Penn State Women’s Volleyball Racks Up Preseason Praise
Although the Nittany Lions don’t take the court for a few more days, they’re already garnering big-time attention ahead of their upcoming season.
Three Penn State women’s volleyball stars — Jonni Parker, Kaitlyn Hord, and transfer Erika Pritchard — earned preseason All-Big Ten nominations this week, joining the top athletes in the conference.
Parker and Hord, who enter their senior seasons this fall, are certainly no stranger to conference-wide accolades. Hord’s already earned All-Big Ten honors three times in her career, while Parker burst onto the scene as Big Ten Freshman of the Year in 2018.
Pritchard will get to work with Penn State following four seasons at Maryland. Today, she stands as the Big Ten’s active kills leader with 1,526 under her belt. Pritchard has also racked up 859 digs and 239 total blocks in her four-year career so far.
On top of some all-conference honors, Penn State landed at No. 3 in the Big Ten’s preseason coaches poll. Only Wisconsin and Nebraska, the league’s tried-and-true powerhouses, sit in front of the Nittany Lions to begin the season.
Last week, Penn State earned a No. 12 preseason ranking in the latest AVCA Division I Coaches Poll.
Russ Rose’s squad is joined by a number of Big Ten representatives in the poll, including Wisconsin (No. 1), Nebraska (No. 5), Minnesota (No. 7), Purdue (No. 8), and Ohio State (No. 11). Kentucky, Division I’s most recent champion, landed at No. 3.
Penn State’s season begins with a road trip to Florida for the UCF Tournament. The Nittany Lions face Georgia Tech and Saint John’s on Friday, August 27, to kick off their season. Nine of the Nittany Lions’ upcoming matches will air on national TV.
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