No. 13 Penn State women’s volleyball (16-5, 8-3 Big Ten) took down Ohio State (10-11, 3-8 Big Ten) on Thursday during Military Appreciation Night at Rec Hall.

Kennedy Martin led the Nittany Lions with 18 kills, while Whitney Lauenstein added 12 and Haley Burgdorf chipped in 10. Alexis Stucky finished with 47 assists and a team-high 15 digs.

How It Happened

Haley Burgdorf opened the game with a clean serve. The Nittany Lions went up early 3-0 after back-to-back blocks from Gabrielle Nichols.

Ava Falduto had an amazing serve, which resulted in a service ace to put Penn State up 5-1. Ohio State responded right back after a tip on the Nittany Lions.

The Buckeyes went on a two-point streak after an attack error on Penn State and a kill by Kalli Jioshvili-Ravva before Kennedy Martin had a kill to break the run.

Nichols delivered a service ace, which Ohio State responded with two quick points of its own. Martin then delivered a service ace shortly after for the Nittany Lions.

The Buckeyes then got rolling with a 4-0 run, which forced the blue and white to call a timeout up 12-11 in the first set.

After the timeout, Ohio State continued to pressure the Nittany Lions. The Buckeyes went on a 3-1 run before Nichols broke it with a kill, tying the set at 14-14.

Alexis Stucky delivered a beautiful ball for Martin to kill, but Penn State still trailed 17-16. The Nittany Lions challenged a kill by Naomy Govou, but the call was upheld. The Buckeyes led 18-16 in the first set after being down 5-1 early.

Martin landed another service ace to cut the deficit to one, but Ohio State maintained its lead. Alia Schoonover recorded a kill to put the Buckeyes ahead 21-19.

A Kendall Northern attack error prompted another Penn State challenge as boos filled Rec Hall. The call stood, leaving Ohio State ahead 22-20.

Hannah Jones brought the Buckeyes to set point with a kill off Penn State’s block. A Whitney Lauenstein attack error sealed Ohio State’s 25-22 first-set win.

Martin opened the second set with a kill off Ohio State’s block. The teams traded points before Aneta Valentová put the Buckeyes ahead 4-3. Burgdorf answered with a kill to tie it.

Mia Tuman found an opening in Penn State’s defense for a kill, but an Ohio State error later evened the score at 7-7.

Martin ended a long rally with a kill, and Burgdorf followed with another to give the Nittany Lions a 9-7 advantage. Ohio State responded with consecutive points to tie the set again.

Penn State regained control with a 3-0 run before Jones stopped the stretch with a kill, cutting the Nittany Lions’ lead to 12-10.

Stucky set up Burgdorf for her fifth kill of the night, and Northern added a kill to send Penn State into the media timeout leading 15-11.

Stucky caught Ohio State off guard with a setter dump for a kill, then followed with a block that forced a Buckeye attack error. The Buckeyes challenged a kill by Northern. The call was reversed, and the Buckeyes trail 17-15.

Nichols and Lauenstein teamed up for a block to force an Ohio State timeout. A Martin kill and a triple block from Nichols, Stucky, and Lauenstein extended Penn State’s lead to 21-15 in the second set.

Lauenstein sent the Buckeyes scrambling with a kill to bring Penn State to set point. Jioshvili-Ravva answered with a kill before Martin sealed the Nittany Lions’ 25-19 second-set win, evening the match at 1-1.

Penn State came out swinging in the third set, taking a 3-0 lead on a Lauenstein kill and consecutive Ohio State attack errors.

The Nittany Lions stretched the lead to 5-0, forcing a Buckeye timeout. Stucky followed the break with back-to-back service aces to make it 7-0 before Govou finally put Ohio State on the board with a kill.

Martin delivered her twelfth kill of the night after an amazing set by Stucky. The Buckeyes responded with a kill of their own. still trailing 12-6.

Nichols and Martin combined for a block to give Penn State a point. Stucky gave the point right back after a service error. Lauenstein zipped one past the Ohio State defense for a 15-7 lead at the media timeout.

Tuman recorded a kill after Martin couldn’t reach the deflected ball, and Miller followed with another to cut Penn State’s lead to 18-10.

Stucky scored on a setter dump off a Northern assist to give the Nittany Lions a 20-10 advantage. The pair then switched roles, with Stucky setting up Northern for a kill to extend the lead to 21-10.

Martin landed a service ace on the line before Jones answered with a kill for Ohio State. Burgdorf brought Penn State to set point with a kill, then sealed the third-set win with an ace to give the Nittany Lions a 2-1 match lead.

Martin opened the fourth set with a kill, then teamed up with Nichols for a block to give Penn State a 2-0 lead. Govou put Ohio State on the board with a kill off a Tuman assist, cutting the Nittany Lions’ advantage to 3-1.

Schoonover and Govou later combined to block Martin, but she answered with her 14th kill of the night. After three errors from the Buckeyes, Penn State went up 9-2, but Schoonover delivered a kill to make it 9-3.

Schoonover kept Ohio State fighting with a kill to cut Penn State’s lead to 13-7. A Govou attack error later pushed the Nittany Lions’ advantage to 15-7 heading into the media timeout.

The Buckeyes came out of the media timeout with a kill by Mia Stahler, continuing to show heart. Nichols clapped back for the blue and white with a kill of her own, making it 16-8.

A Jioshvili-Ravva kill and a Burgdorf attack error cut Penn State’s lead to six before Lauenstein answered with a kill to put the Nittany Lions ahead 19-12.

Lauenstein stayed hot, accounting for three straight Penn State points and putting away another kill to extend the Nittany Lions’ lead to 21-13.

Martin brought Penn State to match point with an eight-point lead, then sealed the victory with a service ace. The Nittany Lions took the fourth set 25-16 to complete the 3-1 win.

Takeaways

• Penn State needs to be better at blocking. It gave the Buckeyes several runs of block errors due to not being in position.
• Penn State opened the third set with vengeance. After playing sloppy in the first two sets, it came out with a 5-0 run early.
• Penn State dominated in the third and fourth set.

What’s Next?

The Nittany Lions are back in action against Purdue at 12:30 p.m. on Saturday, October 31st, at Rec Hall. Folks can watch along on Big Ten Plus.