Penn State Women’s Volleyball Rolls Through Albany

Story posted September 21, 2013 in CommRadio, Sports by Jason Kohler

No. 1 Penn State opened up the Penn State Classic in Rec Hall, Friday, against Albany. The Nittany Lions (7-1) made quick work of the Great Danes (0-10), winning in three sets.

Returning home for the first time since late August, the Nittany Lions, ranked first in the country for the second time this season, exhibited why they deserved the ranking.

Looking to increase their winning-streak to five games, Penn State broke out to an early 6-0 lead in the first set, eventually increasing that lead to 15-6, when Albany called their first timeout. Following the timeout, the Nittany Lions closed out strong taking the set 25-8 as seniors Katie Slay and Deja McClendon capped off a 8-1 run with two kills apiece.

Like the first set, Penn State was able to jump out to a quick start in the second, going up 12-2 over Albany. Redshirt sophomore Aiyanna White led the way for the Lions with six kills and a dig in set two while Scott added another two kills of her own.

Albany struggling to find its way into a groove in this match and the season for that matter, looked to put up one final battle against the NIttany Lions.

“It was a match I think Albany really didn’t have an opportunity to do what they like to do,” said Penn State head coach, Russ Rose.

Albany was unable to find such luck as Penn State jumped out to a 4-1 lead in the third set and followed that up with a 10-3 run. They completed the set and match on an 11-0 run and took the third set in impressive fashion by a score of 25-4.

Freshman Kelly Robertson made her collegiate debut in the performance and contributed with three kills and two block assists.

“I was extremely nervous, but excited to get in,” said Roberts. “My teammates really helped keep my head straight. We got done what we needed to do and it was a lot of fun.”

Errors plagued the Great Danes all night long, as Albany finished with a 21 percent attack efficiency. The Lions on the opposite side posted an 89 percent attack efficiency.

“I don’t take a lot out of a match like that when the other team makes as many errors as they made you feel sorry for them,” said Rose.

Leading the way for the offensively Lions were Ariel Scott and Katie Slay each with 8 kills. White wasn’t too far behind as she recorded a season high 7 kills.

The silver lining for the Great Danes is that two freshmen provided the biggest spark, as Olivia Shonewise and Amanda Dolan had two kills apiece.

The Nittany Lions will conclude the non-conference portion of their schedule Saturday as they welcome Eastern Kentucky and Yale on Saturday, September 21.

Jason Kohler is a junior majoring in broadcast journalism. To contact him, email jdk5342@psu.edu.