Mruzik Mastery: How the Penn State captain has guided the Nittany Lions to impressive Big Ten start

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – Jess Mruzik made her expectations for the 2024 Penn State women’s volleyball season crystal clear when the Nittany Lions headed to Chicago for Big Ten Media Days back in August.

After being asked what the team’s goal for the upcoming season was, Mruzik took a pause, then leaned into the mic and simply stated:

“Win the natty.”

Mruzik may have shared a chuckle with her teammate Camryn Hannah and head coach Katie Schumacher-Cawley following that declaration, but through her first four matches of Big Ten conference action, Mruzik’s play has been anything but a laughing matter.

Mruzik – who was named as the Big Ten Player of the Week back on Sept. 30 – has put up epic numbers through the first two weeks of league play. The graduate outside hitter finds herself averaging 5.36 kills/set across the past four contests, with that impressive total coming on a solid .327 hitting efficiency.

It’s not as if Penn State has been playing slouches, either. The Nittany Lions have faced two ranked teams at the outset of conference play.

The blue and white swept No. 10 Purdue on the road in the conference opener back on Sept. 25.

Then on Friday night, the Nittany Lions topped No. 11 Oregon 3-0 in the annual Wear White match.

Despite those two matches going only three sets, Mruzik crested over double-digit kills in both of them. The three-time All-Big Ten selection had 13 kills against Purdue, and tallied 16 versus the Ducks.

Mruzik’s performances against unranked Michigan State and Maryland teams were just as – if not more – impressive. Mrzuik racked up 17 kills in Thursday’s four-set win over the Terrapins, while also adding a trio of service aces to boot.

But Mruzik’s performance in a 3-1 victory over the Spartans may have been the highlight of the season so far. She went off for 29 kills in that match, a number that represents the most by a Penn State player in a single match since 2018, and the most by a Nittany Lion in a four-set match since the start of the 25-point rally-scoring era in 2008.

Offensively, there have never been many questions about Mruzik’s capabilities. But another big key to her torrid start of the season has been her passing and defense. Over the first four matches of the conference campaign, Mruzik averaged 2.93 digs/set. She had two double-doubles over that span and recorded no less than eight digs in any single match.

“That was definitely one of the weakest parts of my game going into college,” Mruzik said of her passing during Penn State women’s volleyball’s media availability on Sept. 17. “That’s something that I’ve kind of leaned on to be the thing that I can bring to the gym every day. If I’m not attacking well, I know I can rely on my passing.”

Mruzik has been able to rely on both facets of her game throughout the season to date, and it’s a big part of the reason why Penn State is 14-1 and sits at No. 3 in the AVCA Coaches Poll, trailing only Pitt – the team that beat them – and Nebraska – who the Nittany Lions will host on Nov. 29.

The Second-Team AVCA All-American from last year has been the biggest catalyst to Penn State’s success so far this season. And while the Nittany Lions have plenty of talented players all over the court, one thing seems pretty certain.

If Penn State is to achieve Mruzik’s goal of winning a national championship in her final collegiate season, the team will have to continue to be propelled by engine No. 9.

Kasey Kreider is a fourth-year majoring in broadcast journalism. To contact him, email kmk6865@psu.edu.