Penn State Volleyball Beats Maryland 3-1 Behind 32 Kills From Mruzik, Hannah

Posted on by Ethan Kasales

No. 3 Penn State women’s volleyball beat Maryland 3-1 last Thursday at Rec Hall after dropping the first set to the Terrapins.

The Nittany Lions (13-1, 3-0 Big Ten) received a combined 32 kills from Jess Mruzik and Camryn Hannah, but Maryland’s Samantha Schnitta led all players with 19 kills in a valiant effort from the Overland Park, Kansas, native. Mruzik added 14 digs for her second double-double of the season.

Box Score

Taylor Trammell surpassed 500 career blocks in the win and also had her first collegiate service ace, one of nine for the Nittany Lions. Trammell’s season-high eight blocks helped Penn State finish with a 14-10 advantage over the Terrapins in that stat category. Trammell added 10 kills and had the best hitting percentage of any Nittany Lion at .562 for the match.

Fellow middle blocker Maggie Mendelson also turned in a strong showing with nine kills (.300) and four blocks, using her 6-foot-5 frame and physicality above the net to intimidate the opposition. Penn State’s defense held Maryland to a .188 hitting percentage, including .028 in the second set. Mendelson and Trammell have established themselves as one of the country’s best middle blocker duos midway through the season.

Penn State’s players wore pink ribbons and used special pink towels on the bench to commemorate the start of breast cancer awareness month. The Nittany Lions hit .255 as a team despite their first-set clip of .053 skewing the numbers quite a bit. Penn State dominated the fourth set with a .520 mark and only three attack errors to close out the comeback win over former assistant coach and Penn State alumnus Adam Hughes, who’s in his seventh season as Maryland’s head coach.

In a battle of talented liberos, Gill Grimes and Lilly Gunter went back and forth all match, laying out for some impressive digs to fire up their teammates. Gunter had a match-high 19 digs to Grimes’ 16, but Penn State’s junior did some significant damage from the service line and in terms of distributing the ball. Grimes had three aces and a season-high nine assists.

Izzy Starck had a match-high 39 assists, barely edging out Maryland’s fifth-year senior Sydney Dowler, who had 38 Thursday. Starck also added 12 digs, six blocks, and two kills in yet another efficient outing for the freshman, who continues to impress those tuning in around the country to watch her play. Starck’s defense has improved throughout the season and her soft touch on bump passes when teams target her is also impressive.

Freshman defensive specialist Ava Falduto, who had eight digs, one assist, and one ace, spoke to the media afterward alongside Trammell and head coach Katie Schumacher-Cawley. It’s clear Falduto’s teammates enjoy being around her and feed off of the energy she brings to the court. The full transcript of questions and answers can be found below. Extended highlights of the match are underneath.

Opening statement:

KSC: “Thanks for coming. We always appreciate you guys being here. I’m happy we got that win. I think Maryland did some really nice things tonight and took us out of rhythm. I’m just glad we found a way to turn it around, serve better, and be more aggressive the second set on.”

The serving battle was one of the key matchups with [Samantha] Schnitta on the other side. How were you guys able to game plan against her with the power that she brings in her serve and serve-receive game? On your side, you guys had nine aces, so you were able to put a lot of pressure on them.

KSC: “I thought our passers did a better job of working together and working their lanes. I thought Ava did a great job passing and digging. I think when we communicate and fly around out there, we do some good things. [Schnitta’s] a great player. She had a great match tonight.”

Taylor, on that note, you had the first service ace of your career tonight. What was that like?

Trammell: “It only took five years. No, I’m super excited that that happened tonight. Because of Katie allowing me and believing in me to get back there on that line, it meant a lot. I’m just super excited, super grateful.”

Taylor, you also hit 500 career blocks. What does that mean to you?

Trammell: “It’s a long time coming. I feel like a granny, obviously. But it’s exciting. This is why you come back [for a fifth season], to get these types of [milestones]. I don’t know. I’m just excited it happened tonight.”

Coach, what did it mean for the confidence of Caroline [Jurevicius] to see that ball go down [on that block] in the third set?

KSC: “I think CJ is working hard and trying to find her rhythm, both offensively and defensively. I thought she did a much better job tonight. We have to find a way to get her back on the positive side [hitting percentage-wise], but I thought she was making better moves and was way more aggressive than the other [day against Michigan State].”

Ava, from a player’s perspective, how did you prepare for [Maryland’s servers] like Schnitta?

Falduto: “Yeah, we knew Maryland has really good servers. We watched them before. We had a couple girls in our serve-and-pass trying to replicate her topspin. It was a very good serve, and they have really good servers, but I think we did a really good job communicating in those seams and just being aggressive.”

Ava, what were some things that you guys did well defensively in that third set to really change the tide at the end there?

Falduto: “I think our block got a lot of really positive touches and we were able to work around that. I think we adjusted a lot more in the third set and it allowed our defense to pick up more balls.”

Taylor, you guys were more efficient in the fourth set and hit .520. What do you think went well in that set?

Trammell: “I think our communication got way better and we were all on the same game plan at that point. I also think one thing about this team is we’re fast learners. If it’s not going our way the first set, by the second set, we’re taking it in, and by the third set, for sure, we have it down. I think we just flipped a switch.”

Ava, Jess was really efficient tonight. What does that do for the team when she’s playing well like that?

Falduto: “I think it boosts all of our confidence when she’s on. She’s a really great player and she has a lot of great people around her. When we support her and when she’s on, she’s pretty unstoppable. It helps the other hitters also. It opens it up for them.”

Taylor, you had eight blocks tonight and 14 as a team. What was the key to that success?

Trammell: “I think, like I said, once you get into rhythm of what they’re doing — I mean, we knew where they were going half the time and just getting our hands up early, but also delayed, if that makes sense. At first, we were going a little too high, but then we got a little delayed in our blocks. Just making little tweaks to it, I think that’s how we were able to get them down.”

Coach, you guys have gotten off to kind of slow starts the past two matches here at home. How do you keep that from happening tomorrow against a ranked Oregon team?

KSC: “Well, these guys have to get a good night’s sleep, rest their bodies, and make great choices so that they’re ready to go. I think Oregon’s a great team. They’re playing right now [against Ohio State]. We’ll get out and watch them play a little bit before they get to town. We need to be focused and enjoy being at home and this atmosphere. These guys want to win at home. You have to take care of it and be ready to go.”

Ava, what are you most looking forward to about your first White Out match tomorrow?

Falduto: “I’m super excited. I think our fans are great and they show a lot of support. I’m really excited to see a packed Rec Hall tomorrow.”

One of the most notable players was Gillian Grimes and just the energy that she has on the court. Ava, what’s it like playing beside her in that back row?

Falduto: “It’s really fun to play next to Gill. It’s really easy. I think the way she plays makes it easy for the players around her. She just does her thing and she’s super aggressive. It’s really fun.”