Penn State Sports Magazine
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O C T O B E R 2 0 2 4 47 W W W . B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M Mruzik, who transferred from Michi- gan ahead of the 2023 season, has been a big part of the Nittany Lions' early- season success, ranking fourth in the Big Ten with 69 kills. In addition, Hannah and super senior middle blocker Jor- dan Hopp were third and fourth in the conference with hitting percentages of .437 and .429, respectively. Super senior middle blocker Taylor Trammell has also shined, earning MVP honors at the Ken- tucky Invitational after totaling 23 kills in Penn State's two matches. A year ago, Mruzik was one of several key transfers on a Penn State team that had to come together quickly. This year, the pace hasn't been quite so rushed. "We spent a lot of time together in the summer, which I think helped a lot," Mruzik said. "Last year, we just had a lot of new pieces come in all at the same time in the summer. We're lucky that our squad this year has mostly been together since January, since our two freshmen graduated early [from high school]. "We spent a lot of time together, and I think that helped boost our chemistry. Last year was a little bit of a mishmash of new pieces trying to find their place." Another big change this year has been the arrival of freshman setter Izzy Starck. The top-ranked recruit in the 2024 class according to PrepVolleyball.com, Starck was named Big Ten Freshman of the Week in September after totaling 42 as- sists and 12 digs in her collegiate debut against Tennessee. She has continued to elevate Penn State in its biggest matches, totaling 32 assists versus Louisville and 47 against Kentucky. Through five matches, she was third in the Big Ten with 191 assists, helping PSU ascend to No. 3 in the American Volleyball Coaches Association poll. "It's a hard role to take on as a fresh- man just coming in and being a starter, let alone being the freshman setter," Mruzik said. "She's done such a good job. She never complains, never talks about it. She just loves her role, loves her job, and she loves learning, which I think is super cool. As a freshman you have a lot of learning to do. We all still have learning, too." ■ WOMEN'S SOCCER: Paced by Big Ten scoring leader Kaitlyn MacBean, the Nittany Lions went 2-1-1 against ranked opponents during their non- conference season and were up to No. 8 in the United Soccer Coaches poll heading into their Big Ten opener against visiting Michigan on Sept. 12. MacBean, a redshirt senior forward, did all of Penn State's scoring in a 3-1 victory over West Virginia on Aug. 29 and a 2-1 win at 19th-ranked Saint Louis on Sept. 1. She didn't score in Penn State's 1-0 win over Princ- eton on Sept. 5 or its 0-0 tie against No. 23 Georgetown three days later, but that didn't prevent the Nittany Lions from extending their unbeaten streak to five games and improving to 5-1-1. Prior to the Wolverines' visit to Jeffrey Field, MacBean had 8 goals, a to- tal that was tied for second nationally and first in the Big Ten. MEN'S SOCCER: The Nittany Lions opened their season with a 3-0 road loss to No. 1 Clemson on Aug. 22 but rebounded to win two of their next three. The defending national champions outshot PSU 12-6 and had 5 shots on goal to the Lions' 3. Upon returning to Jeffrey Field for their home opener on Aug. 25, the Nittany Lions bounced back, securing a 2-1 victory over Army on goals by junior defender Matthew Henderson and sophomore midfielder Caden Grabfelder. Following a 2-1 loss to visiting Pitt on Aug. 30, the Lions rallied again, topping St. Bonaventure, 4-0, on Sept. 2. The Nittany Lions were 2-3 on the season after a 3-2 loss to Cornell on Sept. 9. Junior forward Christian Dionne was leading the team with 6 points on 2 goals and 2 assists. FIELD HOCKEY: Super senior forward Sophia Gladieux had a hat trick to lift 16th-ranked Penn State to a 5-4 comeback victory over visiting Dela- ware on Sept. 8. Penn State outshot the Blue Hens 12-3 but trailed 4-3 going into the fourth quarter. Freshman forward Katelyn Strawser scored early in the period to draw PSU even, and Gladieux tallied her third goal with 2:25 re- maining to give the Nittany Lions the lead, and eventually the win. The victory over Delaware was Penn State's first of the young season. The Nittany Lions (1-3) began their campaign with 2-1 losses to third- ranked Virginia on Aug. 30 and 10th-ranked Syracuse at home on Sept. 1, and a 4-1 setback at No. 13 Saint Joseph's on Sept. 6. Gladieux has been an offensive standout, with 6 goals through four games to rank second in the Big Ten. CROSS COUNTRY: The Penn State men and women shined in the season- opening Dolan Duals at Lock Haven. On the women's side, Penn State runners took the top five spots, led by redshirt senior Faith DeMars, who covered the four-kilometer course in 13:51.4. She was followed by sophomore Clair Zubey (13:54.8) and juniors Allison Dougherty (13:56.4), Lea Hatcher (14:06.8) and Claire Daniels (14:14.5). Penn State captured first and second place in the six-kilometer men's race. Sophomore Nick Sloff led the field, finishing in 17:55.1, while junior Caiden Leen was right behind him with a time of 17:57.4. Sloff and Leen were the only two runners to break 18 minutes. MEN'S GOLF: Penn State placed 15th out of 16 teams at the season- opening Visit Knoxville Collegiate tournament Sept. 6-8 in Loudon, Tenn. Senior Jake Griffin was PSU's top finisher in the 54-hole event, placing 40th with a 5-over 215. — Matt Herb F A L L S P O R T S N O T E B O O K With 8 goals in Penn State's first seven games, forward Kaitlyn MacBean was tied with Minnesota's Khyah Harper for the Big Ten women's soccer scoring lead. PHOTO BY MARK SELDERS/PENN STATE ATHLETICS