Penn State women’s volleyball held its seventh weekly media availability of the 2022 season Tuesday afternoon before practice at Rec Hall.

Head coach Katie Schumacher-Cawley, freshman outside hitter Alexa Markley, and freshman defensive specialist Mandi Morioka answered questions ahead of Penn State’s sold-out match against No. 6 Ohio State Friday at 6:30 p.m. in Columbus.

Morioka made her first collegiate start in Sunday’s 3-1 win over Michigan State at Rec Hall, recording a career-high six digs and a service ace. The Torrance, California, native had two aces in Penn State’s 3-0 road loss to Wisconsin and has played in five matches so far this season.

Markley had a career-high six kills in Penn State’s win over the Spartans and has 19 total for the Nittany Lions. The Peachtree City, Georgia, standout is seeing more playing time near the halfway point of the regular season. Markley and Morioka, who are roommates, have both played in the last three matches.

Penn State (13-2, 2-2 Big Ten) dropped a spot to No. 13 in this week’s AVCA rankings after losing to the Badgers in Madison and beating the Spartans at home. The Nittany Lions are currently second in the Big Ten in blocks per set (2.92) and second in opponent service aces per set (0.81).

Editor’s note: A handful of reporters attended this week’s media availability. The transcript of questions and answers, lightly edited for clarity, can be found below.

Katie Schumacher-Cawley

You guys tried some different lineup combinations on Sunday. How do you feel that went?

“I think it went well. I think Alexa came in and did some nice things. Mandi’s been doing some good things in practice, and unfortunately, she was injured at the beginning of the season, so to see her get in and pass and play defense, I was happy with them.”

What did you learn about your team last weekend? What are some of your takeaways?

“Just that everyone’s going to have to be ready to contribute. I keep telling them, ‘I don’t care if the lineup changes every set we play, our goal is to win and to have the best fit out there. It might be someone else’s turn next time.’ Just that they need to be ready to go.”

You guys lost two straight and then won on Sunday. What did it take to get your team back in the win column?

“I know it’s so cliché, but this conference is so competitive. Every match for us I think is going to be challenging. I think it’s doing a better job in practice during the week, being focused on film, and just helping the players be aware of changes that need to be made, and quicker. I think we were focused on Sunday. Michigan State’s a good team. They have good players. I tell the team, ‘Everyone has players in this conference.’ You just don’t want them to have their day at your place.”

What difference stood out to you the most between the loss against Wisconsin and the win against Michigan State?

“I thought we passed better against Michigan State. I thought defensively we were a little bit sharper.”

Were there any main adjustments you made between the two matches?

“I think seeing Alexa get out there and play. We definitely need some more kills on the pins. She’s been doing a great job in practice. She’s a great player. I think getting her some experience is only going to help us down the road. Seeing her play, seeing Mandi play, but knowing that Cassie [Kuerschen], Quinn [Menger], everyone will be able to contribute, whether it’s with serving or coming in for maybe two defensive plays. We need them to understand that.”

At this point in the season, how important is it to keep building on the fundamentals in practice like blocking and passing?

“We talk about that every day. Every day, we’ll serve and pass. We’ll do what you think the basic skills are. We’ll serve and pass every day, and talk about how we’re going to attack these two teams coming up. We’re pretty basic when it comes to that. We expect to serve better than we have.”

Getting into Ohio State and Illinois this weekend, what are you hoping to see from the team? What are some of the keys for this weekend?

“To be competing from the first whistle. I think we’ve started pretty slow the last couple matches, and I think that’s tough for this group. You can’t give away five, six points and expect to always come back and win. I think being ready to go from the start, being flexible, and just being really aggressive.”

What about those teams stands out to you the most?

“I think both teams have been playing very well. Illinois lost a tough one with Purdue. I think they’re very competitive. Ohio State’s had an unbelievable preseason, tough preseason, and have won some big matches the last couple weeks. I would love nothing more than for us to beat them at their place and to win at home. But I think being focused and, like I said, ready to go from the first whistle, we have to be able to serve and pass well. Everyone has big attackers. We’ll have to be able to defend better.”

What’s of the biggest focuses on the defensive side of the court heading into the Ohio State match?

“For us, we talk about the blocking and backcourt defense working together. It’s them working together. It’s not just blockers and defenders. I think having a good game plan, with maybe we’re rotating here and not there, but that everyone’s on the same page and just being aggressive.”

What’s your impression of Mac Podraza and Kylie Murr from Ohio State?

“I think they’re great players. I think that’s a great coaching staff. I think they do some really nice things. We need to disrupt the flow and make them a little uncomfortable.”

What’s your relationship like with Jen Flynn Oldenburg?

“I love Jen. Jen’s a good friend of mine. We played against each other in college, so I’ve known her for a long time. She’s a great coach and a great person.”

With teams in the Big Ten serving a bit more aggressively than teams in the non-conference slate, how has the back row been able to adjust to those servers?

“I think it goes [back] to what we’re doing in practice. We had a couple players come in early today to get some reps. I think it’s just getting those constant touches and feeling comfortable with short serves, deep serves, some topspin, so I think that them putting in the effort to get some extra touches is going to help them.”

You talked about starting strong. How important is that to establish momentum and rhythm in the match?

“It definitely helps. We’ve been on the other side of it a couple times, but we’ve battled back. I think being confident, and I stress the importance of having a good warm-up and a focused warm-up. If we can do those things and score a couple points and feel comfortable in the game, I think it makes it a lot easier.”

How important is it with the players to get those quick, on-court adjustments to get used to the playing style of teams?

“We’ll practice at Ohio State before our match, getting comfortable in the gym and feeling good there. But I think these are things that we show them in film and that we’ll talk about throughout the week of practice. We won’t be able to change a whole lot during the match, but I think if everyone is on the same page and paying attention, I think making small adjustments shouldn’t be a big deal.”

What are some things you wish you knew about college volleyball while you were playing?

“Oh, gosh. What do I wish I knew? I think to always push to these players that they need to do a little bit more. I think that was something that coach [Rose] did well, getting them in the gym and doing some extra things. If you want to play at the highest level, what we do in just practice time isn’t enough. Being able to know that every day, there’s something you can be doing, whether it’s in the training room or in the weight room or in the gym with coaches. I think that’s something that I learned here, and hope players will pick up on.”

With a couple of road matches the last few weekends, how has the team been able to establish their continuity both on and off the floor?

“I think this team, they’re great teammates. I think they’re really good to each other. They enjoy being around each other. Some of that stuff, I don’t really pay attention to, because they are being good to each other. They’re really competitive in the gym, but I think that’s one thing that this group understands is that, ‘If I’m good, then you’re going to be better, and then you’re going to be better.’ They keep pushing each other. I think that’s something that they understand, although I know everyone wants to play, but I think it’s being able to compete every day in practice and hold each other accountable.”

What stands out to you about Kash Williams’ performance lately?

“Kash is Kash. No, Kash is great. I think she’s really improving. We have to get her passing a little bit more, but I think that she sees the court a little bit better. She’s mixing up her shots. We talk about having some more range and being able to hit some different shots, but I think she’s an explosive athlete. She wants to win. I think she’s good to her teammates. She’s been a lot of fun, or I should say, entertaining.”

Mandi Morioka

How did it feel being in the starting lineup Sunday? What was your impression of that match?

“It was awesome. The energy was amazing. Even though we dropped a set, we fought hard in the end and we just finished it out, which was good. It broke our losing streak, which was also good. It gives us some momentum going into our next two games.”

Playing strong defense and playing as a team are things you guys are always emphasizing. How are you continuing to develop those skills in practice?

“We always work on defense. We always work on passing and serving. We always work to better all of our abilities. It’s really important that we always come in, work hard, and get everything done, so that in the end, we’re going to be stronger each game.”

What are some of the main focuses going into this weekend against Ohio State and Illinois?

“I think, for us, it’s just going to be playing as a team, limiting our errors, and just going 100 percent every single opportunity, because that’s what’s going to help us win in the end.”

What changed as a team between losing two straight and then winning against Michigan State?

“I think that in the two past games, Michigan and Wisconsin, I think our energy was kind of off, and we made a lot of errors, too. I think that we really picked that up and kind of transformed that. Coming home, we knew what our mindset would be. We fixed what we needed to the day before, and then game day, we just pulled it through.”

Playing four Big Ten matches, what’s the biggest thing that you’ve seen?

“I think the game is a lot faster. I think our preseason games, some of them were a lot slower compared to Big Ten play. It’s definitely more competitive. Every team in the Big Ten is good. We have to just play our hardest and keep working. That’s the way to win.”

What’s your relationship like with the rest of the freshman class?

“We’re all super close. We always hang out. Our dorms are really close to each other. I mean, we’re just always together, and we just all have great relationships, honestly, because we always hang out.”

How have the older players helped bring you guys along?

“Everyone’s super welcoming. I remember the first time we came in, everyone was just so kind and nice and offered rides and all that. It’s super nice. Everyone gets along well. There’s no team drama or whatever. It’s just so nice to have a really cohesive team.”

What’s your relationship like with coach?

“I love Katie. Katie’s like a second mom, basically. She’s just so kind. She always knows what to say and how to help you get better. I feel like I’ve gotten a lot better because of her.”

Coming off an injury in the start of the season, how nice is it being able to contribute now?

“It’s honestly amazing, because having an injury, it really restricts you. All I wanted to do was be back on the court. But now, I’m back, and I just feel a lot better and a lot stronger. It’s just amazing to be back.”

Alexa Markley

What’s it been like learning from the older outside hitters?

“It’s been really cool, because they’re all so experienced, so they have so much information to share. No, honestly, it’s been really cool, because they’re so informative. Every single one of them has helped me in so many ways.”

Even with all the errors, you guys were able to pick up the win on Sunday. What does that tell you about this team’s resilience?

“It tells you that we have such a high resilience. Everybody just competes so hard and wants to win so bad.”

What are you looking forward to about this weekend’s matches?

“I’m looking forward to the environment and the crowd. Also, just being able to compete hard with my team. I’m looking forward to the games.”

What do you think is the most important aspect heading into this weekend?

“I would say, for sure, we’ve always talked about having aggressive serves as well as limiting our errors.”

From the start of the season until now, how much growth has there been for you individually and the team?

“Yeah, I think you can definitely see the growth in our team. We always talk about how it’s all 17 of us together, and it really shows on the court. Me, personally, I think I’ve grown so far, but I’m looking forward to continuing that.”

What’s your relationship like with the rest of the freshman class?

“We’re super close. It’s super fun. We’re always together everywhere. I love them all, for sure.”

How has it been getting adjusted to Penn State and the season so far?

“It’s been good. Again, a lot of the older girls will take you under their wing and tell you different places to go eat and study, so definitely the older girls have helped with that a lot.”

What have your teammates told you about State College winters and what to prepare for?

“Yeah, coming from Georgia, this will definitely be a new experience. I already have my mittens out. They keep saying it’s not even cold yet.”

What’s your relationship like with the coaching staff?

“I love our coaching staff so much. They just give us everything that we need to succeed, which is amazing.”