Penn State Beats Towson, Sets Up NCAA Matchup with Pitt on Saturday

PITTSBURGH, Pa. – No. 15 Penn State improved to 23-0 all-time in the Round of 64 of the NCAA Women’s Volleyball Championship, defeating Towson 3-1 (25-11, 25-27, 25-20, 25-21) on Friday at the Petersen Events Center in Pittsburgh.
 
The Nittany Lions improved to 21-10 overall and will play third-seeded and third-ranked Pitt in the Second Round on Saturday at 7 p.m. The match will also be played at the Petersen Events Center. The Panthers advanced with a 3-0 (
 
Jonni Parker helped Penn State hold off a persistent Towson team, finishing with 18 kills on .348 while adding 11 digs for her sixth double-double of the season. Kaitlyn Hord had 11 kills and led all players with seven blocks, while Adanna Rollins joined her in double-digits with 10 kills while adding eight digs and four blocks.
 
Meanwhile, setter Gabby Blossom and libero Jenna Hampton continued to perform at a high level in their respective roles. Blossom did a little of everything, finishing with five kills, 47 assists and 11 digs for her 19^th double-double of the season. And despite the match going just four sets, Hampton matched a career high with 27 digs. It’s her third match with 27 digs this season. Two of those went four sets.
 
Penn State had a hot start to postseason play with a dominant 25-11 win in set one. The Lions hit .407 behind 11 assists from Blossom. Freshman Anjelina Starck, making her postseason debut, totaled four kills on seven swings with no errors. Parker also had four kills.
 
Towson has been a strong defensive team all season, as evident by its .131 opponent hitting percentage…