No. 18 Penn State women's volleyball has a ranked match today vs. the No. 20 Washington Huskies with home court advantage at Rec Hall. The Nittany Lions come off a 3-0 win over Northwestern Friday night and the Huskies enter Sunday's contest off a 3-0 sweep over Ohio State Friday afternoon.
The Big Ten has been a beast this season in college volleyball with 10 teams ranked in the AVCA Top 25 Poll and two others earning votes as of Oct. 5. While Washington is ranked lower than Penn State in the poll, the Huskies have an advantage in the NCAA Women's Volleyball RPI. They're ranked above the blue and white at No. 10 while the Nittany Lions are two spots lower at No. 12.
Here's everything you need to know about Penn State's upcoming match.
How to watch No. 18 Penn State vs. No. 20 Washington
- Date: Sunday, Oct. 11
- Time: 12 p.m. ET
- Venue: Rec Hall (University Park, Pa.)
- How to Watch (TV): Big Ten Network
- Streaming: fuboTV
- Penn State record: 11-4 (3-2 Big Ten)
- Washington record: 13-1 (4-1 Big Ten)
Penn State vs. Washington series history
The Nittany Lions and Huskies have a very brief history behind them as this is just their fourth match in their series. They first played each other on Dec. 7, 2018, and Penn State started the series off on a high note with a 3-0 sweep in that match. It defeated Washington again in 2024, 3-1, but lost the most recent game between the two in 2025. The Huskies had home court advantage and took the match in five sets.
Key Nittany Lions and Huskies to watch
Penn State:
- Opposite hitter - Kennedy Martin
- Outside hitter - Haley Burgdorf
There isn't a week where Martin isn't a key player for Penn State, but she's coming off an especially dominant performance vs. Iowa. She led the team by a wide margin with 29.5 points, meaning she essentially won an entire set (and then some) on her own for the Nittany Lions. Martin had 24 kills and three block assists on the match with a 52.6 hitting percentage against the Hawkeyes. She only made four attack errors on 38 attempts. Martin also added four aces and 14 digs, leading the team in both categories. Her defense hasn't been her strongest suit, and while her offensive prowess will always be the star of her show, seeing her have a lot of success on defense takes her game to a whole other level.
Then for Burgdorf, she's proving game after game that she will be something dangerous for the Nittany Lions throughout her college career. She's definitely adapted to the NCAA level at this point in the season and comes off a huge performance vs. Iowa as well. Burgdorf had the third-most points for the Nittany Lions with 11.5 on 11 kills and one block assist. She also had 11 digs in the match, which was second-highest on the team, and just one attack error on 17 attempts. She finished with the highest hitting percentage at 58.8 percent.
Washington:
- Outside hitter - Simona Mateska
- Outside hitter - Kylie Kleckner
Mateska leads the Huskies in kills with 171 on the season and also leads in service aces with 19. She's logged 201.0 points for Washington and averages 4.10 points per set as well, leading both categories. Being a top target for the setter often means the hitting percentage can falter and not always indicate how good a player is, especially if they play a match where they're set significantly more than others. More chances means more opportunities for error, but for Mateska, that's not the case. She's had 398 attempts up at the net and only 44 errors, which is good for a 31.9 hitting percentage on the season so far.
Right behind Mateska's success is Kleckner. Kleckner has the second-most kills on the season with 147 and is tied for fourth-most aces with 13. She has 172.0 points so far and averages 3.58 points per set, putting her just behind Mateska in both stat columns.
If their offensive success wasn't enough, both Mateska and Kleckner are solid on defense. Mateska has the second-most digs on the team with 146 and Klecker is fourth with 111. Both lead in serve-receive. Kleckner has 15 receptions to lead Washington and Mateska has 11. As blockers, the two are fourth and fifth, respectively, with 24 and 19 total blocks.
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