Women’s Volleyball (9-3)
The women’s volleyball team split its road games in Michigan, defeating Michigan 3-1 and falling to Michigan State 3-1. Penn State outblocked Michigan 11-2 in a four-set win over the Wolverines. Kennedy Martin added 18 kills, and Ava Falduto added 15 digs for the defense. Michigan hit just .106 for the match.
Penn State’s offense struggled against Michigan State, hitting just .158 and recording 24 attacking errors. Kennedy Martin was the only player with more than 10 kills, a worrying sign that the offense is
again too reliant on her against quality competition. Gabrielle Nichols added seven blocks, and the Lions had 14 blocks as a team, but the Spartans’ defense made enough plays to seal a 3-1 win.
Penn State will host Nebraska tonight (7pm on BTN) and Iowa on Saturday (7pm on Big Ten Plus).
Women’s Hockey (0-2)
The women’s hockey team dropped both games against Ohio State at home, both 2-1 losses. In Game 1, Morgan Stickney made 44 saves, and Grace Outwater scored for Penn State, but Joy Dunne scored the game-winning goal for Ohio State less than a minute into overtime to secure a 2-1 win for the Buckeyes. Penn State took an early 1-0 lead in Game 2 on Outwater’s second goal of the weekend, but the Buckeyes clawed back and leaned on their defense to win 2-1. The Buckeyes outshot Penn State 79-33 in the two games.
Penn State will host Robert Morris on Friday (6pm) and Saturday (2pm) to open AHA conference play.
Women’s Soccer (5-2-3)
Women’s soccer tied Iowa 1-1 and defeated USC 1-0 last weekend. Aubrey Kulpa scored in the fifth minute against Iowa to put the Lions on the board early, but the Hawkeyes tied the game midway through the second half to secure a tie. The Nittany Lions put eight shots on goal but could only convert once. The defense was outstanding against USC, as Penn State did not allow a single shot in a conference game for the first time since 2000. Aubrey Kulpa scored her fifth goal of the season, and Mackenzie Gress earned her 10th career shutout.
Penn State will host Purdue on Saturday (7pm on Big Ten Plus).
Field Hockey (4-4)
The field hockey team shut out Bucknell 3-0 to even its record to 4-4. Ella Gaitan scored twice, and Natalie Freeman added a goal in the second quarter for the offense, and the defense held Bucknell to just four shots and zero shots on goal. It was a much-needed easy win for a team that has played a tough schedule to date.
Penn State will travel to Rutgers for a game on Friday (3pm on Big Ten Plus) before hosting Lafayette on Sunday (1pm on Big Ten Plus).
Men’s Soccer (2-6)
The men’s soccer season has gone belly-up, as the losing streak reached four games with a 2-1 loss to Indiana and a 4-2 loss to UCLA. Morgan Marshall scored the only goal of the game for Penn State against Indiana. Penn State was outshot 23-8. Daniel Peluffo-Wise made five saves, including one on a penalty shot late in regulation to give the Nittany Lions hope of tying the game late.
UCLA raced out to a 3-0 lead in the first half, but a pair of goals from Etienne Reck brought Penn State within 1. The Nittany Lions could not complete the comeback, as Shakir Nixon’s second goal of the night extended the Bruins’ lead to 4-2 in the final minute of regulation.
Penn State hosts Ohio State on Friday (7pm on Big Ten Plus).
