women's volleyball in a huddle

No. 4 Penn State women's volleyball readies to kick off Big Ten play at No. 10 Purdue

By Kasey Kreider

With non-conference play in the books, all eyes for the No. 4 Penn State Nittany Lions women’s volleyball team turn toward Big Ten play.

And as the season starts for the blue and white against 17 other conference opponents, it’s a case of baptism by fire, as Penn State will travel to West Lafayette to take on the No. 10 Purdue Boilermakers Wednesday night from inside the confines of the Holloway Gymnasium.

Penn State and Purdue are two of seven Big Ten squads that begin conference play within the top 25 of the AVCA Coaches Poll. Nebraska leads the way checking in at No. 2, while No. 7 Wisconsin is the only other team inside of the top 10.

The Nittany Lions will take a 10-1 non-conference record into the start of their league season. Penn State boasts ranked wins over then-No. 4 Louisville, then-No. 9 Kentucky, and then-No. 15 Tennessee. The only loss for the Nittany Lions was a sweep on the road by No. 1 Pitt last Wednesday.

It’s been a dynamic duo of fifth-year seniors leading the way on the pins for the Nittany Lions, as Jess Mruzik and Camryn Hannah have each put together fantastic starts to their final seasons in blue and white. Mruzik is averaging 4.09 kills/set entering conference play, while Hannah isn’t far behind with a mark of 3.60 kills/set.

Veteran middle blocker and former Boilermaker Taylor Trammell has paired up with junior Nebraska transfer Maggie Mendelson, and both players finished off non-conference play averaging over a block per set, while Trammell also boasts a strong .481 hitting percentage. That clip is good for eighth-best in the nation and ranks third among players in the Big Ten.

Quarterbacking the offense all season long has been top freshman recruit Izzy Starck, who garnered her third Big Ten Freshman of the Week award on Monday following her performance at the Penn State Classic. For the season as a whole, Starck has facilitated Penn State to a .329 hitting percentage – good for second in the nation – with the team averaging 14.57 kills/set in the process.

And don’t forget about the defense, as junior libero Gillian Grimes comes off of a monster day against Yale. Grimes had a career-high 27 digs in that match and has anchored a defense that boasts an opponent hitting percentage of .179 through the first 11 matches of the year. Grimes also paces the team in service aces with 13.

But this is a Boilermakers team that has had Penn State’s number as of recently. Purdue took both matches from the Nittany Lions last season, scoring a 3-1 triumph in Rec Hall before chalking up a 3-2 victory at home.

Senior middle blocker Raven Colvin leads the nation in blocks per set with 2.03 and has a .454 hitting percentage on the offensive end to boot.

The Boilermakers have their own dynamic duo of pin hitters, as Hoosier State natives Eva Hudson and Chloe Chicoine are averaging 4.34 kills/set and 3.42 kills/set, respectively, so far this season. Chicoine – a sophomore – has shown an ability to get it done on both sides of the court this season, as she has four double-doubles to her credit.

Purdue started off its season 8-0 following a win over then-No. 10 Kentucky, but suffered two defeats last weekend to then-No. 10 Kansas and then-No. 9 Creighton in the Jayhawk Classic.

With a chance to make it three wins in a row against Penn State, the Boilermakers look to start off conference play with a statement and prove that they can be a true contender in the Big Ten. On the other side, the Nittany Lions will look to further cement themselves as one of this season’s volleyball elites, not just in the conference – but in the country.

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

Credits

Author
Kasey Kreider
Photographer
Ryan Eslinger