Fresh off their upset of No. 1 Stanford Friday, Russ Rose’s Nittany Lions fell behind early to the Aggies before rallying for a 3-2 win (24-26, 25-19, 25-23, 24-26, 15-12) in College Station.

No. 5 Penn State dropped the first set Saturday evening, but went on an clutch run to capture the Texas A&M Tournament.

How It Happened

After battling back and forth for much of the first set, the Nittany Lions took a 24-22 match-point lead before surrendering four straight points. Despite the early setback, Penn State claimed the next frame to even things up at 1-1. Simone Lee continued her dominant start to the season with a match-high 30 kills in Reed Arena as Abby Detering and Bryanna Weiskircher split setter duties again.

The duo each finished with 32 and 31 assists, respectively, in the victory. Detering wasn’t quite as masterful offensively as her triple-double against the Cardinal, but it’s not like those kind of nights come around all that often. She added five digs, three blocks, and three kills versus the Aggies. Classmate Haleigh Washington contributed 12 kills and six blocks, while Heidi Thelen and Nia Reed combined for four more kills apiece.

On the defensive end, sophomore libero Kendall White and Ali Frantti both reached double figures in digs with a match-high 15 and 13. Frantti, a Spring Grove, Ill., native, also notched 16 kills — good for second on Penn State’s offense behind Lee. Head coach Laurie Corbelli’s offense ran through sophomore Hollann Hans, who finished with a team-high 28 kills.

Player Of The Match

Simone Lee | Senior | Outside hitter

Lee was absolutely phenomenal against the Aggies, tying a career-high with 30 kills and six digs.

What’s Next?

No. 5 Penn State (5-0) heads to Champaign next Friday for a 5:30 p.m. first serve against Colorado in the Big Ten/Pac-12 Challenge. The Nittany Lions face top-ranked Stanford again the following day.