With the absence of fifth-year Paige Briggs on the court, sophomore Callahan Wiegandt earned her first career start, while freshman Izzy Van De Wiele recorded her first collegiate kills – earning six on the evening in front of a crowd of 2,535.
WKU 1, Penn State 3: 25-22, 18-25, 19-25, 18-25
Set 1
The Hilltoppers opened their sixth match of the season on the board first after a Penn State hitting error before the two opponents jumped back-and-forth on the court. Never straying away from two or more points from each other, the Hilltoppers fell down 12-14 to the Nittany Lions before an explosive 4-0 run changed the match and called for a Penn State timeout. In the run Kenadee Coyle and Shannon Keck recorded kills, while the two along with Gabby Weihe stuffed blocks up at the net for a 16-14 lead. Working with the home court, Penn State would bite back on three more points before WKU would tie the frame 18 apiece with a Coyle and Logan Grevengoed kill on the right side. The two fought back until the final points. WKU gained three straight at the 20-point mark that featured a Weihe kill along with one of Kaylee Cox's 13 kills of the evening. The Hilltoppers would eventually wrap up winning the opening set off of a Kaylee Cox service ace to the back line.
Set 2
The Tops struggled to reach the board after switching sides of the net in University Park as the Nittany Lions took care with a 6-0 run. The Hilltoppers gained some momentum with three straight: a Kaylee Cox kill, Cox block, and Callie Bauer kill. After the largest gap in the set at the 10-4 mark, WKU went on a 4-0 run with another Cox kill and three back-to-back Nittany Lion attacking errors. The Tops would stay within three before Penn State went on a run with a Hilltopper service error, block, and service ace and it was a six-point contest. Battling back-and-forth on the court, freshman Izzy Van De Wiele recorded her first kill as a middle hitter at the Tops' 17-23 mark in the set, before Penn State would take charge all the way to 25.
Set 3
A sideout point in favor of WKU kicked off the third frame of the night. The Hilltoppers and Nittany Lions stayed even keeled with each other on the scoreboard, which the Tops collected seven kills through a 9-13 match. WKU bounced back with five straight points featuring two Weihe kills, a Coyle, and Cox kill to match. After a 17-17 tie in the set, Penn State pressed on the Toppers with six straight points, eventually leading them to 25 before WKU.
Set 4
A dogfight on the court as the two teams played at an even pace, Penn State would advance on a 3-1 run to mark a 9-6 match for the host. The Hilltoppers were never able to catch up, but grew with 11 total kills and a .258 collective hitting clip in the final frame. Van De Wiele would complete three kills, while Coyle and Weihe picked up the final block from the Red and White's side of the net. After a 3-0 run at 21 points for Penn State, the Tops and Nittany Lions would rally back and forth to the final points, before a Hilltopper service error wrapped up the ranked match.
SCHEDULE
Friday, September 1 – No. 22 WKU def. Colgate, 3-1
Friday, September 1 – No. 14 Penn State def. No. 22 WKU, 1-3
Saturday, September 2 – No.22 WKU vs. James Madison | Stats | Watch | Varsity Network Radio
POST-MATCH NOTES
- WKU started Callie Bauer, Kaylee Cox, Kenadee Coyle, Logan Grevengoed, Gabby Weihe, Callahan Wiegandt, and redshirt-sophomore Kelsey Brangers in at libero.
- Friday's meeting was just the second between the sides in program history, as Penn State now leads with a 2-0 all-time series record.
- Junior Kenadee Coyle led the hitting charts with a .444 hitting clip against the Penn State defense, recording 10 kills on 18 swings.
- Kaylee Cox earned her first WKU double-double with a 13-kill, 10-dig night at the court. She was also the lone Topper to record a service ace from the line.
- The two true Hilltopper freshmen both had a night inside the arena: Gabby Weihe picked up a career-high nine kills in the middle, while Izzy Van De Wiele earned her first career kills, ending with six on the night.
- The Hilltoppers will be back inside Rec Hall for their final match in the Penn State Invitational, against James Madison at 10 a.m. CT. The match will be available on BTN+.
How to Follow WKU Volleyball: For complete information on WKU Volleyball, follow the team on Twitter at @WKUVolleyball and head coach Travis Hudson at @TravisHudsonWKU. The team is also on Instagram and Facebook.
