No. 1 Nebraska Volleyball at No. 16 Penn State, Rutgers: Previews, Breakdowns

Penn State Scout

Head Coach

Katie Schumacher-Cawley | 4th season at Penn State; 13th as HC | 91-24 (.791) at PSU; 216-170 (.560) Career Record | 2024 National Champion, 2x Regional Semifinals | 1x B1G Title (2024) | Jimmy V Award (2025) | Previous head coach at Penn and UIC | Previous assistant at Penn State, UIC and Illinois. 

2024 Finish

W, 3-1 vs. No. 3 Louisville to become the 2024 NCAA Volleyball National Champions.  

2024 Record & Awards

35-2 (19-1 B1G, T-1st) | AVCA National Freshman OTY | All-Americans: 1x First Team, 1x Second Team, 2x Honorable Mentions | East Coast All-Region Freshman OTY | All-Region: 4x First Team | B1G Coach & Freshman OTY | All-B1G: 4x First Team, 1x Second Team, 2x All-Freshman.

All-Time Series

Nebraska leads 28-13 (Dec. 19, 2024, NCAA National Semifinal last matchup, 3-2 PSU) 

Returning Production 

Points: 29% | Kills: 26% | Service Aces: 43% | Blocks: 41% | Assists: 14% | Digs: 51%

Key Returners

• Ava Falduto | L/DS | Soph. | PSU’s primary defensive specialist, who led the Nittany Lions in aces (39) last season and is one of four players with double-digit aces in 2025 (10). 
• Gillian Grimes | L | Sr. | Returning libero for Penn State who’s among the team’s leading servers; Named Second Team All-Big Ten after leading PSU in digs with 529 in 2024. 
• Jordan Hopp | MB | Gr. | The Alliance, Nebraska native played sparingly in 2024 after transferring from Iowa State, but is now one of the two starting middle blockers for the defending national champions. 
• Maggie Mendelson | MB | Sr. | Played her first two seasons at Nebraska before going to Penn State, where she hit .305 with 242 kills, 146 blocks, and four aces while starting in 36 of 37 matches.
• Caroline Jurevicius | OH/RS | Soph. | Another transfer from Nebraska, Jurevicius was the Husker killer in last year’s national semifinal with a career-high 20 kills. 

Impact Transfers/Newcomers

• Emmi Sellman | OH | Soph. | Second on PSU in points (129.5) and kills (113) after being named to the Big Ten All-Freshman team at Ohio State in 2024. 
• Kennedy Martin | RS | Jr. | Arguably the best player in college volleyball who transferred from Florida after her first two seasons; two-time All-American averaging 5.96 points and 5.23 kills per set so far in 2025. 
• Addie Lyon | S | Gr. | Two-time transfer from Saint Louis and Missouri, who’s been thrust into the starting setter role after the shocking and sudden departure of 2024 National Freshman of the Year Izzy Starck. 

Key Departures

• Izzy Starck | S | Departure | Former No. 1 overall recruit and 2024 National Freshman of the Year who departed the team in September to prioritize her mental health. Has not played since Sept. 1.  
• Jess Mruzik | OH | Graduated | Three-time All-American who was voted the NCAA Championship Most Outstanding Player in leading PSU to a national title. 
• Camryn Hannah | OH | Graduated | Paired with Mruzik as one of the country’s top attacking duos; second on Penn State with 532.5 points, earning All-American Honorable Mention. 
• Taylor Trammell | MB | Graduated | A monster middle blocker that earned All-American Honorable Mention after hitting .442 with 260 kills alongside 135 blocks in all 37 matches.

Outlook

Winning its eighth national championship in school history, which is the second most all-time, the Nittany Lions had a strong nucleus returning to defend its title. Despite the departure of All-Americans Jess Mruzik, Camryn Hannah, and Taylor Trammell, Penn State was in a good position due to its recruiting prowess in both high school and the transfer portal. 

Head coach Katie Schumacher-Cawley pulled in the transfer of the year in Florida’s Kennedy Martin. Before stepping into Rec Hall, Martin had established herself as one of the sport’s premier players with back-to-back All-American campaigns in 2023 and 2024. 

The U.S. Women's National Team is patiently waiting for Martin, and it’s easy to see why. The 6-foot-6 junior averaged over six points per set in 2024 and barely trails that pace in 2025. Combine that with the return of four starters (Maggie Mendelson, Caroline Jurevicius, Gillian Grimes & Ava Falduto), and Penn State had plenty of reasons to be voted as the No. 2 team in the AVCA preseason poll. 

Despite a 2-2 start with all ranked opponents, no one doubted the repeat dreams of Penn State. Then came one of the most shocking departures in recent college volleyball memory. Starting setter Izzy Starck announced her decision to step away from the team to focus on her mental health on September 5 via Instagram. She isn’t permanently stepping away from the sport, but she didn’t clarify a timeline. 

The No. 1 overall recruit in her class and the 2024 AVCA National Freshman of the Year, Starck’s departure was bizarre – especially when you take into account that she posted her announcement in the middle of Penn State’s eventual 3-0 defeat to No. 4 Kentucky on national television. Add in a murky report detailing the reasons for her departure, and it has become a major distraction for the Nittany Lions. 

Starck’s loss has definitely been felt on the court with PSU going 5-3 since she left, but that includes their most recent loss to unranked UCLA. While a loss to No. 5 Pittsburgh is understandable, getting pushed to five sets against Princeton and No. 17 USC gives a sense that Penn State is reeling at the moment. 

The Nittany Lions being at Rec Hall for Friday’s showdown against Nebraska certainly helps, and they’ll be plenty motivated to right the wrongs from its loss against the Bruins. However, the No. 1 Huskers are playing really well and they’ll be hungry to avenge their loss from last November that gave both programs a share of the Big Ten title. Give me Nebraska in four sets.

How to Follow Along 

• Matchup: No. 1 Nebraska (12-0, 2-0 B1G) at Rutgers (9-5, 0-2 B1G)
• When: Saturday, October 4
• Where: Jersey Mike’s Arena, New Brunswick, New Jersey
• Time: 6 p.m. CDT 
• Watch: B1G+
• Listen: Huskers Radio Network and Affiliates

Rutgers Scout

Head Coach

Caitlin Schweihofer | 6th season at Rutgers; 12th as HC | 47-109 (.301) at Rutgers; 120-217 (.356) Career record | A10 Coach OTY (2018) | Previous head coach at La Salle and Northeastern | Previous assistant at Lehigh and Bucknell. 

2024 Finish

Did not qualify for the postseason. 

2024 Record & Awards

6-25 (1-19 B1G, 18th) | No all-conference awards. 

All-Time Series

Nebraska leads 15-1 (Oct. 12, 2024 last matchup, 3-0 NU) 

Returning Production 

Points: 58% | Kills: 54% | Service Aces: 75% | Blocks: 67% | Assists: 87% | Digs: 80%

Key Returners

• Lexi Visintine | OH/DS | Sr. | Swiss Army Knife attacker that produced 181 points in 2024, but has emerged as the Scarlet Knights’ second main option with 132 points and a team-leading 27 aces.
• Zora Hardison | MB | Jr. | Returning starter who was second on the team in both points and blocks; Seventh in the Big Ten in blocks in 2025 with 56 through 14 matches. 
• Natalie Robinson | MB | Soph. | Returning 6-foot-4 starter who compiled 127 kills and a team-leading 123 blocks as a freshman. 
• Lily Bolen | S | Soph. | Team-high 31 aces as a freshman in 2024 while splitting setter duties in a 6-2; has emerged as Rutgers' starting setter in 2025 and is averaging 10.42 assists per set.
• Alleigh Dutton | L/DS | Soph. | The Scarlet Knights’ starting libero, who’s averaging 3.40 digs per set with nine aces. 

Impact Transfers/Newcomers

• Tara Garvey | OH | Sr. | One of the three starting attackers for Rutgers after spending her first three collegiate seasons at Villanova, including 113 kills and 22 blocks in 2024.   
• Aspen Maxwell | OH/RS | Soph. | In the midst of a breakout season in New Jersey with 241.5 points, 109.5 more than the next Scarlet Knight after playing in only three matches at Missouri last year. 
• Jenna DeLaMater | DS/L | Jr. | Central Arkansas transfer who’s carved out playing as a defensive specialist off the bench. 
• Lauren Wilcock | L/DS | Gr. | Former beach player at Washington and South Carolina who transferred to Rutgers and has found playing time as a DS and serving sub. 

Key Departures

• Alissa Kinkela | OH | Graduated | Now playing professionally in South Korea after leading Rutgers in points (379.5) and kills (322) last season. 
• Anna Hartman | OH | Transfer | Made her way to Florida Atlantic after posting 189 points on 165 kills and 45 blocks as a sophomore in 2024. 

Outlook

Coming off the school’s best record in over 10 years (10-20), Rutgers was hoping to take the next step of getting out of the Big Ten basement under head coach Caitlin Schweihofer, but what followed was a disappointing 6-25 campaign with a 1-19 conference record. 

The Scarlet Knights received a good season from leading attacker Alissa Kinkela with 379.5 points, but she was the lone bright spot in a lowly 2024 season. She’s now in the pros, but the Scarlet Knights have bounced back in a good way and are only one win away from tying that 2023 season win total. 

Most of that stems from a 9-3 non-conference mark, but Rutgers and Schweihofer return plenty of experience to New Jersey. Lexi Visintine was one of a handful to get playing time at outside hitter last season, but she’s now the second option as a junior. Zora Hardison is seventh in the Big Ten in blocks as a returning starter – which is more than her returning teammate Natalie Robinson who led the Scarlet Knights with 123 stuffs as a true freshman. 

Lily Bolen was dangerous from the service line in 2024 with a team-high 31 aces while running in a 6-2 system. Despite the return of Aly Borellis, who led Rutgers in assists last season, Bolen has been impressive as the team’s only starting setter with 10.42 assists per set. That number is sixth in the conference and almost a full assist per set more than Nebraska starter Bergen Reilly. Alleigh Dutton played second fiddle to Nebraskan Kenzie Dyrstad last season, but she’s jumped the Papillion native as the team’s starting libero in 2025. 

6-foot-4 attacker Aspen Maxwell has done a tremendous job replacing Kinkela, racking up a team-leading 241.5 points and 4.21 kills per set (5th in B1G) after appearing in only three matches as a freshman at Missouri in 2024. Tara Garvey brings over three years of experience at Villanova to round out the Scarlet Knights’ attacking trio, while Jenna DeLaMater and Lauren Wilcock are splitting time at DS and serving subs. 

Schweihofer has built a future core with Maxwell, Hardison, Robinson, Bolen and Dutton as four of the five are sophomores. However, the Big Ten is a grueling stage that will tear you apart and spit you out. Similar to past seasons, winning will be limited for the Scarlet Knights, but better things can be in store if Schweihofer can hold onto this nice group of underclassmen in New Brunswick. With that said, it should be business as usual for Nebraska on Saturday – put me down for a sweep.