Penn State breezed through Set 1, 25-13, and were in command throughout Set 2 for a 25-22 win. After that? Southern Cal dominated Penn State to take Set 3 19-25 and Set 4 19-25. Set 5 was tight all the way, with the Nittany Lions prevailing 15-13.
In Set 1, Penn State hit .542 and Southern Cal hit .000. Oof. Set 2 was closer, with the Nittany Lions hitting .333 and the Trojans hitting .222 — still a dominant performance by Penn State.
But Set 3? Boach Brad Keller must have flipped some kind of switch at the start of the Set, because the Trojans raced out to a 16-6 lead, looking like a totally different team. It took a 7 point serving run by Ava Falduto, which pulled the Nittany Lions to within 16-13, to make the final score look respectable at 19-25. Neither team hit well in the Set, but USC’s .148 outclassed Penn State’s .031 effort.
Set 4 was pretty much a replay, as Southern California led 20-12 before a serving run by freshman DS Lexi Gin brought Penn State to within 20-15. The Nittany Lions were able to close the gap to 23-19 on a kill by Emmi Sellman, but the Trojans took the last two points for a 25-19 win in the set. USC hit an impressive .358 for the set, with Penn State managing a .212 hitting percentage.
Set 5 was all Kennedy Martin, as she put down 8 kills on .412 hitting, as Penn State closed out the match with a 15-13 win. Southern Cal outhit Penn State in the set, .129 to .114, but after the teams were tied 8-8, Martin was overpowering over Penn State’s final 7 points, registering a kill, a solo block, a kill, a kill, a block assist (with Jordan Hopp), a kill, and a kill for match point.
The win — Penn State’s third against a top-25 team this season — gives #15 Penn State a 7-4 overall record (1-0 in Big Ten). No. 17 USC dropped to 9-2.
Kennedy Martin led all players with 34.5 points, filling up the stat sheet with 29 kills (.292 hitting), 13 digs, 2 aces, 2 solo blocks, and 3 block assists! So. OH Emmi Sellman also posted impressive numbers, as she recorded 17 points on 14 kills (.262 hitting), 1 ace, 1 solo block, and 2 block assists, also scooping up 15 digs.
Sr. libero Gillian Grimes tied for match-high in digs (with USC’s Reese Messer) with 16 digs, also serving up 2 aces. So. DS Ava Falduto totaled 11 digs and 1 ace, and Gr. Setter Addie Lyon totaled 10 digs. Lyon dished out a match-high 43 assists. Grimes flexed some offensive muscle by registering a kill (the seventh in her career!).
Adonia Faumuina (11 kills) and London Wijay (10 kills) were tops in kills for USC, while Abigail Mullen led the Trojans with 14.5 points (9 kills on .028 hitting, and 4 service aces).
Post-Match Press Conference
Coach Katie Schumacher-Cawley, Emmi Sellman, and Gillian Grimes took questions from the press after the match. The questions and answers are below:
Opening Statement from KSC
It’s a great Big 10 win. I think [Southern California] is a great team, and we found a way to gut it out at the end and these guys played well. And it was a total team effort and I’m proud of our fight.
Question: Coach, your team was up two to nothing to start this match, and then USC came back, took the next two sets. What did you tell your group to allow [them] to take the fifth and final set and win this one?
KSC: Well, I think it was just to settle in. But, you know, USC is a really, really good team, and I thought that they did some nice things. And I think we broke down in some areas, but, it was more just, ‘hey, take care of what you can do and control them all on our side of the net.’ And I think just to be focused and confident. I thought we found a way to score points. I thought defensively, we did some nice things, and we were flying around and made some really good plays.
Question: Emmi, you guys hit .542, in the first set. What was different coming into this match?
Emmi Sellman: I think practice. We come in every single day with Addie, and every single day we get better and better and better. So all credit to her. I think she’s doing a really, really good job.
Question: Coach, what is it about the fifth set that makes you guys so good at winning fifth sets?
KSC: Jeez, I don’t know. I think it’s they just want the fans to stay around longer, the band to play, and, you know, it’s white out weekends. Why not make it a little exciting? No, we practice every day and do red zone drills and fast points. And I thought that they were focused and earned the points that we needed to.
Question: Gillian, how did it feel to get that kill?
Gillian Grimes: Awesome. Kennedy needs to set me more. But no, it felt good. Arms a little sore.
Question: Coach, that’s the first ranked win since the first week of the season. What does this win mean for the team?
KSC: I think it’s hard to win in this conference, and I think the team understands you have to win at home. They put a good week of practice in and made some adjustments. It’s gonna take all of them to help to win. I thought Lexi Gin came in and did a nice job. Gabby [Nichols] came in and was available [to hit]. It’s a good team effort.
Question: Where did USC step up their game in the third and fourth sets?
KSC: I thought they served really tough, and they kept us on our heels. Defensively, I think they had four or five blocks right away. That’s a great team. They’re gonna win a lot of matches in conference, and I think they’re well coached. And it’s nice to only see them once.
Question: For the players, what impresses you most about Kennedy and what are some of the more underrated aspects of her game, in your opinion?
Gillian Grimes: She’s always up and ready, available, and as a setter too, if Addie digs the ball. I can kind of just launch it up there, and she jumps so high, and she’s so big, so that gives me a little breath of fresh air, that I know that she’s always ready, and she’s always working so hard to get off the net, so she’s available.
Emmi Sellman: I think for me, I just really like her presence as a teammate, like she always brings an aspect of calmness, but also, “I’m gonna put the ball down.” She gives off a lot of confidence and radiates it. And I think we all pick up on it.
Question: Coach, Emmi had an amazing game today. What were your thoughts on her performance?
KSC: Emmi played defense, and I thought at the net, she blocked a lot of balls, and I’m not surprised. She had a great week of practice and is working to get better. And defensively, I think she’s doing some really great things. She’s a great six rotation player for us.
Question: What was it like having Pat McAfee in here earlier? Did he have a message for the team?
KSC: He’s wild. I’m a huge fan. I’m a huge fan. He was just excited to see these guys and see Rec Hall. I know he was here at the match for a bit. It was a lot of fun. Happy Valley’s hoppin’.
Gillian Grimes: He took a few swings too. He played volleyball.
Question: Going off that, how does it feel to be a part of the College Game Day festivities tomorrow?
KSC: I’m so excited for the girls to experience this, and it’s nice that we can be home for these events. We’re gonna enjoy that and use our time wisely and be prepared for Sunday.
Question: Have you considered your plan of attack for when you guys are on — who’s doing what?
KSC: Oh, for tomorrow? I have no idea what we’re doing. We’ll all find out together, OK?
Question: What does the prep for UCLA look like with game day and going to the game?
KSC: We’ll stop by there in the morning, and then we’ll come back and we’ll do our serve, pass and stretch, our walk-through and film. So they’ll have a busy day tomorrow of work on UCLA. But all week we prepare for both teams in practice, so I know we’ll be prepared. They’ve got to get their rest and enjoy a little bit of it, but be ready to go.
Question: For the players, as captains, what are some of the things you guys are going to be telling the team moving forward, just to focus on?
Gillian Grimes: I think if we could always be consistent and be the team that we were the first two sets and the last set. I think the fight that was always there, and, we talked about, even post game, just being aggressors all the time, like little games to five. So I think if we keep doing that and keep focusing on our side of the net, then we’ll be successful.
Emmi Sellman: Yeah, I think Coach always says, it’s really hard to win, especially in the Big Ten. So we’re 1-0 right now. We had a good preseason but we’re ready for Big Ten play, and we’ll have a lot of really good games — obviously, the Big Ten is one of the best conferences for volleyball — but we’re excited to get off to a good start.
Question: What are you looking forward to about being on the field tomorrow night?
Gillian Grimes: I think just seeing all the fans and going to the game for a little bit. I mean, it’s amazing atmosphere. And even when we’re in Rec Hall, we just love the fans. So being a part of that whole community and everything is just really fun and really amazing.
Emmi Sellman: For me, this will be my first time. Being from Maryland, I’ve always heard about the Penn State Whiteout, so I’m super excited. I’m a huge fan of football, so I can’t wait.