No. 14 Penn State women’s volleyball (10-3, 3-0 Big Ten) pulled off an incredible reverse sweep (19-25, 25-27, 25-22, 25-18, 15-9) over Maryland (13-2, 1-2 Big Ten) Wednesday night to build upon its strong start to conference play.

The Nittany Lions shook off a slow start to defeat Maryland, resulting in their 26th straight win over the Terrapins. Maryland’s last win in the series came all the way back in 1976.

How It Happened

Maryland began Wednesday night’s match with a vengeance. The Terrapins got off to a hot start by jumping out to an 8-3 lead thanks to strong hitting and a few costly Penn State attack errors. The Nittany Lions responded with a 3-0 before Maryland regained control and went up 15-7 midway through the frame.

Penn State fought back, but it was ultimately never enough to put a significant dent in Maryland’s advantage. The Terrapins won the first set 25-19 after hitting at an absurd .464 clip, dwarfing Penn State’s .200. Eight of Maryland’s points in the frame came off Penn State hitting errors.

Led by outside hitter Anastasiya Kudryashova, Penn State began set two on better footing. The Nittany Lions fought toe-to-toe with Maryland, producing several ties along the way. Midway through the frame, the teams were locked at 9-9.

The competition remained close until the end of the second set. Although Penn State fought off a Maryland set point and tied things up 25-25, the Nittany Lions let up a kill and committed an attack error to provide the Terrapins with a 27-25 win.

Penn State never truly shook Maryland off its back, but the Nittany Lions beat the Terrapins to 10 points in the third frame and took a 10-8 lead thanks to a Jonni Parker kill.

Penn State maintained its edge in the third set thanks to careful and strong blocking from Kaitlyn Hord and Allie Holland. The Nittany Lions compiled five blocks to bulldoze their way to a 25-22 win in the third frame, staving off Maryland’s hopes for a clean sweep.

With momentum on their side, the Nittany Lions started out strong and kept the lead until Maryland broke through to go up 12-11. Kills from Hord and Holland let Penn State tie Maryland 13-13.

A 3-0 scoring run helped Penn State break away and go up 19-16, prompting a Maryland timeout. All-around strong play from the Nittany Lions, including an ace from Cassie Kuerschen some Maryland attack errors, gave Penn State a 25-18 win, forcing a fifth and final set to decide the match.

Penn State and Maryland traded blows to begin the fifth set before the Nittany Lions ripped off a 4-0 run to go up 6-2. Jonni Parker’s 18th kill of the match forced the Terrapins to burn a timeout down 11-7.

Kait SOLO! That's a reverse sweep!#WeAre
pic.twitter.com/COwIYaGPWE

— Penn State Women’s Volleyball (@PennStateVBALL) September 30, 2021

Ultimately, an emphatic block from Hord gave Penn State a 15-9 win, completing the reverse sweep and keeping the Nittany Lions undefeated in conference play.

Player Of The Match

Allie Holland | Middle Blocker

Just as a sophomore, Holland bullied Maryland at the net all night long. She posted a career-high 15 kills and a career-high eight blocks to give Penn State a spark when it needed it most.

What’s Next?

Penn State will get a chance to rest for a few days before facing Indiana on the road on Saturday, October 2. First serve in Bloomington is set for 6 p.m.