CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – Playing for the second time in eight days, No. 4 Stanford came up short again against No. 3 Penn State, falling in five sets at Huff Hall.
The Cardinal (5-2) hit just .186 and succumbed to 20.0 Penn State blocks. The Nittany Lions (7-0) hit .260 as a team and racked up 59 digs. Penn State now holds a 12-9 lead in the all-time series.
Sophomore Kathryn Plummer paced Stanford with 20 kills and 10 digs for her third double-double of the season. Sophomore middle blocker Audriana Fitzmorris finished with a season-high 13 kills on .385 hitting and six blocks. Junior middle blocker Tami Alade chipped in with six blocks.
Redshirt senior Merete Lutz and redshirt freshman Michaela Keefe each tallied 10 kills for the Cardinal. Sophomore setter Jenna Gray recorded 53 assists, seven digs and three blocks, while sophomore libero Morgan Hentz collected 14 digs and freshman Meghan McClure notched seven digs.
Seniors Simone Lee and Ali Frantti led Penn State with 21 and 20 kills, respectively. Senior middle blocker Haleigh Washington hit .409 with 11 kills and 10 blocks. Sophomore libero Kendall White had a match-high 22 digs.
Stanford returns to The Farm next week for its home opener on Friday, Sept. 15 against Pacific. The Cardinal and Tigers will square off at 7 p.m. on Pac-12 Networks.