UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa.- Penn State women’s volleyball suffered a rare defeat to No. 24 Indiana 3-0 (25-22, 25-15, 25-23) in a Big Ten match Sunday at Rec Hall. The Nittany Lions fell to 13-9 overall and 7-5 in the conference, while the Hoosiers moved to 18-4, 9-3.
Kennedy Martin continued her impressive season in the loss, recording her third-straight double-double and seventh of the season. She collected 14 kills to go with her 13 digs. Emmi Sellman had the next most on the team with six kills as the Nittany Lions couldn’t find their groove offensively.
Avry Tatum and Jaidyn Jager had 14 kills apiece for Indiana, which actually posted a lower hitting percentage (.228) than Penn State but made up for it with six aces. Tatum had three of those aces to go along with a pair of blocks.
Penn State is now 62-2 in the all-time series with Indiana, including a 32-1 record at Rec Hall.
Set 1
Indiana survived a late rally by Penn State to collect a 25-22 win in the first set. The Hoosiers controlled most of the early action and held a four-point lead at 10-6. Indiana then came alive with two separate 3-0 scoring runs to hold a six-point lead with the score at 18-12. The Nittany Lions responded right back with a 3-0 scoring run of their own to cut the lead in half at 19-16. A kill and block from Alexis Ewing fueled the run. Penn State continued to claw away at the Indiana lead, cutting it down to two at 24-22 before a service error closed the set.
Set 2
The Hoosiers rolled to a 25-15 win in set two behind five kills and two aces from Tatum.
Set 3
Jager and Tatum combined for 14 kills to give the Hoosiers a 25-23 win in the third set. Penn State trailed 11-10 before seizing momentum with a 6-0 run to go up 16-11. The Nittany Lions still led by five at 17-12 before the Hoosiers tied it with a 5-0 run. Hopp ended that run with a kill. Penn State later went up by two at 20-18, but Indiana scored three straight points to take control. The Hoosiers upped the lead to three at 24-21. The Nittany Lions stopped the first two chances at match point with a kill by Maggie Mendelson and a solo block by Willow. Tatum then teamed with Madi Sell on a block to end the match.
Career Highs
Maggie Mendelson – assists (3)
Karis Willow – blocks (2)
Up Next
No. 19 Penn State continues Big Ten Play when it travels to No. 10 Purdue on Friday, Nov. 7, at 5:30 p.m. on B1G+. The Boilermakers are 18-3 overall and 9-2 in the conference following a 3-2 win over Michigan on Sunday.