BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – The Indiana volleyball team (9-7, 2-4 B1G) threw everything it had against No. 3 Penn State on Sunday afternoon (Oct. 13) at Wilkinson Hall. IU lost the lead in sets three and four late hour and lost 3-1 to the Nittany Lions (25-22, 22-25, 30-32, 22-25) in Bloomington.

After a strong opening set, Penn State responded in the second set and tied the game. The Hoosiers had five set points in the third game but were hurt by three late service errors. Second semester Ramsey Gary had a serve tied at 28-27 that got caught in the net and fell back to IU’s side due to an error. The Nittany Lions closed out games three and four, completing the Hoosiers’ bid for a decisive victory.

Junior outside hitter Candela Alonso Corcelles had a team-high 18 kills as a senior setter Camryn Haworth finished one kill shy of her fourth career triple-double (36 assists, 11 digs, 9 kills). The Hoosiers had a productive afternoon from the middle, getting a total of 15 kills from juniors Madi Sell and in the second year Ava Vickers.

IU shut out Penn State (13.0-10.0) while Sell (7.0) set a career high along the way. It was the fourth game this season that the Hoosiers finished with 13 total team blocks. Gary had 17 throws to pace the back row effort. Five different IU players had at least seven digs.

All-American outside hitter Jess Mruzik of Penn State found her groove in the fourth set, effectively leading her team to victory with seven kills on eight shots. She had a match-high 21 kills. Outside hitters Camryn Hannah (17) and Maggie Mendelson (11) also reached double figures.

The Hoosiers are on a fast track this week as they prepare for two nationally televised games. IU travels to Illinois on Wednesday night (7 p.m. ET, Big Ten Network) and No. 10 Purdue on Saturday (7 p.m. ET, Big Ten Network).

Set breakdown
Set 1: Indiana 25, Penn State 22

Two days after a frustrating night in Minnesota, Indiana responded with a strong opening set to start the day at Wilkinson Hall. The Hoosiers hit just .225 but held Penn State to a .143 offensive rating (15-9-42). Camryn Haworth had 10 assists and two kills in the first set, while IU had 18 digs as a team.

• IU eventually pulled away after the two teams traded points early. Avry Tatum had two kills, sandwiched around a Penn State attack error, as the Hoosiers jumped to a 16-13 lead.

• Penn State got the score back to 17-0 after a 3-0 run with libero Gillian Grimes at the service line. IU was held off by a double block before Nittany Lion middle blocker Maggie Mendelson converted a kill to force IU into a timeout.

• The Hoosiers took the lead back for good after the timeout Candela Alonso Corcelles And Ava Vickers Combine in the first block of the night. IU closed with an 8-5 run to win the opening set. Madi Sell Penn State parried in a quick set and took the first game to a 25-22 win.

Set 2: Penn State 25, Indiana 22

As expected, Penn State bounced back in the second game and tied the game. Both blocks came to life and each team recorded five in the second set. Alonso-Corcelles had seven kills in the third game, while Sell had four blocks. Penn State scored a few more points on offense to seal the deal. Jess Mruzik had five kills and two blocks for the Nittany Lions.

• Penn State built a four-point lead at halftime, 11-7 and 15-11. Mendelson had consecutive kills to send Penn State into the media timeout. After exchanging serving errors during the break, Mendelson and setter Izzy Starck combined with a block to take a five-point lead.

• IU had its chances to get back into the set. Camryn Hannah was called for a blocking error to cut the deficit to three points. Alonso Corcelles and Ava Vickers had kills outside of an IU timeout to get back within three. IU was unable to reduce the deficit as the set continued.

• A solo block of Mady Saris and a double block from Sell and Haworth thwarted Penn State on its first two set points. After a long rally on the third set point, Mruzik finished with a fantastic cut shot just inside the line. IU appealed but failed to get the call overturned. That proved to be a big moment as the Hoosiers made both tackles in the second set.

Set 3: Penn State 32, Indiana 30

Sunday’s third game against Penn State is reminiscent of a long set against Minnesota in 2023 and will keep the Hoosiers busy. IU had a chance at five set points and was unable to convert three of them due to service errors. The Hoosiers had four blocks and 13 kills in the set, but gave up five points at the service line. Penn State won the set 32-30 on 13 combined kills from their left attackers.

• After dominating most of the second set, Penn State did it again at the start of the third set. Ava Falduto singled IU on a miscommunication before Mruzik finished with a kill to take a 10-6 lead. Aird took his first timeout before the momentum got out of hand.

• IU continued to fight back and regained the advantage with an 8-3 run. A big hit from Haworth on second contact gave IU a 14-13 lead. It was IU’s first lead since going 5-4 in the set.

• The first sign Penn State was behind was back-to-back attack errors by Mruzik. With a back row swing, she failed to get the first ball over the net before her next attempt went out. The Nittany Lions called a timeout and trailed by three points in the third (19-16).

• Aird showed some veteran coach composure as he stood next to the official as Penn State returned to serve. He pretended to take some time off but failed to do so. Mruzik previously sent her serve into the net Avry Tatum stepped back to the line and took on Penn State. That ace gave IU a 21-19 lead.

• In the second set, Haworth returned to the serve line and had a chance to be the hero. Her serve sailed long and set off a chain reaction. IU’s next two serves, all of which reached the set point, were errors. Penn State finally broke through, scoring back-to-back kills from Taylor Trammell to secure the set win.

Set 4: Penn State 25, Indiana 22

IU lost another chance to continue the game as the game progressed. Mruzik proved her worth as an All-American attacker, finishing the set with seven kills on eight swings. IU got four kills and a block from Sell, but six service errors were the finishing touches to a four-set defeat.

• IU jumped out of the gates and quickly built a 9-5 lead. Penn State responded with three points, all kills from Hannah, but IU extended the lead back to four on a kill from Alonso-Corcelles. Katie Schumacher-Cawley called her first timeout and IU led 12-8.

• The Hoosier lead grew to five when Haworth and Sell combined on a massive block to bring Wilkinson Hall to its feet. IU had every chance to tie the set, but Penn State refused to give up. The Nittany Lions quickly scored three points before Aird called his first timeout.

• Service errors from Delay Maple And Ramsey Gary prevented any chance of opening up another lead. Vickers tied it with a big kill from the middle, but Penn State went on a 5-1 run from there. Mruzik delivered two impressive kills before Mendelson ended the game, failing past IU’s outstretched arms.

Top Hoosier Artists
#3 Alonso-Corcelles, Candela

18 kills, 9 digs, 1 block, 1 assist

#10 Haworth, Camryn

36 assists, 11 digs, 9 kills, 5 blocks

#1 Sell, Madi

7 kills, 7 blocks

Important instructions

• After Sunday’s narrow loss, IU is 1-for-62 all-time against Penn State. After losing to the No. 3 Nittany Lions, the Hoosiers are now 0-38 against the top three teams in program history.

• Senior setter Camryn Haworth was just one kill away from her fourth career triple-double. This is the second time in her career that she has had two or fewer kills by recording a triple-double. She had 45 assists, 16 digs and 8 kills in a win against No. 5 Ohio State in 2022. She had 36 assists, 11 digs and 9 kills in today’s loss against No. 3 Penn State.

• The Fishers, Indiana native has 10 career games with 7+ kills. Today’s effort was the 29th double-double of her amazing college career. She is tied for second with Victoria Brisack for the most double-doubles in IU history during the 25-point rally era (since 2008).

• Haworth had another multi-ace attempt at the service line against Penn State. That puts her at 195 for her college career. She only needs two more to break the all-time IU record and three to break the program record for service aces.

• Junior outside hitter Candela Alonso Corcelles has recorded more than 10 kills in 27 of her 46 career Big Ten matches since arriving in Bloomington. She averaged 4.47 kills per set in her last four matches. Twice this year, including today’s contest against Penn State, she had 18 kills.

• Junior middle blocker Madi Sell had a productive afternoon, demanding the ball offensively down the stretch. She set career highs in blocks (7.0) and attacks (17) while hitting .353 (7-1-17) entering Sunday.

• Set three in Sunday’s game saw a total of 62 points between the two teams. Over the last two seasons, IU has exceeded the 30-point threshold in four different sets on both ends. The Hoosiers are just 1-3 in those four games. Northwestern achieved the only set win (34-32 – set 2, October 29, 2023). Three of those set losses occurred at Wilkinson Hall.