Penn State women’s volleyball will head out west to Stanford, California this weekend as it continues its 2019 NCAA Tournament with a Sweet 16 matchup against Cincinnati.

The Bearcats, who pulled off an unprecedented upset over No. 6 overall seed Pitt in the second round, should still be a tough test for the Nittany Lions despite being unranked entering the tournament. Cincinnati finished the regular season 25-6 and won the American Athletic Conference.

Despite the challenges that will come when facing Cincinnati, Penn State has one thing on its mind: getting there. And for head coach Russ Rose, that’s part of the whole experience.

“The top players and the top teams have the ability to handle the various challenges associated with whatever is placed in front of you,” Rose said. “Travel, whether it’s a short distance or a long distance, there are always challenges…We just have to hope that the players have the ability to focus on the things that they can control and they’re ready to play.”

Rose also noted that while travel can bring a variety of challenges to any team, it’s important for his players to continue preparing for gameday, resting when they need to, and focusing on the match ahead.

This won’t be Penn State’s first trip to Palo Alto. The team traveled there in 2018’s tournament, where it swept Washington in the Sweet 16 and fell to eventual champion Stanford in the Elite Eight. Penn State has also ventured out west for various Big Ten/Pac-12 challenges in recent years.

Regardless, familiarity in both the arena and the town should help an especially young team prepare for some tough postseason matches.

“I definitely think [the familiarity] helps,” outside hitter Tori Gorrell said. “Stanford has a really cool venue. It’s a great atmosphere. They’ve got great fans. Being out there, I know that our [Penn State] alumni association in California is one of the biggest in the country, so I think we’ll still have a lot of fans there. I think it will be really helpful that we’ve played there before.”

Gorrell added that being able to play well on the road is crucial to any team’s success and that Penn State’s players do a good job of bonding off the court to build chemistry. She believes that “spending every waking moment” with her teammates will help the Nittany Lions play well away from the raucous Rec Hall faithful.

“We’re familiar with the hotel and the facility [in California],” Rose said. “We’ve been out there a number of times. Certainly, we’re familiar with the Stanford team because we schedule them every year, but we’re playing Cincinnati. The location is one that we’re familiar with because we were there [twice] last year and two years ago as well… It doesn’t make the trip easier, but we’re familiar with going out there.”

It’s roughly a five-hour flight to the west coast, which isn’t easy for even the most seasoned travelers. However, some players are used to these long road trips thanks to years of playing travel volleyball.

“For me, personally, growing up and playing club, I think we’re kind of used to traveling a lot,” sophomore defensive specialist Jenna Hampton said. “Throughout the years in volleyball, you’re fortunate enough to go to a lot of states. It definitely is a drain, and a five-hour flight is a pretty long time, but I think it’s something we’re used to.”

Hampton, who’s already finished all of her finals, plans to work on her remaining classwork on the plane in between viewing in-flight movies and episodes of Gossip Girl and Grey’s Anatomy. She believes her favorite shows will help her rest, relax, and recharge ahead of the team’s matches, and we’ll certainly take her word for it.

The No. 11 overall seed Nittany Lions will take on the Bearcats at 8 p.m. ET on Friday, December 13, and if victorious, they’ll play the winner of No. 3 Stanford and Utah the following night. The match will be broadcast nationally on ESPN3 and can be streamed on the ESPN app.