UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – The Katie Schumacher-Cawley era of Penn State women’s volleyball is off to a good start as the Nittany Lions opened the 2022 season with a 3-0 (25-13, 25-15, 28-26) win over Connecticut on Friday night at Rec Hall. The match was the first of three for the Lions in the Penn State Invitational.
Schumacher Cawley, a national champion and two-time All-American during her playing career at Penn State from 1998-2001, was making her debut as the Lions’ head coach. She is just the third head coach in the 47-year history of the program.
Penn State fed off the energy of a large student section and more than 3,000 fans overall as it rolled to an early 11-4 lead in the opening set. The Lions went on to hit .424 in the set while cruising to a 12-point win. It was a team effort from the start as six players had a kill in the set, led by Allie Holland with four and Taylor Trammell, Anjelina Starck and Anastasiya Kudryashova with three apiece.
The Lions continued their dominant effort with a 10-point win in the second set but were challenged in set three by a UConn team that is fresh off a 24-win season in 2021. The set was evenly contested throughout with the Huskies holding the largest lead at 20-17. Penn State eventually took the lead at 23-22 following kills by Holland and setter Seleisa Elisaia and an ace by Holland.
Penn State had chances at match point with leads of 24-23 and 26-25, but UConn staved off defeat both times. The Huskies lone chance at set point was stymied by Kudryashova’s kill that tied the match at 25-25. The…
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