No. 13 Penn State women’s volleyball swept Iowa Friday night at Xtream Arena in Coralville, Iowa, thanks in large part to a career-high 17 kills from sophomore Alexa Markley.
Markley, who was the only player with double-digit kills, hit .469 and added a block against the Hawkeyes, who have now been swept in sixth straight Big Ten matches. Mac Podraza led Penn State’s offense to a .373 hitting percentage. She finished with a match-high 44 assists, four digs, two kills, and a block.
𝓢𝔀𝓮𝓮𝓹 🧹
7-0 in @B1GVolleyball #WeAre
🔵⚪️ pic.twitter.com/TSeZkSproy— Penn State Women’s Volleyball (@PennStateVBALL) October 14, 2023
The Nittany Lions (13-3, 7-0 Big Ten) improved to 58-0 in their all-time series against Iowa. This year’s win, however, was far more convincing than a narrow 3-2 road victory over the Hawkeyes last season. The teams tied with six blocks apiece, but Penn State finished with a 52-33 advantage in digs and a 51-21 lead in kills.
Markley was interviewed on the Big Ten Network broadcast following the win. After recording a previous career high of 15 kills in a 3-2 win over Ohio State last Saturday, Markley is really elevating her game to another level midway through the season.
“Alexa has the ability to score,” Katie Schumacher-Cawley said Tuesday. “I think that she’s getting better and better. I think every week, for her, is a step forward. She needs to continue to do that. She puts the effort and time in. I’m excited to see what she’s doing.”
Allie Holland tied Iowa’s Anna Davis with a match-high four total blocks and added two of Penn State’s six aces against the Hawkeyes. Holland’s seventh kill of the night closed things out for the Nittany Lions, who have won nine matches in a row heading into Saturday night’s road clash against No. 2 Nebraska on BTN.
Jess Mruzik had nine kills, nine digs, two aces, and two total blocks Friday night. She and Podraza were able to get creative and try a few different styles of attacks against the Hawkeyes. Penn State’s defense held Iowa to a .097 hitting percentage. After losing the first two points of the match, the Nittany Lions went on a 10-2 run to help set the tone for the night.
Camryn Hannah and Taylor Trammell were both extremely efficient against the Hawkeyes, recording eight and five kills, respectively. Hannah had just two attack errors on 15 swings, hitting .400 and adding a block, while Trammell didn’t have any attack errors and capitalized on all but one of her six swings. Markley, Maddy Bilinovic (13 digs, one assist), and Zoe Weatherington (three kills, .400) were Penn State’s lone substitutes.
Bilinovic and Penn State libero Gill Grimes were the only players with double-digit digs, as Grimes tallied a match-high 19 along with her ace and assist. Junior outside hitter Anjelina Starck had six digs and an ace.
The Nittany Lions have their toughest road test of the regular season coming up Saturday at 8 p.m. ET against the Huskers, who are 16-0 and 7-0 in conference play after beating Michigan State 3-1 Friday night at the Devaney Center.