Jess Mruzik Named AVCA National, Big Ten Player Of The Week

Posted on by Ethan Kasales

Penn State women’s volleyball star Jess Mruzik was named the AVCA Division I National and Big Ten Player of the Week Tuesday after recording 53 kills (5.30 per set), 14 digs, eight total blocks, four assists, three aces, and a .345 hitting percentage in a trio of wins at Rec Hall.

It’s the second time Mruzik has earned weekly recognition from the conference, as the two-time first-team All-Big Ten standout was also honored on November 29, 2021 following the final week of the regular season her sophomore year.

Mruzik also received the Penn State athletic department’s student-athlete of the week honors alongside quarterback Drew Allar, who led the Nittany Lions to a 38-15 win over West Virginia in Saturday’s season opener at Beaver Stadium, a few hours after Mruzik and now-No. 12 Penn State volleyball (3-2) swept Colgate. She made Michella Chester of NCAA Digital’s rotation of the week.

Mruzik is the first Nittany Lion since Haleigh Washington in 2017 to be named AVCA National Player of the Week. It’s the 12th time total a player from Penn State has received the honor. Assistant coach Megan Hodge Easy did so three times during her decorated college career.

Mruzik, a 6-foot-1 senior outside hitter from Livonia, Michigan, currently leads Penn State’s offense by a wide margin with 84 kills through five matches of the 2023 season — 52 more than Taylor Trammell, who’s in second place with 32 kills.

Mruzik had 21 kills in a 3-1 win over then-No. 22 Western Kentucky in Friday night’s home opener at Rec Hall. After recording six on a lighter work day against Colgate, Mruzik went off for 26 kills in a 3-1 win over James Madison Sunday.

It was the second-most kills Mruzik has ever had in a match during her college career, and she did it in one fewer set than her record 31 kills in a 3-2 win over Duke on September 10, 2021, while she was playing for Michigan.

Mruzik reached 1,000 career kills early in the first set against Colgate after recording the first two kills of the match. After the win, head coach Katie Schumacher-Cawley discussed Mruzik’s impact on the Nittany Lions so far this season.

“It’s great,” Schumacher-Cawley said of the accomplishment. “I mean, obviously, she can play the full game. She likes to attack. I think she’s a player who always wants the ball. I’m not surprised she got her 1,000th kill. I’m just happy it’s in a Penn State jersey.”

Mruzik and Maddy Bilinovic, who took over the libero job from Gill Grimes during the Western Kentucky match, sat at the podium of Penn State’s media room Friday night after the team’s four-set win over the Hilltoppers, highlighting energy and defensive effort as key factors in the turnaround after dropping the first set.

“We talked all last week and all of this week just about finding that next level, turning the gear one more notch,” Mruzik said. “When I go up to swing, I want to get a point for these girls, because they were busting their butts in the backcourt trying to keep the ball alive. I think, as long as we continue that defensive effort and energy, we’re only going to go up from here.”

Mruzik unloads on a ball against James Madison. It’s impressive to hear the sound it makes when it hits the floor.

Mruzik has the third-most digs on Penn State’s defense with 33, trailing only Bilinovic and Grimes, who have 53 apiece. Mruzik also has 11 total blocks, a team-high six aces, and five assists, showing what Schumacher-Cawley meant by her comments about Mruzik’s impact on the game in all facets.

Mruzik also touched on her advice for the team moving forward, especially with a pair of road matches coming up against Temple and Louisville this Friday and Sunday. Penn State fans from the Philadelphia area are sure to turn up in droves at the Liacouras Center, then the trip to No. 2 Louisville is one of the most anticipated matches of the regular season.

“We have to keep it rolling,” Mruzik said. “We say it all the time, but everyone wants to play their best against Penn State, and rightfully so.”

Penn State setter Mac Podraza, who’s roommates with Mruzik, Ally Van Eekeren, and Lina Perugini this year, got right to the point when asked what she likes most about playing with Mruzik during a press conference earlier this season. Mruzik said her connection with Podraza is unlike any she’s had before with a setter.

“What’s not to like?” Podraza said. “She hits the crap out of the ball, so I’m glad she’s on my side of the net.”