No. 12 Penn State women’s volleyball swept in-state rival Temple in the first volleyball match in Liacouras Center history Friday night. The two teams hadn’t played in Philadelphia since 2009.
The Nittany Lions improved to 17-4 in their all-time series against the Owls, relying on double-digit kills from Zoe Weatherington (match-high 11) and Camryn Hannah (10) to overcome a pesky Temple squad that nearly forced a fourth set. The announced attendance was 2,468.
Hannah is now four kills away from reaching 1,000 for her career, while Weatherington is 19 away from achieving the same milestone. Jess Mruzik recently did so in Penn State’s sweep of Colgate last Saturday at Rec Hall. Hannah made her first start in a Penn State uniform against the Owls.
๐๐ฌ๐๐๐ฅ ๐๐ฃ ๐๐๐๐ก๐ก๐ฎ#WeAre
๐ตโช๏ธ pic.twitter.com/cFljlxnQHr— Penn State Womenโs Volleyball (@PennStateVBALL) September 9, 2023
Gill Grimes tied her career high with 14 digs for the third time this season after retaking the libero jersey from Maddy Bilinovic, who had five digs and one of Penn State’s eight aces. Allie Holland had eight kills, a match-high five total blocks, and served up four aces for the fourth time in her career. Anjelina Starck matched her with eight kills of her own in the win.
Cassie Kuerschen put together an impressive performance off the bench with eight digs, two assists, and an ace against the Owls, who hit just .051 and were out-blocked by the Nittany Lions 9-3 Friday night. Mac Podraza, who finished with 35 assists, five digs, three kills, one ace, and one block assist, led Penn State’s offense to a .314 hitting percentage, including a .382 clip in the first set. Taylor Trammell had six kills. Mruzik was surprisingly held without a kill, but had seven digs and an assist.
Starck and Kuerschen were among eight Penn State substitutes to see the floor, including freshman outside hitter Karis Willow, who took two swings and played in two sets in her collegiate debut, but didn’t record a stat. After initially subbing backup setter Ally Van Eekeren into the match, Podraza came back onto the court once Temple made a late run in the third set, even reaching set point, 25-24. A Trammell kill followed by a pair of Temple attack errors gave Penn State the sweep, however.
The Nittany Lions (4-2) won their fourth straight match heading into Sunday’s anticipated road showdown against No. 2 Louisville (7-0) at L&N Federal Credit Union Arena at 1 p.m. on ESPN2. The Cardinals barely escaped Dayton with a 3-2 road win on Wednesday.
Weatherington, Starck, and head coach Katie Schumacher-Cawley answered questions outside Penn State’s locker room following Friday’s win over the Owls. The transcript of questions and answers can be found below.
Katie Schumacher-Cawley
What did you think the atmosphere was like here in the Liacouras Center?
“Oh, it was great. I thought they did an amazing job. From the band to the crowd, the Penn State fans, I thought it was amazing. It was great for us to play in an environment like that.”
What were some of the keys to the win tonight?
“I thought we served aggressively. We had a couple kind of crazy errors at the end, but I thought we regrouped and found a way to win.”
You went back to Gill as the libero tonight. What went into that decision and how do you think she played?
“I think her passing has been great. I think, defensively, we need her on the floor all the time. I thought she did a great job. I know Maddy’s right next to her. It will be like that all season.”
Cassie and Lina got some extended playing time. What stands out about them?
“I think just being able to serve tough and defensively pick up some balls. I think both of them are doing a much better job in serve receive, so it’s nice to be able to have options.”
Cam and Zoe were pretty efficient tonight. What stood out about them?
“I think when our passing is good, Mac and Ally can set the right people and spread it out a little bit. I thought both were taking high swings and being really aggressive.”
How have you seen Anjelina improve and be more consistent?
“I think Anje is a great player. She knows what she’s doing. To be able to come in and play six rotations is not new for her. She does it every day in practice. I know we’re going to have to be able to lean on a lot of players on the bench to help us the whole season.”
What are your thoughts on Mac’s performance tonight?
“I thought she was way more aggressive at the net. She found some ways to score, and she needs to continue to keep doing that.”
What would you like to see from the team heading into the Louisville match?
“I would like to see us get some rest and be focused, regroup, and put forth our best effort on Sunday.”
Zoe Weatherington
What were your thoughts on the atmosphere here with a lot of Penn State fans in attendance?
“It was great. I was glad that we had people who could come travel. We’re still so close. I thought Temple’s fans did a great job of hyping them up and keeping it loud and exciting in here. It’s always more fun to play games when there’s a big atmosphere and loud fans.”
You, Anje, and Cam were pretty efficient tonight. What do you think were some of the keys for you three?
“We’ve been able to get a lot of reps with Mac this week, and the whole season so far. I think that when the pass is there, it’s really easy to swing away and be confident.”
What are some things that differentiate Mac as a setter?
“She’s smart. Her and Ally are both very smart setters, and I’m glad that they’re in our program now, because they have great hands and great minds for the game. Definitely high volleyball IQs.”
How valuable are the middle blockers to your team’s success?
“They’re crucial. We can’t win games without them. We need them to pull the block away from us. It opens up more opportunities for the pin hitters and everybody else.”
What are some things that stand out about Jess Mruzik’s game?
“She’s great. I’m just glad she’s on our team. She’s such a big hitter who’s physical, fast, and really strong. I’m just grateful she’s here. She’s a great passer, too.”
We saw Lina Perugini and Macy Van Den Elzen tonight, two players from Pennsylvania. What stands out about their contributions?
“Not just for us, but for the fans, too, it’s good to have some hometown heroes. I’m glad that they came in and did their work tonight, because they put in work every practice, just like everyone else. They deserve as much playing time as anyone else who works that hard in practice.”
What were some of the keys to making sure that Temple didn’t extend the match there at the end?
“Passing and communication.”
What are you looking forward to about heading down to Louisville? What will be some important things for the team to focus on in practice?
“To just be ready to have a big, challenging, physical team on the other side of the court. Louisville has amazing pins and amazing hitters, too. It’s going to be a fun match, because we’re going to be challenged.”
What are some things that you think you’ve improved since you arrived at Penn State?
“I think a lot of things. Coach Katie stays on my back about being a big, physical hitter. I think I was physical when I came here, but with our workout plan and all that stuff, I’ve been able to get stronger and contribute even more to my team than I have before. I’m really grateful for who we have and how far I’ve come.”
How important are those off-court resources to your team’s success?
“Very important. If it weren’t for the off-the-court stuff, we wouldn’t be able to perform well on the court. Nutrition, training, strength work, it all plays a big role in how well we recover and get ready for match after match after match, because it’s a long season.”
Anjelina Starck
What was it like playing here in Philadelphia with a big Penn State crowd?
“It was a lot of fun. They were definitely very loud. There were a lot of people who showed up, so I thought that was pretty cool. When you looked in the stands, you could see all the Penn State shirts. I think it’s cool how big of a fan base we have here in Philadelphia.”
You were pretty efficient tonight. What were some of the keys to your success?
“My teammates helped a lot, letting me know when I was hitting what was open. The bench during timeouts was telling me what’s open on the court, which definitely helps my game.”
What’s your relationship like with Mac and Ally?
“I love them both. They both give me really good feedback, and they take feedback really well. I love playing with them.”
The team hung on there at the end of the third set to finish the sweep. What were some of the keys to making sure Temple didn’t extend the match?
“Just making sure we kept our passing and serves in and just playing our game.”
How would you assess the play of your defensive specialists lately?
“I think they’ve all been doing a super good job. They’ve been working a lot during practice, so I think our defense has been really good, and all the players have been good, too.”
We saw Gill back in the libero jersey tonight. What stands out about her game?
“I think her passing is super good. Ever since she got here, she’s been a very good passer. She’s loud on the court. Especially when I’m passing, I can hear her next to me. She’ll help me passing when I’m front row.”
Cassie, Maddy, and Lina got some extended playing time tonight as well. What do they bring to the team?
“I think they all bring very positive energy. Whenever they’re on the court, they work as hard as possible. They always work super hard in practice.”
What are some things you think you’ve improved upon as a player the last few years on campus?
“Definitely blocking I’ve worked really hard on, especially this week. I thought I saw a little improvement with that tonight, so I was happy.”
Cam and Zoe had pretty good performances tonight. What have they been doing lately that’s impressive?
“Definitely their hitting. Also, Cam jumps super high, so she’s way over the block when she’s hitting. She does a very good job. Zoe’s super strong and gets a lot of kills for us, which helps us a lot.”