Though No. 13 Penn State women's volleyball fell to No. 5 Pittsburgh in four sets, a fresh new face to the Nittany Lion (4-4) team this season had glimpses of explosiveness on offense. True freshman and outside hitter Alexis Ewing is slowly becoming a familiar face to the court for the blue and white.
The Bethesda, Md. native finished her night with six kills, two errors, and a .500 kill percentage.
What stood out in Ewing's performance was her ability to generate high-powered attacks that caused trouble to the talented Pittsburgh defense at times.
The freshman's height and athleticism allows her to flourish up at the net. At six-foot-four-inches, Ewing's vertical jump places her above the ball when she attacks This allows her to find angles that are difficult to defend, especially off a quick set. When blocking, she puts opponents' attacks away with her ability to soar over the net.
Head coach Katie Schumacher-Cawley brought in Ewing for starter Caroline Jurevicius for set four. The Panthers exploited Jurevicius, especially on defense. When they consistently stuffed her attacks away, it was clear the Nittany Lions needed a different spark up at the net.
This doesn't mean Ewing is stealing Jurevicius' starting spot. The redshirt sophomore was selected to the 2024 Big Tell All-Freshman Team and earned game MVP of the second 2025 regular season match. However, it's likely to see Ewing and Jurevicius share time on the court. While both put down difficult attacks, it comes down to which hitter the opponent adapts to better. On Wednesday, that was Jurevicius, who still ranks as a top hitter in the Big Ten.
With Ewing logging time on the court, it's clear that Schumacher-Cawley can create a solid rotation between the two. Adding offensive depth will be key moving forward as the Nittany Lions work out the kinks on defense. Becoming stagnant with Kennedy Martin, Emmi Sellman, and Maggie Mendelson will become easy to defend moving forward in the season. The combination of Ewing and Jurevicius will add a different layer and more options.
Now that its two-game winning streak was cut off in the 3-1 loss to the Panthers, Penn State will have to regroup. Beyond cleaning up defense and minimizing attack errors, the Nittany Lions need to develop a more cohesive game and not give up easy points. Staying at home for Friday night's game against Princeton should be an opportunity for them to get back on track. First serve against the Tigers is slated for 7 p.m. ET.