Penn State Volleyball Sweeps Iowa Again In Team IMPACT Awareness Match

Posted on by Ethan Kasales

No. 11 Penn State women’s volleyball swept Iowa for the second time in a week Friday night at Rec Hall during the program’s Team IMPACT awareness match.

The Nittany Lions (14-4, 8-1 Big Ten) also swept the Hawkeyes last Friday on the road at Xtream Arena in Coralville, Iowa. Penn State improved to 59-0 in the all-time series against Iowa. Jess Mruzik and Camryn Hannah led the Nittany Lions offensively with a match-high 14 and 12 kills, respectively. Hannah also led all players with seven total blocks.

Box Score

The program honored its Team IMPACT teammate, Olivia, after the second set, posing for photos with her and her family at midcourt. Members of the Penn State women’s lacrosse team were also in attendance, as their program is hoping to add a Team IMPACT teammate of their own. Penn State players wore yellow and pink ribbons in their hair to commemorate the cause and breast cancer awareness month.

Sophomore libero Gill Grimes had a match-high 19 digs, tied for the second-most of her career, as she also had 19 against the Hawkeyes last Friday and earlier this season in a win over Seton Hall. Grimes added six assists and one of Penn State’s two service aces Friday night. Allie Holland, who had five kills, five total blocks, two digs, and an assist, had the other ace for the Nittany Lions.

Taylor Trammell had six kills, five total blocks, and two digs in the win. Mac Podraza guided Penn State’s offense to a .279 hitting percentage, while the Nittany Lions’ defense held Iowa to just .098. Podraza finished with a match-high 33 assists, 10 digs, two kills, and one block. It was her fifth double-double of the season. Anjelina Starck had seven digs and two kills.

The Hawkeyes started strong and tied things up 14-14 midway through the first set, but the ensuing 8-2 Penn State run gave the Nittany Lions control of the set, and Podraza and Holland eventually closed it out on a double block. Penn State out-blocked the Hawkeyes 12-6 and had a 52-42 advantage in digs.

Penn State utilized four substitutes, including three defensive specialists, over the course of the match, which lasted 1:28. Cassie Kuerschen had three digs, while Maddy Bilinovic and Lina Perugini had one apiece. Alexa Markley had three total blocks and a kill, but struggled with attack errors, recording 12 Friday night after she had a career-high 17 kills in Penn State’s last match against the Hawkeyes.

Penn State hit .387 in the third set, which was by far its best hitting percentage of the three sets, as the Nittany Lions began the match with a .216 clip in the first frame and continued with a .250 mark in the second. Penn State will have a big test at Rec Hall on Sunday at 1 p.m. on FS1 in the program’s annual Dig Pink match against No. 19 Purdue (12-6, 6-3 Big Ten). The Boilermakers will be on extended rest after beating Indiana 3-1 Wednesday in West Lafayette.

Katie Schumacher-Cawley, Gill Grimes, and Lina Perugini answered questions following the win. The transcript can be found below.

Schumacher-Cawley’s opening statement:

“Thanks for coming. We appreciate you guys. I say it all the time. Any win in this conference is a great win. It’s nice to win at home. I’m glad we rallied back and found some ways to score.”

Coach, what are some things that you think went well in the third set? You guys were able to bump up your hitting percentage a bit.

KSC: “I thought we passed a little bit better in the third set. I thought our attackers were taking some better swings and found some spots on the floor.”

Cam [Hannah] led the team in blocks with seven. What was the difference in that?

KSC: “I think just being focused and knowing where her hitter was and being over fast. I think I said, ‘We need to be better defensively.’ I thought Lina came in and dug some balls. Gill did some good stuff. We’ll need to be better, though, on Sunday.”

Lina, how would you describe the atmosphere in Rec Hall? What’s it like playing for your home-state school?

Perugini: “I’ve been watching the atmosphere in Rec Hall since I was 10 years old, since I started playing volleyball and I came to matches. It never fails to amaze me. It’s awesome to play in. It’s awesome to know that you have a great support system. It’s just really cool. That’s the best way to put it.”

Coach, the blocking tonight seemed much stronger than the previous match versus Nebraska. Was there anything special you had the team do in practice leading up to this match that you think improved the defense at the net?

KSC: “I think defense is something we talk about every day. We’ll always do some sort of defense [in practice], blocking and digging. I think our players are doing a better job of being aware of what’s going on, whether it’s with film or paying attention more in our scouts. I think we can be a very good defensive team. I thought the blockers turned it on here from the second set to the third.”

Gill, where do you think you’ve improved the most as a sophomore?

Grimes: “I think my leadership skills have improved for the team, but also my defense, to get balls up or even just a hand on a ball, so we can go for the rally.”

What’s it like having veterans like Lina in the backcourt to learn from?

Grimes: “Lina’s great. She definitely helps me in the backcourt, whether it’s getting digs up, too, or telling me where to be. She’s a huge help.”

Gill, you were getting right under for those digs on some powerful attacks. It was pretty exciting. The fans were going crazy. Did you just realize that you were in the moment?

Grimes: “Yeah, I think being focused and locked in really helps, but also just trying to get the ball up, so my team can score points. That’s always my mindset about that.”

Coach, what are some things you want your team to focus on heading into Sunday’s match against Purdue?

KSC: “I think we’ll have to serve and pass a whole lot better. Serve and pass, and I think just being able to start the match fast and score points, instead of being down 0-4, 0-5.”

Lina, how important were Jess [Mruzik] and Cam [Hannah] tonight offensively for you guys?

Perugini: “They know how to put balls away, even when we’re out-of-system, and I think that’s really important to have studs like them, who Mac knows that she can just give the ball to them, and they’re able to put it away. They have a really good trust between each other, and it’s essential for us to be successful.”

[Anjelina] Starck seemed to pick up a lot of the tips that were flying out on the court. Was that something you guys were practicing? Because that was a major change we hadn’t seen in previous matches.

KSC: “I think she’s getting in better position and sees the attackers. I think she’s digging the balls that are in front of her a lot better.”