No. 13 Penn State volleyball lost its first match of the season to No. 3 Kentucky on Sunday in the second-to-last contest of the Big Ten-SEC Challenge that took place the whole week leading up to Sept. 6.
The Nittany Lions looked like a revamped, re-energized squad, so even while tallying their first loss of the season, there were a ton of positives to take away from the game. Here are two winners and one loser from Sunday's match.
Winner: Whitney Lauenstein
Lauenstein proved yet again why Penn State hit the jackpot landing her out of the Transfer Portal. She logged 15.5 points off 13 kills, 1.5 blocks, and one ace on Sunday night while tacking on six digs on defense.
Having the second-highest kills and points on the team behind right side hitter Kennedy Martin is only a nod to the energy Lauenstein brought to the court, though. When Lauenstein was in rotation, she was electric and put on a show for everyone at Wrigley Field. After every point, whether she played a part in it or not, she celebrated and hyped her teammates up. Her energy was contagious; it's what took Penn State from a 2-0 deficit in the match to 2-1 and what caused the Nittany Lions to avoid getting swept.
Winner: Finley Krystkowiak
The freshman outside hitter was another spark plug for the Nittany Lions. Head coach Katie Schumacher-Cawley has tested out different outside hitters in rotation to assist Martin when Lauenstein isn't out there, and Krystkowiak separated herself from that competition on Sunday.
She had 10 kills, two block assists, and two digs for a total of 11 points in the match, all of which were season-highs for the freshman so far this season. For Krystkowiak to rise to the challenge like that against the No. 3 team in the country and have her best game yet, that says a lot about the juice she brings to this offense when in need.
Finley sends us to the media timeout with a 2-point lead!#WeAre pic.twitter.com/0jmQ2FAvN8
— Penn State Women’s Volleyball (@PennStateVBALL) September 6, 2026
Loser: Sustaining energy and momentum
With all the energy coming from their attackers, the Nittany Lions still couldn't find consistency when Kentucky had the ball rolling.
In all three sets that the Wildcats took, they had multiple point streaks of three or more. The only set Penn State held them from reaching the three-point mark was the third set. The fourth set is the only set that truly got away from the Nittany Lions, though. Set one finished 25-23 and the second ended on 25-21. In the second set, Penn State battles three set points to keep it alive before Kentucky found a way.
The usual suspects, Brooklyn DeLeye and Morgan Gaerte, were definitely on fire, but set three was the clear indicator that if the Nittany Lions sustained their energy on their side of the court, they could've taken those first two sets away too. It was especially evident in the fourth set that energy was a huge factor in Penn State's successes. The vibes weren't as high coming out of the third set that the blue and white won, and Kentucky capitalized on it and eventually took the fourth set, 25-15.
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