Quote of the Day

“The Big Ten schedule has its challenges with televised matches. We just came off our second four-day road trip, and that’s a lot. But some of the players know the importance of being ready to play. I’m certainly not as prepared for Ohio State but I’m not playing.” Penn State Head Coach Russ Rose, in interview with Jon Wheel, The Daily Collegian.

The good news?  Penn State just came off of a road trip in which it went 2-0, downing Illinois in a tough 3-2 win, and coming up B1G in a 3-0 win over Northwestern.

The bad news? The Nittany Lions just returned Sunday from that 2-0 road trip. That’s a short turn-around — but it’s the same story for Ohio State, which fell to Illinois on Sunday in a four-set match (25-15, 15-25, 22-25, 20-25) in Huff Hall.

Penn State vs. Ohio State

 

Where: University Park, PA, (Rec Hall)

When: Wednesday — 10-23-13 (7:00 p.m. ET)

Media: ESPN3, CBSsports.com’s GameTracker

The Buzz on Ohio State: Ohio State (14-6, 2-6 in the B1G) ranks 8th in the B1G in hitting percentage (.224 — Penn State is first at .314), sixth in opponents hitting percentage (.167 — Penn State is first at .141), ninth in blocks/set (2.18 — Minnesota leads at 2.89;/set Penn State is second at 2.85/set), and eighth in service aces/set (1.18 — Michigan State leads at 1.70/set; Penn State is second with 1.42/set).

The Buckeyes have been led by 6-1 Sr. OH Kaitlyn Leary, who ranks first in the B1G in kills (all matches) with 4.96/set, and second in points (5.32/set). 6-0 Jr. setter Taylor Sherwin is second in the B1G with 11.34 assists/set, 6-2 Fr. MB Taylor Sandbothe ranks ninth in blocks/set (1.08),  and 5-8 Sr. libero Davionna DiSalvatore ranks tenth with 3.51 digs/set.

Penn State assistant coach Steve Aird on Ohio State: “Typical Big Ten Team — really, really skilled, well-coached.  They have an exceptional outside hitter in Leary, who’s been tearing the conference up, so she’ll get our attention.  But if you spend too much time on her, they have other very physical kids who can cause you problems. So she’ll get our attention. I’m sure she’ll be aware that we’re going to be around the ball, and we just have to make sure we make plays.  We’re going to try to stay with our systems as best we can and play hard.  It’s nice to be at home.”

Bottom line:  Although the Buckeyes haven’t fared well in their recent matches, the Penn State staff knows Ohio State is a really good team.  As Coach Rose pointed out in his interview with Jon Wheel of The Daily Collegian: “Earlier in the year, they beat two top 25 teams in the same day and not many teams in the country can say they did that.”

The Buzz on Penn State: Penn State (16-2, 7-1 in the B1G) came through with a very solid match against a tough Northwestern squad (12-8, 4-4 in the B1G) on Sunday, to move into sole possession of 1st place in the B1G (thanks to Purdue’s 3-1 win over Nebraska and Wisconsin’s 3-1 win over Michigan State — it’s first win over a top-five opponent since 2006 when it downed . . . Penn State).  The team was sparked by a terrific performance by 6-2 Jr. MH Nia Grant, whose 11 kills (.769 attack %) tied her career best (she’s now ranked #3 in the B1G with a .407 hitting percentage), and  a 10-kill ((.474 attack %), 7-dig effort by 6-2 So. OH Megan Courtney.  6-6 Sr. MH Katie Slay topped the team with eight blocks, and 6-2 RS Fr. OH Paulina Prieto Cerame came through with two kills (.500 attack %) and a career-best two service aces.

Among the statistical leaders for Penn State have been 5-11 Jr. setter Micha Hancock, who ranks third in the B1G with 10.78 assists/set and leads the B1G with 0.68 service aces/set, and Slay, who leads the B1G with 1.57 blocks/set.

Mid Season Review — Interview with Steve Aird

Penn State assistant coach Steve Aird talks about how Penn State is doing as the team nears the mid-point in its tough B1G conference schedule:

Stat Joust

Team Rosters

 

Updated as of 8-21-2013

Number	Name	Position	Year/Class	Height	HS (Club)	State
1	Scott, Ariel	RS	4/Sr.	6-4	Immaculate Heart Academy (Team Complete Athlete)	NJ
2	Caraway, Lara	DS	2/So.	5-4	Evans City (Renaissance)	PA
3	Pierce, Kendall	DS	2/So.	5-6	Eden (Niagara Frontier Volleyball)	NY
4	Gonzalez, Dominique	DS	3/Jr.	5-6	Sandra Day O'Connor/ (Alamo Volleyball)	TX
6	Martin, Maddie	OH	4/Sr.	6-2	H.B. Plant (Tampa Bay Juniors)	FL
7	Grant, Nia	MB	3/Jr.	6-2	Howland (Cleveland Renaissance Volleyball Club)	OH
8	Denny, Erica	MH	3/Jr. (RS)	6-5	Grandview (Front Range Volleyball Club)	CO
9	Prieto-Cerame, Paulina	OH	1/Fr. (RS)	6-2	Palmer Trinity (Boomers Volleyball)	FL
10	Muller, Carley	DS	1/Fr.	5-7	Mira Costa (Tstreet Volleyball)	CA
12	Hancock, Micha	S	3/Jr.	5-11	Edmond Memorial (Oklahoma Peak Performance)	OK
13	Krause, Taylor	DS/S	1/Fr.	5-6	Parkland High (Synergy Volleyball)	PA
14	Whitney, Aiyana	OH	2/So. (RS)	6-4	Northern Valley Regional (Downstate Juniors)	NJ
15	Harding, Maggie	DS	4/Sr.	5-6	State College Area	PA
16	Slay, Katie	MH	4/Sr.	6-6	Wakefield (Triangle Volleyball Club)	NC
17	Courtney, Megan	S/OH	2/So.	6-2	Archbishop Alter (Team Z)	OH
18	McClendon, Deja	OH	4/Sr.	6-1	Dupont Manual Magnet (KIVA)	KY
23	Robertson, Kelly	MB	1/Fr.	6-0	Parkland High (Synergy Volleyball)	PA
24	Broerman, Laura	DS	1/Fr.	5-4	St. Mary's (Colorado Juniors)	CO
33	Fuller, Lacey	DS	3/Jr.	5-6	Torrey Pines (Coast Volleyball)	CA

Ohio State Roster

No. Name Pos. Ht. Yr. Hometown (Prev School) 3 Davionna DiSalvatore Libero/Defensive Specialist 5-8 SR Palm Harbor, Fla. (Countryside) 2 Anna Faul Middle Blocker 6-3 JR Parker, Colo. (Chaparral) 13 Maggie Heim Setter 6-0 FR Omaha, Neb. (Omaha Marian) 4 Andrea Kacsits Middle Blocker 6-4 SO Rockford, Mich. (Rockford) 9 Valeria León Defensive Specialist 5-6 FR Ponce, Puerto Rico (Colegio Sagrado Corazón De Jesús) 11 Kaitlyn Leary Outside Hitter 6-1 SR Parma, Ohio (Padua Franciscan) 5 Julianne Mandolfo Defensive Specialist 5-8 SR Omaha, Neb. (Creighton) 17 Katie Mitchell Outside Hitter 6-2 SO The Woodlands, Texas (The Woodlands College Park) 1 Kylie Randall Outside Hitter 6-2 FR Tomball, Texas (Magnolia) 10 Taylor Sandbothe Middle Blocker 6-2 FR Lee’s Summit, Mo. (Lee’s Summit West) 12 Erin Sekinger Outside Hitter 6-3 JR Columbus, Ohio (Bishop Ready) 8 Taylor Sherwin Setter 6-0 JR Orlando, Fla. (Lake Highland Preparatory) 6 Alyssa Winner Defensive Specialist 5-10 JR Maria Stein, Ohio (Marion Local)