UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – No. 15 Penn State women’s volleyball let a large lead slip away in what could have been a match-clinching fourth set as it dropped a five-set match to UCLA 3-2 (25-20, 15-25, 17-25, 26-24, 15-12) in a Big Ten contest Friday night at Pauley Pavilion. The Nittany Lions fell to 12-5 overall and 4-3 in the conference, while the Bruins upped their record to 14-4, 5-2.
Penn State shook off a slow start that led to a loss in the first set, bouncing back with two convincing wins in sets two and three. The Nittany Lions then led 17-10 before UCLA fought back to get the win in set four. They also held a solid lead in the fifth set, going up 11-8 before the Bruins rallied for the 15-12 win.
Kennedy Martin racked up 25 kills, seven digs, and one ace for Penn State. Whitney Lauenstein joined her in double-figures with her 19 kills in addition to six digs, three blocks, and one ace. Alexis Stucky recorded a double-double with 49 assists and 18 digs. Gabrielle Nichols finished with a career-high nine blocks.
UCLA was paced offensively by Maggie Li with 17 kills and defensively by Kat Lutz with 28 digs.
Set 1
Kennedy Martin hit .400 with eight kills, but it wasn’t enough as UCLA took the first set 25-20. Penn State lost despite hitting .390 in the set as UCLA countered with .395 hitting.
Set 2
Lauenstein hit .500 with six kills, and Martin added five kills on .364 hitting to power Penn State to a 25-15 win in set two. The Nittany Lions hit .341 while holding UCLA to a .029 clip. Penn State pulled away with a 5-0 run that resulted in an 18-11 advantage. Lauenstein had three kills during that stretch. Set point was later scored on a kill by Emmi Sellman.
Set 3
Martin and Lauenstein added another four kills apiece to lift Penn State to a 25-17 win in set three. The Nittany Lions led by just one at 16-15 before going on a 3-0 run that included a kill by Martin and a pair of attack errors. They later closed the set with a 4-0 run. Kendall Northern and Lauenstein started the run with kills. Sellman came through with an ace for set point.
Set 4
Penn State finished with an 18-13 advantage in kills but allowed three aces and had eight attack errors, only two of which came on blocks, as it fell 26-24 in set four. The Nittany Lions led 17-10 following a kill by Nichols before UCLA started its comeback. The Bruins trailed by three at 22-19 following a kill by Martin. They responded with a 5-0 run to go up 24-22. Martin stopped their first chance at set point with a kill, and the Nittany Lions then knotted the score at 24-all with a block by Nichols and Lauenstein. The Bruins retook the lead on an attack error before finishing the set with a kill by Li.
Set 5
Penn State held an 11-8 lead in set five only to see UCLA fight back and get a 15-12 win. The Nittany Lions took the three-point lead after an ace by Lexi Gin. The Bruins responded with a 5-0 run to go up 13-11. Lauenstein stopped the run with a kill, but the Bruins came right back with a block by Li and Marianna Singletary and a kill by Li to close the match.
Career Highs
Gabrielle Nichols – digs (6), blocks (9)
Up Next
Penn State plays at USC on Saturday at 7 p.m. ET.
The 2026 Penn State women's volleyball season is presented by Musselman's.