Penn State Sports Roundup: Volleyball Team Set to Open NCAA Tournament

Penn State’s women’s volleyball team opens NCAA tournament play on Friday at Rec Hall.

The No. 11 Nittany Lions (24-7, 13-7 in B1G) will play host to UMBC in the second game of the night. Yale and UCF play in Friday’s opener.

The two winners will meet Saturday evening with a spot in the Sweet 16 on the line, which would likely be a matchup with defending national champion Wisconsin - who narrowly escaped State College with a five-set win late last month.

Earlier this week the Big Ten Conference honored three Nittany Lions. Allie Holland and Kashauna Williams were first-team all-conference picks, while Seleisa Elisaia was named to the second team. Meanwhile, Alexa Markley was voted to the Big Ten All-Freshman Team and Katie Clark earned the Big Ten Sportsmanship Award.

Schlegel Named Semifinalist

Women’s soccer player Ally Schlegel was named a semifinalist for the MAC Hermann Award for outstanding player of the year.

Schlegel led the Big Ten with 13 goals and helped push the Lions to the Sweet 16 where they were knocked off 3-2 in overtime last month against Virginia. Schlegel scored one of Penn State’s two goals in that contest.

The Nittany Lions finished the season 15-5-3 and earned their sixth straight trip to the Sweet 16.

Women’s Basketball Falls in Challenge

Penn State’s women’s basketball team dropped their first game earlier this week, falling 89-68 to Virginia in the Big Ten/ACC Challenge.

The Lady Lions are now 7-1 with Big Ten play opening on Saturday when they play at Minnesota. The 7-0 start had matched Penn State’s fourth best start of all-time.

Gladiuex Nabs Award

For the second straight season, field hockey standout Sophia Gladieux was named the NFCHA Mideast Player of the Year.

Gladieux led Penn State with 23 goals and had already been named Big Ten Offensive Player of the Year.

The Nittany Lions advanced to the Final Four where they fell in the semifinals to eventual national champion and unbeaten North Carolina.

Hockey Teams at Home

Both Penn State’s men’s and women’s hockey teams will be home once more before a long break this weekend.

The men will play host to conference rival Ohio State for a pair of games on Friday and Saturday. The Lions are 13-3-0 and won’t be home at Pegula again until mid-January.

Meanwhile, the women’s team, now 11-8-1, will face off against Syracuse on Saturday and Sunday at Pegula. They’ll then have three weeks off before closing out with a home series on the last couple of days of 2022.