SIOUX FALLS, S.D. – No. 2 Penn State beat a nationally-ranked opponent for the second time in three days as it rallied for a 3-2 (25-22, 24-26, 16-25, 30-28, 15-12) win over No. 14 Kansas in non-conference women’s volleyball action Monday at the Sanford Pentagon.
The Nittany Lions improved to 2-0 to start the season, winning each of their two matches at the AVCA First Serve Showcase. The other win was a 3-0 sweep over No. 12 Creighton on Saturday at Nebraska’s Pinnacle Bank Arena. The Jayhawks went 1-1 at the event, including a five-set win over Vanderbilt.
Caroline Jurevicius was named the match MVP by the AVCA after hitting .393 with 14 kills, showing she can excel on the left side. Meanwhile, Maggie Mendelson had a huge match in the middle with 13 kills on .650 hitting.
Penn State had four players with double-digit kills. Kennedy Martin led the way with 18 in addition to five digs and three blocks. Emmi Sellman was right behind her with 16 kills. The sophomore recorded her first double-double of the season with 12 digs to go along with her kill total. Jordan Hopp contributed eight kills and four blocks.
Izzy Starck, who had 18 double-doubles as a freshman last season, posted her first of this season with 53 assists and 16 digs. She was one of three Nittany Lions with double-digit digs, joining Gillian Grimes and Ava Falduto, who had each had 12. Jocelyn Nathan chipped in with four.
Penn State overcame a strong blocking night by Kansas, which racked up 15. Jovana Zelenovic fueled that effort with 10 blocks to go along with her 13 kills. Selena Leban led the Jayhawks’ attack, hitting .395 with 20 kills.
Set 1
Penn State rallied late in the set to open the match with a 25-22 win. The Nittany Lions trailed 17-12 before cutting the deficit to one with a 4-0 run. Martin and Jurevicius each had a kill during that stretch. They later used a 3-0 run to go up 20-19, their first lead since 7-6. Martin triggered the run with a kill and then an ace. Starck followed with a kill to force a Kansas timeout. The teams battled close until getting to a 22-22 deadlock. Penn State scored the final three points to close the set. Sellman started the run with a kill, which was followed with a kill by Falduto from her defensive specialist spot. Starck and Mendelson teamed up for a block for set point.
Set 2
Leban and Rhian Swanson combined for 11 kills and just one error on 17 attacks to lead Kansas to a 26-24 win in the second set. The Jayhawks led big at 17-11 only to see Penn State fight its way back to a 19-19 tie after a block by Hopp and Martin. The Nittany Lions looked poised to take a 2-0 lead in the match as it went up 24-22 after a block by Hopp and Sellman and then a kill by Mendelson. Those were the last points scored in the set by the Nittany Lions. Kansas finished the set with a 4-0 run that was capped by a kill from Reese Ptacek.
Set 3
Kansas rolled to a 25-16 win in set three behind eight kills from Leban. The Jayhawks hit .609.
Set 4
Penn State stayed alive with a thrilling 30-28 win in the fourth set that was sealed with an ace off the tape by Grimes. That ace came on the Nittany Lions’ fifth chance at set point. It followed a kill by Jurevicius. This time it was Penn State that had a big lead before having to rally for the win. The Nittany Lions led 19-14 before the Jayhawks chipped away at the lead and eventually took a one-point advantage at 26-25 with a kill by Zelenovic. That was the team’s first lead since scoring the first point of the set. It was also the Jayhawks’ only chance at set point, which was denied with a kill by Mendelson.
Set 5
Sellman was perfect with four kills on four swings, including the final one for set point, to lead Penn State to a 15-12 win in set five. The Nittany Lions fell behind 4-1 but quickly bounced back with a 3-0 run. Martin got it going with a kill. Hopp then teamed with Jurevicius on a block and followed it with a kill to tie the score at 4-4. The teams fought fairly even for most of the set. Penn State called timeout with a 13-12 lead after an attack error. The Nittany Lions came out of the timeout with back-to-back kills by Jurevicius and Sellman, both off sets from Starck.
Career Highs
Ava Falduto – kills (1)
Up Next
No. 2 Penn State plays two more ranked opponents when it heads to Pittsburgh for the State Farm Volleyball Showcase at PPG Paints Arena. The Nittany Lions play No. 13 Arizona State on Sunday, Aug. 31, and No. 25 TCU on Monday, Sept. 1.