No. 11 Penn State Women’s Volleyball Beats No. 19 Minnesota 3-1 Behind Kennedy Martin’s Career Day
No. 11 Penn State (18-5, 10-3 Big Ten) defeated No. 19 Minnesota (14-7, 8-5 Big Ten) 3-1, backed by a historic performance from Kennedy Martin.Â
Martin tied her career-high 34 kills and surpassed 2,000 career kills. She is the fourth Nittany Lion to do so, splitting her efforts across two seasons at Florida and two seasons in Happy Valley.Â
How It Happened:
Minnesota’s Carly Gilk opened the match with a kill, followed by another from McKenna Wucherer. Martin recorded Penn State’s first kill before Wucherer and Elena Hoecke scored on an overpass for the Gophers.
Emmi Sellman recorded two kills on two swings to tie the set at 5-5. Kelly Kinney added three points for Minnesota with a roll shot to the back row, a tip to middle court and a swing to the back corner, giving the Gophers an 8-7 lead.
Whitney Lauenstein recorded her first kill, but after a missed serve, the Nittany Lions went on a 4-0 run, beginning with a back-row attack from Martin. Gabrielle Nichols added a kill, Alexis Stucky served an ace, and Lauenstein ended a long rally with a kill, forcing a Minnesota timeout with Penn State leading 12-9.
Wucherer answered out of the timeout before Martin and Nichols recorded back-to-back kills. Wucherer found open court with a dink, but Martin’s swing sent Penn State into the media timeout with a 15-12 lead.
Kinney sent a shot down the line before Penn State challenged a Wucherer kill, which was ruled no touch. Sellman served an ace, but Kinney answered with back-to-back kills to cut the deficit to two.
Kendall Northern connected on a slide from Stucky, but a Kinney kill and a service ace from McKenna Carr forced a Penn State timeout with Minnesota trailing 19-18.
Martin attacked from the back row, and Stucky served her second ace of the set, prompting a Minnesota timeout with Penn State leading 21-18.
Wucherer tipped off the block, but Martin answered with a swing from the left side. Martin’s initial swing was ruled no touch, but Penn State successfully challenged the call, marking its second successful challenge of the night and extending its lead to 23-19.
Wucherer and Hoecke recorded kills for Minnesota, but Nichols ended the Gophers’ run with a quick attack from Stucky. Wucherer added another kill, but Martin closed the first set with her ninth kill of the night and 2,000th career kill, giving Penn State a 25-22 win.
Lauenstein opened the second set with a kill, and Wucherer and Martin traded kills. Martin swung through the block, and Sellman followed with a kill to give Penn State a 5-2 lead.
Ava Falduto served an ace before Wucherer hit past the double block and Hoecke connected on a slide. The teams traded service errors before Wucherer attacked from the back row. Northern connected with Stucky again to take a 9-6 lead.
Jordan Taylor and Kinney teamed up for the first block of the match, but Stucky answered with a tip. Gilk tipped over the block, and Martin sent a shot to the back line. Wucherer recorded another kill before Hoecke added a solo block.
With the score tied at 11, Nichols and Sellman ended the night’s longest rally with a block. Martin swung off the block for a 13-11 Penn State lead before Stella Swenson scored on a dump.
Northern recorded her third kill with an off-speed shot, and Kinney followed with a kill for Minnesota. Penn State entered the media timeout leading 15-13.
Swenson served an ace out of the break, but Martin continued attacking from the back row. Stucky’s swing off the block maintained Penn State’s two-point lead. Nichols tipped over the block, and Martin’s 15th kill forced a Minnesota timeout with Penn State ahead 19-16.
Nichols and Martin teamed up for a block, but Gilk tipped it over on the next Gopher attack. Wucherer recorded a kill following a Penn State violation before Martin sent a cross-court shot for a 21-18 lead.
Minnesota successfully challenged a call, awarding Gilk a kill. Martin took over down the stretch, recording three consecutive kills with full swings to the back line.
Sellman closed the set with a tip down the line that landed in the back corner, giving Penn State a 25-20 win and a 2-0 match lead.
Wucherer opened the third set with two quick kills for Minnesota before Nichols connected with Stucky. Martin added two kills, and Wucherer answered with a seam shot.
Martin recorded a solo block, but Minnesota stayed close as Wucherer sent over a roll shot and Kinney scored on a Penn State violation.
Martin tipped off the block, but Swenson answered with a second-ball dump in front of the 10-foot line, giving Minnesota a 7-5 lead. Georgia Lee served an ace before Martin recorded another kill.
Wucherer attacked from the back row, and Makenna Crosson recorded her first kill of the match. Lauenstein ended Minnesota’s run with a kill, but Kinney’s tip kept the Gophers ahead 11-9.
Taylor recorded a kill, and Wucherer put away a ball following a diving save by Swenson, forcing a Penn State timeout with Minnesota leading 13-9. Carr then served back-to-back aces to give the Gophers a 15-9 lead at the media timeout.
Lauenstein swung off the block, and back-to-back kills from Martin forced a Minnesota timeout with the Gophers leading 16-13.
Sellman added a kill, and two consecutive Golden Gopher errors cut the lead to two. Martin recorded a kill from the right side before a Swenson dump, and a Wucherer ace extended Minnesota’s lead to 19-16.
Martin recorded two kills past the block, but kills from Hoecke and Jordan maintained Minnesota’s three-point lead. Kinney added a kill to force a Penn State timeout with the Gophers leading 22-18.
Martin recorded a back-row kill, but Crosson toed the block twice, and Wucherer hit the back-row seam to give Minnesota a 25-19 set-three win.
Stucky opened the fourth set with a kill, but Crosson answered with a quick swing. Nichols swung off the block, and Sellman added three consecutive cross-court kills to force an early Minnesota timeout with Penn State leading 5-1.
Martin added two kills to extend Penn State’s lead to 7-2. Swenson and Hoecke ended the run with a block, but Martin recorded her 33rd kill.
Kinney and Martin traded kills before Wucherer found open court and Jordan and Kinney teamed up for a block, cutting Penn State’s lead to 10-7. Lauenstein swung off the block, and Ava Jurevicius served an ace on her first attempt.
Wucherer recorded two kills through the block before Martin tipped off the Golden Gophers’ hands and Nichols added a solo block. Sellman’s roll shot sent Penn State into the media timeout, leading 15-9.
Crosson hit down the line out of the break before serving two consecutive aces, forcing a Penn State timeout as Minnesota cut the deficit to 15-13.
Hoecke recorded a kill out of the break, and a Penn State attack error tied the set at 15-15. Burgdorf recorded her first kill before teaming up with Northern for a block and taking a 17-15 lead.
Hoecke and Burgdorf traded kills before Kinney tied the set at 18-18. Burgdorf swung off the block, but an attack error and a Kinney kill forced a Penn State timeout with Minnesota leading 21-19.
Lauenstein recorded a kill, and a Nichols-Stucky block tied the set at 21-21, forcing a Minnesota timeout. Lauenstein then recorded three consecutive kills to give Penn State a 25-21 set win and a 3-1 match victory.
Takeaways:
- Five of Whitney Lauenstein’s 10 kills came in the fourth set, helping to secure the Nittany Lions’ victory.
- Kennedy Martin has been a legacy player for Penn State. The right-side hitter had just three errors on 61 swings, earning a .508 hitting percentage.Â
- The match featured just 10 blocks; Minnesota notched six, and Penn State delivered four.Â
- The Nittany Lions had quite a few net violations, something they will look to clean up before the Big Ten Tournament.
What’s Next?
The Nittany Lions will travel to Madison to take on the No. 7 Wisconsin Badgers at 4 p.m. on Sunday. The match will be available on FS1.Â
Your ad blocker is on.
Please choose an option below.
Purchase a Subscription!
About the Author
Penn State Football Wide Receiver Koby Howard Ruled Out For Washington Game
Saturday marks the sixth consecutive game Howard will have missed.
Previewing The Enemy: Washington Huskies
Penn State is set to make its lone West Coast trip of the season.
No. 13 Penn State Women’s Volleyball Upsets No. 11 Purdue 3-1 In Senior Day Matchup
Kennedy Martin led the way with 24 kills.