No. 5 Penn State women’s volleyball beat American 3-1 (25-17, 25-19, 16-25, 25-23) at Bender Arena in Washington, D.C.

Jonni Parker led the Nittany Lions with a career-high 17 kills in the second match of their Saturday doubleheader. They swept Buffalo earlier in the day.

How It Happened

Graduate senior Taylor Leath, who transferred in from North Carolina, surpassed 1,000 career kills in the first set against the Eagles. The outside hitter finished with 11 kills, eight digs, and three blocks.

Freshman middle blocker Serena Gray enjoyed a fantastic Saturday for Russ Rose’s Nittany Lions. After setting a new career high with 11 kills against the Bulls, Gray followed it up with 10 more versus American. She also had six blocks.

Kendall White led the way defensively with a match-high 18 digs, while setter Bryanna Weiskircher dished out a season-high 48 assists in the victory, which was a lot closer than the Nittany Lions would have liked. Weiskircher tied her career high with five kills.

Freshmen Allyson Cathey and Kaitlyn Hord added 10 and six kills, respectively, as well as three blocks apiece. All told, Penn State had six players record five or more kills against the Eagles.

Players of the Match

Jonni Parker and Bryanna Weiskircher

Both were tremendous all night for Penn State. It would be unfair to pick one over the other.

What’s Next?

The Nittany Lions (9-1) open conference play on the road at No. 7 Minnesota Wednesday at 9 p.m. ET. The match will air live on Big Ten Network.