Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1529598
D E C E M B E R 2 0 2 4 15 W W W . B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M Kendall Butze — Women's Ice Hockey Butze was named Defensive Player of the Week by the Atlantic Hockey America conference following Penn State's sweep of Lindenwood Nov. 15-16 at Pegula Ice Arena. The junior defender from Cleveland led the team with 7 points on 1 goal and 6 assists in the two-game AHA series. Five of her assists came in the Nittany Lions' 7-1 victory in the series finale and set a single-game program record. Through Penn State's first 14 games, Butze was tied for fourth on the team with 12 points on 2 goals and 10 assists. Izzy Starck — Women's Volleyball Starck has continued to impress deep into her debut season with the Nittany Lions. In a sweep of Illinois on Nov. 15, the freshman setter from Viera, Fla., had 31 assists, helping Penn State hit .341 as a team. Two days later in a 3-1 victory at Maryland, she totaled 49 assists and 17 digs for her 11th double-double of the season. Thanks largely to Starck, the fourth-ranked Nittany Lions hit .362 as a team in running their record to 25-2 and 15-1 in Big Ten play. Heading into a clash with eighth-ranked Pur- due at Rec Hall on Nov. 21, Starck was leading the Big Ten with 1,054 assists. Cooper Morley — Men's Swimming & Diving Morley was named Big Ten Swimmer of the Week after five first-place finishes in Penn State's 211-142 victory against Pitt Oct. 25-26 at the McCoy Natatorium. The junior from Auckland, New Zealand, won the 100-yard butterfly (47.48 seconds) and 100 backstroke (47.19) and was also part of three victori- ous relay teams. Penn State won the 400 medley relay (3:11.59), 200 medley relay (1:27.20) and 400 freestyle relay (2:58.69). He was also part of PSU's second-place relay team in the 200 freestyle (1:20.89). Morley's Big Ten honor was the second of his career. He was also named Big Ten Freshman of the Week in 2023. Gracie Merkle — Women's Basketball Merkle, a 6-foot-6 center from Mount Washington, Ky., has gotten her Penn State career off to a fast start after transferring from Bellarmine University during the offseason. Through the Lady Lions' first five contests, all victories, the redshirt sophomore was leading the team in rebounding with an average of 8.6 boards per game and was second in scoring at 19.6 points per contest. She set the tone in her first outing with PSU, a 90-68 victory over Bucknell in which she totaled 21 points and 13 rebounds. — Matt Herb PENN STATE'S TOP PERFORMERS The perfect present for the Penn State sports fans on your holiday list! Order at www.BlueWhiteOnline.com Use Promo Code Holiday24 Or Call: 800-421-7751 (10 a.m.-4 p.m. ET, Mon.-Fri.) 919-688-0218 if outside the U.S. $ 5 .0 0 | N OV E M B E R 2 0 24 Please note: a *NEW* gift means this is for someone who has never previously been a subscriber or received a gift subscription to Blue White Illustrated magazine. PROMO CODE: HOLIDAY24 LIMITED TIME SPECIAL OFFER Give a *NEW* one-year gift subscription to Blue White Illustrated magazine and we'll add 3 issues to YOUR subscription! Hurry! This offer ends 12/31/24.