Fall Sports Recap: Volleyball Sweeps No. 4 Louisville
Written by Black Hot Fire Network on October 25, 2024
Women’s Volleyball
The No. 7 women’s volleyball team defeated No. 15 Tennesee (3-1), Temple (3-0), and No. 4 Louisville (3-0) in the opening week of the season. After dropping the opening set against the Volunteers, the Lions won nine straight sets to start the 2024 campaign at 3-0. The win over Louisville marked Katie Schumacher-Cawley’s third win over a top 10 team as Penn State’s head coach.
Against Tennessee, Camryn Hannah and Jess Mruzik each recorded 19 kills to lead the way for the offense. True freshman setter Izzy Starck tallied 42 assists in her first career start on her way to Big Ten Freshman of the Week honors.
Penn State easily dispatched Temple on Sunday afternoon behind a whopping 12 aces from seven different players. Incoming transfer Caroline Jurevicius (daughter of former Penn State wide receiver Joe Jurevicius) led the team with nine kills in the match. Defensively, freshman Ava Falduto recorded 13 digs.
In the team’s first match against a top 10 team this season, Penn State dominated Louisville in straight sets, holding the Cardinals to a .091 hitting percentage. Jess Mruzik earned her 1,500th career kill in the third set and recorded a team-high 13 kills in the match. Gillian Grimes was sensational at libero with 13 digs and four aces.
Penn State will be in Lexington, Kentucky this weekend for a pair of matches. The Lions will take on Kentucky on Friday (7pm on SEC Network) and Ball State on Saturday (5pm).
Women’s Soccer
The women’s soccer team rebounded with a 3-1 win over West Virginia on Thursday and a 2-1 win over Saint Louis on Sunday. Kaitlyn MacBean scored all five goals for the Nittany Lions in the two wins, bringing her total to a stunning eight goals in the first five games of the season. MacBean leads the entire NCAA in goals scored so far this season. Amanda Poorbaugh earned two wins in net and made six saves in the pair of games.
Penn State returned to the top 10 in this week’s United Soccer Coaches’ poll after a one-week absence, placing at No. 8.
The Lions will continue their road trip with a match at Princeton today (7pm on ESPN+) and a match at No. 23 Georgetown on Sunday (1pm).
Men’s Soccer
The men’s soccer team dropped a 2-1 heartbreaker against Pitt on Friday before rebounding with a solid 4-0 win over St. Bonaventure on Monday.
After Christian Dionne gave the Lions a 1-0 lead over Pitt in the first half, leaky defense in the second half allowed the Panthers to tie and eventually take the lead. Penn State did not have a shot on goal in the second half and recorded just five total shots (two on goal) in the match.
Ben Liscum, Michael Hewes, Matthew Henderson, and Christian Dionne each scored a goal in the win over St. Bonaventure. The Nittany Lions finally found some scoring depth on offense and limited the Bonnies to three shots on goal in the match.
After an idle weekend, Penn State will face Cornell at home on Monday (7pm on Big Ten Plus).
Field Hockey
The field hockey team dropped two tough matches at home, falling 2-1 to Virginia and 2-1 to Syracuse.
Virginia’s offensive attack was overwhelming, recording 24 total shots in the game, but the Cavaliers held a slim 1-0 advantage entering the second half. Phia Gladieux tied the game in the third off a penalty corner to give the Lions some life, but Virginia took the lead on a rebound chance with just under three minutes to play.
It was another slow start for the team against Syracuse, with the Orange taking a 1-0 lead in the first. The teams would trade quality chances in the second and third, but both goalies remained tough. Syracuse doubled its lead early in the fourth on a penalty corner. Phia Gladieux scored three minutes later to cut the deficit in half. Penn State went to work in the offensive zone pressing for the tying goal, including over two minutes of possession time, but was unable to capitalize.
The Lions will look to rebound with a pair of road games. Penn State will play St. Joseph’s on Friday (3pm on ESPN+) and Delaware on Sunday (Noon).