Following Penn State’s big 38-14 win in Beaver Stadium, Homecoming weekend rolled on with a conference showdown for Russ Rose’s Nittany Lions across campus.

No. 15 Penn State (14-3, 6-0 Big Ten) picked up its 12th-straight victory Saturday night, sweeping the Scarlet Knights (25-13, 25-16, 25-10) in front of a packed Rec Hall crowd of 5,312.

How It Happened

The Nittany Lions cruised out of the gates against CJ Werneke’s squad, no doubt fueled by their enormous 3-2 upset over No. 1 Minnesota this past Wednesday. Redshirt freshman Tori Gorrell got off to a hot start with five kills in an easy 25-13 first-set win that allowed Penn State to rotate in a handful of backups, like Nia Reed and Carley Muller.

Fresh off a career-high 61 assists against the Golden Gophers, junior setter Abby Detering was dealing. She would go on to post 40 assists, five digs, three blocks, and three kills. The Mentor, Ohio, native spread the ball around to Penn State’s high-flying outside hitters Simone Lee (11 kills and six digs) and Ali Frantti (five kills and seven digs), but they weren’t the only Nittany Lions to get involved in the offense.

Middle blocker Haleigh Washington and right side Heidi Thelen added an extra element to Penn State’s attack, and Washington was especially impressive, connecting on six of her seven swings through the first two sets. They would finish with 11 and seven kills apiece. The ladies in blue and white rolled to another stress-free win in the second frame, taking down the Scarlet Knights 25-16 after trailing 9-7. Junior Meme Fletcher would lead the Scarlet Knights with nine kills.

Lee would join Gorrell in double figures early in the third set and the duo would go on to post a combined 11 kills apiece when the final whistle blew. Per usual, Penn State enjoyed strong defensive play from freshman libero Kendall White and sophomore Keeton Holcomb, as they would finish with 14 and six digs, respectively. The Nittany Lions would finish off the sweep with a 25-10 win.

Player Of The Match

Haleigh Washington | Junior | Middle blocker

The Colorado Springs, Colo., native did a little bit of everything for Penn State Saturday night, recording 10 kills, two digs, and a match-high five blocks.

What’s Next?

The Nittany Lions will rest up before traveling to West Lafayette, Ind., for an 8:00 p.m. ET opening serve against Purdue this coming Friday.