Penn State is back on women’s volleyball’s grandest stage.
The top-seeded Nittany Lions defeated eighth-seeded Minnesota (25-19, 19-25, 26-24, 25-20) Saturday night at Mackey Arena in West Lafayette, Ind. to advance to a national semifinal match.
Penn State will face Oregon on Dec. 13 in Louisville, Ky., where the Lions will vie for their fifth national championship in the last six years. Michigan upset No. 2 Stanford for the right to meet No. 3 Texas in the second semifinal.
Sophomore setter Micha Hancock set the NCAA record for aces in NCAA tournament play with 22. She recorded five against the Gophers to go along with 46 assists.
Junior Ariel Scott, the Big Ten Player of the Year, was every bit the part, leading the team with 25 kills at a .422 hitting clip. Deja McClendon and Megan Courtney added 14 and 11 kills, respectively.
