UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – No. 3 Penn State Women’s Volleyball swept No. 14 Minnesota 3-0 (25-16, 25-20, 25-14) in front of more than 4,300 fans for the program’s annual Dig Pink match at Rec Hall. The Nittany Lions upped their winning streak to 10 matches as they improved to 18-1 overall and 8-0 in the Big Ten. The Gophers dropped to 12-6 overall and 5-3 in the conference.
In addition to its overall winning streak, Penn State posted its 13th-consecutive win in Big Ten regular season matches – the longest active streak in the conference – and its 14th-straight win at Rec Hall.
Jess Mruzik hit .325 with 18 kills and 16 digs as she recorded her fourth double-double of the season. Camryn Hannah also reached double-digits with 11 kills, while Taylor Trammell was highly efficient with eight kills on .571 hitting. Maggie Mendelson tallied seven kills and four blocks. Alexa Markley chipped in with three kills and three blocks while making her first start of the season.
Hannah’s first kill of the second set, which gave Penn State a 6-5 lead, was the 1,500th of her career. She added six more kills after that to up her career total to 1,506 kills.
Trammell’s performance against Minnesota was no surprise as the senior middle blocker has excelled against the Gophers throughout her career. In five career matches against the Gophers, Trammell has 39 kills and just one error on 68 attacks for a .558 hitting percentage. She hit .800 with 16 kills against them in a four-set win at Maturi Pavilion last season.
Minnesota hit .112 for the match to become the 15th opponent overall and sixth nationally-ranked opponent to be held under .200 hitting by Penn State. Julia Hanson was the lone player to put up solid numbers for the Gophers, hitting .345 with 11 kills.
Gillian Grimes piled up 14 digs to help lead the Penn State defensive effort. Ava Falduto had nine, while Anjelina Starck chipped in with seven. Izzy Starck had six digs in addition to her 45 assists over three sets. Quinn Menger did her part with service pressure. She had both of the team’s aces.
Set 1
Mruzik had six kills on .385 hitting to lead Penn State to a 25-16 win in the opening set. Trammell had three kills on three attacks. Izzy Starck guided the attack with 16 assists. Despite the nine-point difference at the end, the score was actually close for a large portion of play. The Nittany Lions led by just one at 17-16 before closing the set with an 8-0 run. Mruzik fueled the run with a solo block and three kills, the last of which secured set point.
Set 2
Mruzik added another six kills, while Hannah tallied four, including the 1,500th of her career, in Penn State’s 25-20 win in set two. Starck totaled 15 more assists to give her 31 through the first two sets. The Nittany Lions again ended the set strong, scoring five of the final six points. The lone point for the Gophers during that stretch came on a Penn State service error.
Set 3
Penn State cruised in the final set with a 25-14 win to get the sweep. Mruzik tacked on six more kills, while Trammell, Hannah, Mendelson, and Izzy Starck had three apiece. It was Izzy Starck who finished off the match with a kill.
Up Next
No. 3 Penn State heads west to take on two of the new Big Ten teams. The Nittany Lions play at UCLA on Thursday at 9 p.m. ET, and at No. 16 USC on Saturday at 11 p.m. ET. Both matches will air live on B1G Network.