Oct. 27, 2014
| # 6 PENN STATE VS. #17 OHIO STATE | |
| Tuesday, Oct. 28 - 8 p.m. ET | |
| Rec Hall | University Park, Pa. | |
| Game Day Links: Tickets | Bag Policy | Parking | |
| GAME DAY LINKS |
| TV: BTN (Liz Tortorello-Nelson, Mike Wolf) |
| Live Video | |
| Connect: @PennStateVBALL | Facebook | Instagram | Blog |
| Game Notes: Penn State | Ohio State |
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -Fresh off of a pair of Big Ten conference victories last weekend, No. 6 Penn State women's volleyball (20-3, 8-2) returns to the court for the first of two meetings against No. 17 Ohio State (16-6, 7-3) this week. The Nittany Lions welcome the Buckeyes Tuesday, Oct. 28 for a Big Ten Network matchup at 8 p.m. in Rec Hall.
The Nittany Lions are honoring all Penn State faculty and staff members with free admission to Tuesday's matchup with proof of their PSU ID. Additional tickets may be purchased at a discounted rate of $5. Penn State will also host its annual Halloween parade on the court in Rec Hall during the intermission. All children ages 12 and under who come dressed in costume will receive free admission to the match.
QUICK HITS
* The Nittany Lions own a 42-14 all-time record in the all-time series against Ohio State. In addition to having won the last 14 consecutive outings against the Buckeyes, the Nittany Lions also hold a 21-5 advantage against OSU in the all-time series at Rec Hall.
* PSU went 2-0 at home last weekend, posting a pair of straight set victories against Michigan and Michigan State. Penn State has earned 17 of its 20 wins this season by way of a 3-0 decision.
* Senior Micha Hancock and freshman Ali Frantti highlighted the Big Ten Weekly awards following their standout performances last weekend. Hancock earned her 15th career Big Ten Setter of the Week honor, while Frantti garnered her third Freshman of the Week award.
* Averaging 1.06 aces per set, senior Micha Hancock has once again secured herself as the nation's leader in the category for the seventh consecutive week. With more aces than anyone in the NCAA standings (82) in 2014, her career total (336) ranks first all-time in both the Big Ten and Penn State record books.
* As a team, Penn State is averaging 1.97 aces per set, which ranks second nationally and leads the conference. Earlier this season, Penn State served up 15 aces in a straight set victory against DePaul to match a PSU program record. The Nittany Lions originally set the record for the most amount of aces in a three set match in 2002, posting 15 aces against Fairfield Sept. 7th.
* Penn State's .346 hitting percentage leads the nation and ranks first in the Big Ten. Additionally, two PSU attackers are presently hitting .361 or higher, led by senior Nia Grant's .461 hitting percentage, which ranks fourth nationally and leads the Big Ten. Redshirt junior Aiyana Whitney's .361 clip rounds out the duo, ranked seventh in the Big Ten. As a team, Penn State is out-hitting its opponents .346-.157.
* Penn State moved up one spot to No. 6 in the latest AVCA Top 25 Coaches Poll after spending the last two consecutive weeks ranked seventh. Prior to the No. 7 positioning, PSU spent one week ranked fifth.
* The Nittany Lions are among seven teams (Minnesota -RV) from the Big Ten to be featured in the AVCA Top 25 Coaches Poll and one of three within the top 10. With 1,145 wins, head coach Russ Rose is presently in sole possession of first place on the DI NCAA all-time wins list ahead of current Hawaii head coach Dave Shoji (1,142). The two active head coaches have traded the top spot throughout the season.
HOT HITTING NITTANY LIONS
Senior Setter Micha Hancock has directed the Nittany Lions to a .346 hitting clip, which ranks first in the nation, while also leading the Big Ten. Hancock's also paced two top Nittany Lion attackers to .361 or better hitting, led by senior Nia Grant's .461 hitting clip, which ranks fourth nationally and leads the conference. Redshirt junior Aiyana Whitney rounds out the pair with a .361 hitting percentage, which is slotted seventh in the Big Ten standings.
A WINNING TRADITION AT HOME
Including a 10-1 mark in 2014, Penn State owns a 556-33(.944) all-time record at home in Rec Hall. Following two straight-set victories last weekend, the Nittany Lions improved to 252-18 (.933) all-time in Big Ten matches on the court in Rec Hall. Only Ohio State has defeated the Nittany Lions on their home court more than three times, having topped PSU five times at home. Penn State has posted unblemished records in Big Ten play at home in seven of the last 10 years, winning 186 of 200 matches in the 10-year stretch. In the past five seasons, PSU has captured 90 wins in 100 total conference tilts with fewer than five league losses each year.
SHE CAN DIG IT
Leading the team in digs in 18 of 23 matches this season, senior libero Dominique Gonzalez highlighted the 2014 Big Ten season opener with her third 20-dig performance of the season against then-No. 5 Wisconsin, before following with a season-high mark of 26 digs in a 3-1 win at No. 17 Minnesota. Having broken into the conference standings three weeks ago, she presently leads the squad with 3.57 digs per frame, which ranks 12th in the Big Ten.
FRANTTI, HANCOCK HIGHLIGHT BIG TEN WEEKLY AWARDS
Following a pair of straight set victories at home last weekend against a pair of Big Ten conference teams, senior Micha Hancock and freshman Ali Frantti have each earned Big Ten weekly honors. Hancock was selected as the conference's Setter of the Week, while Frantti was named the league's Freshman of the Week. The Setter of the Week nod is Hancock's 15th of her career, while Frantti's honor is her third of the 2014 season.
Hancock paced the Nittany Lion offense to a .443 team hitting clip in a straight set victory against Michigan, dishing out 34 assists to go along with four kills, two aces, seven digs and three blocks. She returned to the court the next evening to help PSU to another straight set win against Michigan State, tallying four kills, five digs and a match-high four aces.
Frantti highlighted the weekend with back-to-back double-digit kill performances, hitting .409 or better in both outings. She totaled a team-high 15 kills on a .429 hitting clip against the Wolverines, before posting 11 kills in the win against the Spartans. Currently, Frantti's 3.31 kills per set this season ranks ninth in the Big Ten, while her .313 hitting percentage is slotted 13th overall.
ROSE STILL ON TOP OF NCAA DI ALL-TIME WINS LIST
With 1,145 wins, head coach Russ Rose remains atop the NCAA DI all-time wins list with three more victories than current Hawaii head coach Dave Shoji (1,142). The two active head coaches have traded the top spot throughout the season. Both Rose and Shoji are the only two NCAA DI head coaches with more than 1,000 career wins. The two are also one of three active NCAA head coaches across all three divisions to have more than 1,100 career wins. Additionally, Rose owns the all-time record for NCAA DI career winning percentage, having posted a career clip of .864 in the past 35 seasons.
In 2013, head coach Russ Rose earned his 1,107th career win with a straight set victory at Northwestern, moving him into second place on the career wins list. With the triumph, he passed former UCLA head coach Andy Banachowski, who previously owned the record.
STILL SERVING UP ACES!
After posting six aces in a 2-0 week last weekend, senior Micha Hancock is presently averaging 1.06 aces per set in 2014. Her mark has ranked first nationally for the past seven consecutive weeks, while also ranking atop the Big Ten conference standings. In conference play, she's served up three or more aces in seven of nine matches. Hancock closed out the last two weeks of the non-conference slate with back-to-back weeks featuring at least 21 aces.
Averaging 0.65 aces per set in 2013, Hancock finished last year ranked second nationally in aces per set. Her final tally also ranked first in the Big Ten. The impressive serving set a new program record. With four aces against Eastern Kentucky, she notched her 200th career service ace. Building on the mark throughout the season, she moved into sole possession of first place on the Penn State all-time list with 254 aces to surpass Ellen Henseler, who previously set the record in 1986. With 82 aces in 2014, Hancock has improved her career mark to 330 aces, which ranks first all-time in the Big Ten record book.
WEEK 10: AVCA TOP 25 COACHES POLL UPDATE
Following a 2-0 weekend at home, Penn State moved up one spot to No. 6 in the latest AVCA Top 25 Coaches Poll after spending the last two consecutive weeks ranked seventh. Prior to the No. 7 positioning, the Nittany Lions were ranked fifth for one week. PSU spend the first two weeks of the season ranked No. 1 overall.
PENN STATE POSTS 38TH 20+ WINS SEASON
Following a straight-set victory against Michigan State, the Nittany Lions posted their 20th victory of the 2014 season, marking the 38th time in program history that PSU has reached 20 wins in a season. Penn State has reached the mark every year since the inaugural women's volleyball season in 1976.
A CLEAN SWEEP
Penn State has earned 17 of 20 (85%) of its victories this season in straight sets. Within those 17 sweeps, PSU has held five teams (Iona, William & Mary, Eastern Illinois, DePaul, East Carolina) to less than 40 total points scored in a single match. Last season, the Nittany Lions earned 23 of their 34 victories by way of a three-set decision.
WHAT'S NEXT
Penn State wraps up the week on the road, traveling out to Columbus, Ohio to face the Buckeyes in another conference tilt. Penn State and OSU square off Friday, Oct. 31 at 7 p.m. ET.