No. 13 Penn State women’s volleyball beat Northwestern 3-1 (25-21, 25-18, 23-25, 25-19) Saturday night at Rec Hall thanks to a strong showing from its offense, which hit .372 in the win.
Gabby Blossom’s sixth double-double of the season (45 assists and 15 digs) spurred Penn State’s fifth Big Ten victory, helping the Nittany Lions get back on track after losing to No. 10 Nebraska 3-1 Friday. Blossom worked the ball to the middle often against the Wildcats and found Kaitlyn Hord and Allie Holland for 24 combined kills.
After coming off the bench and providing a significant boost against Nebraska, freshman outside hitter Anjelina Starck made her first career start for the Nittany Lions, who were without Erika Pritchard for the fourth straight match. Pritchard was in uniform on the sidelines this weekend. Starck hit .350 and finished with nine kills, 11 digs, and three blocks.
As expected, star Northwestern outside hitter, Temi Thomas-Ailara, provided quite a challenge for Penn State’s defense. She led all players with 18 kills Saturday and made things interesting in the third set when the Wildcats staved off a fervent Penn State comeback attempt to extend the match.
Jenna Hampton continued her impressive form of late with 17 digs against the Wildcats, further showcasing her excellent touch as a passer, especially when Penn State gets out of system. Russ Rose commented on Hampton’s resiliency earlier this week when highlighting her positive qualities.
The Nittany Lions (12-4, 5-1 Big Ten) return to Rec Hall Friday at 7:30 p.m. when they face Rutgers (8-8) in their annual Dig Pink match. Penn State swept the Scarlet Knights earlier this season on September 24 in Piscataway.
Rose’s opening statement:
“I thought we came out and hit .500 in the first game, so I thought we were playing well in the first couple of games. In the third game, we were down by five and had a chance late in that game to convert, but made a couple errors. You’re at a big disadvantage when [Thomas-Ailara] is in the front row. I think she can go over the top of anybody and score. We needed to convert. We had three or four overpasses in that game that we didn’t convert on, so that’s more than enough to lose a match. We’re pleased to get a victory. Northwestern went five with Maryland yesterday, as did we when we were there. They also had a chance to beat Minnesota, so we know how competitive every team is. We’re pleased to get a victory.”
Allie, what were some of your positive takeaways from tonight’s match?
“My connection with Gabby I thought was really good from the start. Usually when we can get that connection early, it can keep going for the rest of the game. I thought that we had positive energy, and we came back after dropping a set. We came together and we said, ‘We’ve got this. We just have to relax and play our game.'”
Jenna, what stands out to you about Anjelina’s performance this weekend?
“Anjelina came in big time against Nebraska and made really good plays and kept us in that game. Today, she came back with the same attitude and same play, so I’m really happy for her. She’s been working her butt off in practice, and it’s been showing.”
Kaitlyn, what are some things that are working well for the team right now?
“We struggled yesterday with serving, and I think we served a lot tougher and a lot more efficient tonight, so I think that really helped set the tone for just an overall pretty darn good night.”
Coach, what do you want the team to work on in practice heading into next week’s matches?
“I think Anjelina is providing a great contribution right now, but we need to clean up some of the offense at the other outside position. Again, I thought the middles hit well tonight. I thought Jenna played real well on defense. She dug a lot of balls. That was the key. I thought all the seniors were a lot better tonight than they were yesterday.”
Jenna, how would you assess the play of the defensive specialists?
“I mean, all of them come in and do a good job. I think what they do well is they have a lot of energy, especially Maddy [Bilinovic]. She’s a firecracker out there, so whenever we’re down a little, she can bring good energy, and I think that’s something we need.”