No. 11 Penn State Women’s Volleyball Falls To Unranked Illinois
No. 11 Penn State women’s volleyball fell to unranked Illinois after going down two sets early in the match.
The Fighting Illini jumped out to a two-set lead early in the match with the help from Raina Terry who had a career day against the Nittany Lions. Terry set the tone early for Illinois with nine kills.
After Illinois put up a defensive wall in the second set, recording five blocks and winning the set 25-20, down 0-2 the Nittany Lions looked to spark a comeback in the third set after taking a 24-17 lead.
Alexa Markley was a key piece in Penn State taking the third set. Markley led the Nittany Lions with five kills, and was a big piece in the early seven-point lead.
That lead would fade as Illinois started to get the momentum swinging back in their favor. Penn State would go on to win the third set 25-23, however the momentum seemed to be in Illinois favor.
That momentum carried over to the fourth set as Illinois took an 18-12 lead. Zoe Weatherington helped Penn State go on a 4-0 run late in the set bringing Illinois’ lead down to one.
With the score 24-23, Penn State put the pressure on Illinois as it tried to keep its chances of winning alive. However, Rylee Hinton would crush those chances with a kill and get the win for Illinois.
Analysis:
Illinois ends its three-game losing streak after putting up a strong defense. Illinois’ defense finished with 15 blocks against Penn State, with eight out of them coming from Hinton.
The serving game was one of the main turning points in this match. Jessica Nunge led Illinois with two aces, matching Penn State's two total aces throughout the match.
Penn State's three game win streak comes to an end. Weatherington and Markley had great days for Penn State and Seleisa Elisaia nearly had a double-double with 39 assists and nine digs.
The Nittany Lions could not get out of their own way by getting off to a slow start and committing 25 errors. Penn State showed resilience in the final two sets of the match but by then Illinois’ lead was too great to overcome.
The Fighting Illini came into this match unranked and put up a great showing against a top-12 seed in college volleyball. This could be the turning point in Illinois’ season if it continues to ride its momentum into the weekend.
Penn State falls to 17-5 with a 6-5 conference record on the season as the Nittany Lions return home to face Ohio State on Saturday. Illinois improves to 10-11 with a 5-6 conference record on the season as it travels to New Jersey to face Rutgers on Sunday.
Micheal Bolger is a second-year majoring in broadcast journalism. To contact him, please email mpb6233@psu.edu.
