Blue White Illustrated

P art of a seven-player senior class that has helped Penn State dominate the highly competitive Big Ten, Si- mone Lee and her physical talents are striking even to the untrained eye. Lee's ability to punish a volleyball com- mands the attention of everyone on the other side of the net, and that's often not enough to contain the All-America outside hitter. As the Nittany Lions continue to push for their eighth national title, they've got an of- fensive superstar in Lee to depend on in impor- tant situations. Lee's value to Penn State is more than what's shown on the stat sheet, though. The Menomonee Falls, Wis., native has carved out a leadership role on a veteran team through her intensity on the court. The senior's in-game reactions provide insight into just how competitive she re- ally is. As the Nittany Lions cruised through their midseason schedule, rack- ing up sweeps against Michigan, Indiana, Illinois, Rutgers, Iowa and Maryland, it was easy to imagine that there might be a drop-off in focus. For Lee, however, that's never an op- tion. "Ever since I was young I've been really competitive, and I think that especially when you're a collegiate athlete, that's your job," she said. "You've got to be competitive if you want to succeed. I feel like this program brings out the best in me, being competitive." Among a group of highly experienced seniors, Lee's rise to stardom was differ- ent. Classmates Haleigh Washington and Ali Frantti began playing key roles for coach Russ Rose when they were fresh- men, but Lee had to take a slower route to playing time. She made only 20 combined starts over her freshman and sophomore seasons before bursting onto the scene during her junior campaign, in which she finished second in the Big Ten in kills per set with 4.16. With her thunderous spiking ability, Lee again ranks among the conference leaders in kills this season. Earlier this year, she became the 27th Nittany Lion to surpass 1,000 career kills. But with so much on the line, the senior is focused only on results. "I want to get a point," Lee said. "In terms of how the ball gets to the floor or how someone doesn't return it, that's not really my problem. I want to put the ball away, and if I get set, I want to show my setter that they can set me because I can put this ball away. I can get a kill for you." Without hesitation, Lee said Penn State's goal for the remainder of the season is to come away with a national title. The Nit- tany Lions have placed themselves among the favorites to do so after they ascended to the top of the AVCA poll on Oct. 7. Lee was part of Penn State's national championship run in 2014 but saw little time on the court in her freshman season and played only sparingly in the Nittany Lions' NCAA tournament run. She did, however, get the chance to learn from the players on that team, such as Micha Han- cock, a member of the U.S. national team. Now a senior leader herself, Lee has tried to implement the lessons she learned while looking up to that group of role models as this group of Nittany Lions chases the same goal. "Learning how they led and learning by example is something that we never for- got, and now that we're seniors we want to do the same thing," Lee said. "Obviously everyone leads in their own way, whether it be by action or by their words or by both. Whatever it may be, I think we use the things that we've learned from past senior leaders, regardless of who they were." With her intensity on the court, Lee is likely to leave an impact on the Nittany Lion underclassmen, helping to continue Rose's cycle of elite teams. But with Penn State's goals so close at hand, she wants to help those young players contribute to a championship run. "I think it's [a matter of] trusting each other and knowing that when we're on, we're on and we can totally crush it," Lee said. "I think that's one thing that not a lot of teams can say and I think that's one thing that we strive for every day at prac- tice, just putting in that effort all the time." ■ LICENSE TO KILL Hard-hitting senior Simone Lee takes aim at an NCAA volleyball championship | LEE Penn State rolls on with sweep of Terps In front of one of the largest women's volleyball crowds in Rec Hall history, No. 1 Penn State swept Maryland, 25-14, 25-21, 25-16, on Nov. 11. A crowd of 6,305 fans watched the Nittany Lions jump out to a big lead in the opening set and set the tone for the match. Simone Lee 5n- ished with a double-double, as she put down a team-best 10 kills while adding 13 digs. She also had two aces and two blocks and 5nished with a .320 hitting percentage. Tori Gorrell and Ali Frantti fol- lowed with 5ve kills apiece. Heading into their home match against Indiana on Nov. 15, the Nittany Lions had won 15 in a row and had swept nine of those oppo- nents. ■ VARSITY VIEWS

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