the nation since beating both Wisconsin and Michigan State when they were ranked No. 9 in 2017.
• Penn State has three top-10 wins within the last year, beating No. 9 Minnesota and No. 2 Wisconsin last season and No. 4 Louisville this season. The win over the Gophers was on the road, while the other two were at Rec Hall.
RANKED WINS THIS SEASON
• Penn State is one of just three teams in the country with multiple ranked wins already this season, joining Stanford and Louisville. UCLA could join that group with a win over No. 17 Tennessee on Thursday.
MULTIPLE RANKED WINS
Stanford - #18 Minnesota, #3 Wisconsin, #24 Marquette
Penn State - #15 Tennessee, #4 Louisville
Louisville - #3 Wisconsin, #15 Tennessee
UP NEXT
• Up next for the Nittany Lions is the Penn State Invitational, where they will play Duke on Friday and Princeton and St. John’s on Saturday.
• Duke is 1-2 following losses to No. 13 Kansas (3-1) and South Carolina (3-1).
• Princeton opens the season this weekend.
• St. John’s is 3-0 with wins over Niagara (3-0), Northeastern (3-1), and Coppin State (3-1).