WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – No. 15 Penn State women’s volleyball jumped out to a 2-1 lead but came up short in the end in a 3-2 (25-23, 15-25, 20-25, 25-23, 15-11) loss to No. 6 Purdue on Sunday at Holloway Gymnasium.
The Lions, who were playing their third top-10 opponent of the season, dropped to 13-5 overall and 6-2 in the Big Ten. The Boilermakers improved to 14-3 overall and 6-2 in the conference. The two teams are tied with Ohio State and Minnesota for third place in the Big Ten standings.
The senior class attempted to will Penn State to a win. Kaitlyn Hord hit .500 with a career-high 20 kills, eclipsing her previous high of 17. Jonni Parker tallied a team-high 23 kills, Jenna Hampton recorded a career-high 26 digs, and Gabby Blossom posted a double-double with 58 assists and 20 digs. Blossom matched a career high in digs that she set two days ago in a four-set win against Rutgers.
After a tough two-point loss in set one, Penn State looked great in sets two and three, especially defensively. The Lions combined for 41 digs over the two sets while holding Purdue to .027 hitting during that stretch. The Boilermakers got rolling again in sets four and five, hitting .359 and .450, respectively.
The turning point of the match came late in the fourth set. Penn State was whistled for an illegal attack that gave Purdue a one-point lead instead of Penn State. The Lions eventually went down 22-19 on a service ace by Jena Otec. They did recover…
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