The Nittany Lions are once again NCAA volleyball champions. Penn State earned a 3-1 victory over Louisville in the National Championship on Sunday, securing the program’s eighth NCAA title.

What started as a close contest — including a wild, record-setting second set — quickly led to Penn State pulling away with the help of outside hitter Jess Mruzik’s 29 kills. After four competitive games, the Nittany Lions lifted their first trophy in a decade in front of a record crowd of 21,860 cheering fans in Louisville.

Penn State edged past Louisville to take the first set, quickly grabbing two points and closing out the set even after the Cardinals tied the game 23-1.

But that paved the way for a wild second set that the Cardinals won with big extra points. The Nittany Lions took a commanding lead early in the second set, but Louisville fell behind despite trailing by as many as seven points. After Penn State reached set point, the Cardinals went on a 5-0 run to make it 24-0. The two continued to trade points and fight for victory.

In the end, Louisville won the second set 34-32, despite Penn State’s 10 set points. The total score of 66 was the highest in a single set during a championship game in NCAA history.

The Nittany Lions followed with a stronger third set, winning 25-20 after 10 kills from Jess Mruzik. Penn State pulled away completely in the fourth set. Camryn Hannah, who finished with 19 kills, scored the final kill at the championship point to give the Nittany Lions the 3-1 win.

Of note, the Cardinals’ star hitter Anna DeBeer sat out the game after suffering an ankle injury in the semifinals. With her on the sidelines, Charitie Luper and Sofia Maldonado Diaz filled in for Louisville, recording 21 and 20 kills, respectively.

Unfortunately, it wasn’t enough for Louisville, who couldn’t stop the red-hot Mruzik in the final frames. Mruzik was nearly unstoppable, receiving 14 shots and scoring 33 total points for the Nittany Lions throughout the game.

Sunday’s game made history and marked the first time that both teams meeting in the National Championship were coached by women. In another part of history, Penn State, coached by former Nittany Lion Katie Schumacher-Cawley, became the first team with a female coach to win the title.

Schumacher-Cawley was part of the 1999 national championship team that gave Penn State its first-ever volleyball title. The coach also battled breast cancer during the tournament: Schumacher-Cawley announced her diagnosis on social media in October, but continued to lead Penn State through an incredible title run.