A pair of sweeps has set the stage for Saturday’s NCAA women’s volleyball championship match. Penn State made history by knocking off Texas, 3-0, Thursday night at the Sprint Center in Kansas City, Mo., to reach its fourth consecutive championship
A pair of sweeps has set the stage for Saturday’s NCAA women’s volleyball championship match.
Penn State made history by knocking off Texas, 3-0, Thursday night at the Sprint Center in Kansas City, Mo., to reach its fourth consecutive championship match.
The Lady Lions were a 25-13, 25-13, 25-22 winner in a rematch of last year’s final.
Senior opposite Blair Brown had 12 kills, junior middle hitter Ariel Scott 10 kills and freshman outside hitter Deja McClendon 11 kills to lead the three-time defending champion and fourth-seeded Nittany Lions (31-5), according to information provided by the NCAA.
In last year’s title match, Penn State came back to win after dropping the first two sets, 22-25, 20-25, 25-23, 25-21, 15-13.
Their opponent this time around will be California, which swept semifinalist USC, 25-14, 25-17, 25-20, to reach its first-ever final.
Junior outside hitter Tarah Murray had 23 kills and 14 digs for seventh-seeded Cal, as the Golden Bears extended their streak of consecutive tournament sweeps. USC beat Cal 3-2 on Oct. 9 in Los Angeles and 3-1 on Nov. 5 in Berkeley in Pac-10 Conference play.
Penn State, this season’s fourth seed, knocked out Cal in the 2009 Gainesville Regional final and the 2008 University Park Regional final. The Nittany Lions also defeated the Golden Bears in the 2007 national semifinal.
The teams will now square off again to determine a 2010 champion at 8:30 p.m. ET (3:30 p.m. Hawaiian), Saturday on ESPN2.
Information provided by Kristen Leigh Porter of NCAA.com.
