For the first time since 2017, Penn State is among the NCAA Tournament’s elite.

After a 3-1 win over Marquette, the No. 1 seed Nittany Lions host No. 2 seed Creighton in the State College Regional Final of the NCAA Tournament on Sunday at 8:30 p.m., televised on ESPN.

After Friday’s Sweet 16 games, coach Katie Schumacher-Cawley noted the strong defense Creighton can play, holding Texas to .197 hitting for the game.

“Creighton played a great game,” Schumacher-Cawley said. “…Creighton just took it easy at the end of the game, found ways to score and didn’t give up on defense.”

The Blue Jays are one of the best defensive teams in the country as they hold their opponents to a .127 hits average – the second-highest mark in Division I. In the fourth set against the Longhorns, Creighton secured the match win by holding Texas to just under .127 hits Hit rate of 0.024.

Creighton wondered how much the perceived poor Big East play helped the team, but the Blue Jays might have dismissed those questions after their stunning victory over the back-to-back national champions.

A new kind of test could be on the horizon for Creighton’s defense, as Penn State’s offense has plenty of killers, giving setter Izzy Starck several reliable options to facilitate the offense.

“It makes my job easier,” said Starck. “It means I don’t have to think too much, so I can distribute the offense and have fun with what I’ve set.”

The Nittany Lions hit .280 in their win over Marquette, and libero Gillian Grimes thought Starck did a good job distributing the ball.

“I think we distributed the offense really well through Izzy Starck,” said Grimes.

However, Creighton also has an efficient offense and ranks second in Division I with a batting average of .332. Norah Sis leads the way this year with 430 kills on .314 hitting, followed by Ava Martin with 411 kills on .322 hits.

Grimes also believed her team’s serving and passing went well against Marquette, and the team could use a repeat of that on Sunday.

“I thought our serving and passing game was really good,” Grimes said. “We have to play a lot with our middle players, and when our middle players score, we are always ahead.”

Led by Ava Falduto’s four aces, Penn State dished out seven against the Golden Eagles, and an overall strong serving performance on Sunday could keep Creighton’s offense from being completely in sync.

The Nittany Lions also have a key advantage before Sunday’s game against the Blue Jays: home field advantage. Penn State, the region’s No. 1 seed, has played all three NCAA Tournament games at home so far, winning each by multiple sets.

Additionally, the Blue and White are a perfect 19-0 at Rec Hall this season, something Creighton would have to break in order to win. With Penn State announcing the game will be a “white out” for fans in attendance, the crowd could be even more electric than usual, and Grimes knows the team thrives on their noise.

“I think we really feed off the energy,” Grimes said. “We need everyone there. It’s a white out.”

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