No. 7 Penn State women’s volleyball (5-0) defeated Ball State (3-2) on Saturday afternoon in three sets. This was the Nittany Lions’ second victory of the Kentucky Invitational as they remain undefeated.

Per usual, Jess Mruzik paved the way for Penn State and finished the day with 17 kills and three blocks. Additionally, Izzy Starck dished out 43 assists from her setter position.

How It Happened

The first set started with a heavy back and forth nature, as both squads traded points with the game tied at 9-9. Both offenses were firing on all cylinders with seven straight points resulted in kills to bring the score to 14-14. Back-to-back kills from Camryn Hannah and Mruzik gave the Nittany Lions a little breathing room, but Ball State quickly answered with two straight kills of their own to close the gap and once again knot the game up at 18-18. Mruzik turned up the heat, landing three consecutive kills to put Penn State up 21-19, forcing a Ball State timeout in the process.

After the timeout, Ball State took the next two points to tie the game up at 21-21, but an attack error from the Cardinals was followed by a block from Mruzik that gave Penn State a 23-21 lead. Ball State opted to use its last timeout of the set, but that was no use as Maggie Mendelson landed a big-time block to bring the Nittany Lions to set point. Mruzik clinched the set 25-22 with a kill for Penn State.

The Cardinals took the first point of the second set due to a ball handling error from Starck. The lead grew to 6-4 in favor of Ball State after a kill from Megan Wielinski but Penn State responded with a 5-2 run that put it up 9-8. An ace from Mruzik gave the Nittany Lions some much needed momentum as they went up 15-13.

The Cardinals managed to scratch back and tie it up at 15-15, but back-to-back kills from Mendelson and Taylor Trammell plus a block from Starck fueled a 3-0 run and forced Ball State to take a timeout as they now trailed 18-15.

The Cardinals came screeching out of their timeout, going on a 3-0 run of their own to tie the set again. Both sides traded kills to tie it up at 21-21, but in the blink of an eye, a vicious 4-0 run that included an ace from Ava Falduto closed out the second set for the Nittany Lions 25-21.

Mendelson drew the first blood of the third set for Penn State with a kill at the net. A Mruzik service error sparked a run for the Cardinals as they now led 12-7. Penn State went right to work, going on a 4-1 run to make it an 11-13 game. Another small run by the Nittany Lions tied up the game at 14-14, but Carson Tyler snatched the lead back for Ball State with a kill.

The theme of runs continued for Penn State, as it stormed to a 21-17 lead thanks to a big time 7-2 run after the media timeout. In crunch time, Hannah landed three straight kills to put Penn State at both game and set point. Trammel then ended the set with a kill to clinch the win for the Nittany Lions.

Takeaways

• Offensive execution was there all day for Penn State as three players finished with double digit kills. Specifically, Trammell was extremely efficient with her kills, landing 11 on just 12 swings for a ridiculous .917 hitting percentage.
• Resilience was a key factor in the winning effort as both teams went on frequent scoring runs. Being able to stay level headed and chip away while behind was crucial for the Nittany Lions.

What’s Next?

The Nittany Lions come back home to play Duke at 8:30 p.m. on Friday, September 13.