Penn State’s student newspaper takes time to talk a Nittany Lions team with a new focal point with offseason transfers out of University Park
The Penn State Nittany Lions lost a good bit in the personnel department in the offseason. Five-year Nittany Lion star guard Makenna Marisa ran out of eligibility, Ashley Owusu graduated without looking like she did as an All-American at Maryland and both Shay Czeki and Leilani Kapinus transferred to other power conference schools.
So, on Sunday when Ohio State women’s basketball arrives in Happy Valley, it won’t be the same kind of team that Buckeye fans are used to seeing, so Land-Grant Holy Land wanted to learn more from the experts at The Daily Collegian.
Noah Aberegg is the Collegian’s women’s basketball reporter and he talked about the emergence of transfer center Gracie Merkle, a familiar Big Ten name who swapped Michigan State green for Penn State blue, and if the currently winless in conference play Lions have any shot at the 15-team Big Ten Tournament field.
Land-Grant Holy Land: Head coach Carolyn Kieger had Marisa and Czeki for the past two seasons, and the Nittany Lions lived on their shooting, with Kapinus cleaning up rebounds and playing more inside. Now, Kieger’s team seems to focus on Gracie Merkle, the 6-foot-6 center who leads the team in scoring and rebounding. What does Merkle do for this side and how have teams slowed her down?
The Daily Collegian: Makenna Marisa and Shay Ciezki were two of the three leading scorers for the Lady Lions last year. Without them, Leilani Kapinus and a handful of others, there was a lot of uncertainty going into this season.
However, Bellarmine transfer Gracie Merkle was a big name to start the 2024-25 season with her massive 6-foot-6 frame – the tallest Lady Lion in several years. She picked up the slack earlier this season, scoring over 20 points per game and recording seven double-doubles. Her presence was felt immediately by the squad, and she terrorized opposing defenses in the team’s 8-0 start to the season.
Over the past month, however, opposing defenses have found ways to shut her down. In four of the past six games, Merkle has been held to single-digit scoring as compared to double-digits inthe first 12 games of the year.
While her scoring output was impressive to start the season, she has to find a way to get going again late with more aggressive moves under the basket, prioritizing on picks and fast break scoring.
LGHL: A by-product of having that kind of interior presence is Moriah Murray excelling from deep. The sophomore had a lot of guards in front of her last season with the aforementioned leaders of that past side. How has she grown in her role?
TDC: Redshirt sophomore Moriah Murray showed signs of being a star during her first year with the Lady Lions, finishing third on the team in 3-pointers made behind Marisa and Ciezki.
With only four returners, Murray has taken a starting role in all 18 games of the season so far after only one year of experience, leading the nation in 3-pointers through the first month and a half of the season.
The Dunmore, Pennsylvania, native shot only 35.3% from deep in her redshirt freshman campaign, but there were signs that was all in the past as she had five games with over five 3-pointers made early on in the season.
However, that wasn’t just a thing of the past, as Murray’s efficiency began to dwindle as December started, shooting fewer and fewer shots and making even less. Murray’s game has come to a complete stop unless she’s been left wide open – something that hasn’t happened since early on in the season before she was seen as a true threat.
In order to start successfully shooting 3’s again, Murray must evolve her offense, scoring more off screens, getting unique with plays and finding a spark wherever she can.
Tommy Gilligan-Imagn Images
LGHL: Gabby Elliot has not had a chance to really shine in the last three seasons, due to injury. The former Spartan is playing the most minutes of her career starting for the Nittany Lions. How has she filled in gaps left by transfers and graduation?
TDC: Even though she started the season off relatively shaky for the blue and white, Michigan State transfer Gabby Elliott has become a dominant force after season-ending injuries in each of her last three seasons.
After Penn State lost Ashley Owusu and Leilani Kapinus – two strong and dominant attackers – Elliott emerged as a suitable replacement. Although much smaller, Elliott’s toughness and grit has proven herself as an attacker, coming out strong in the past month.
Right around the time Murray’s and Merkle’s productions began shrinking, Elliott has filled the gap, scoring double-digits since conference play started at the end of December.
When the time has mattered most, Elliott has been at her highest. Her personal production has been a comeback this year, and she’s only hoping the team can do the same.
Kirby Lee-Imagn Images
LGHL: Penn State is one of the last remaining teams in the conference without a win, but to be fair they’re on a blistering stretch of games right now. They almost pulled out the comeback against the Oregon Ducks but then took the toughest road trip in college sports, going to Los Angeles to play two of the top five teams in the nation. Now they come back home only to get the No. 9 Buckeyes. Do you see Penn State picking up enough wins to earn a spot in the Big Ten tournament, with only 15 of the 18 sides going to Indianapolis? Which games are winnable from here on out for Penn State?
TDC: While Penn State has lost several difficult games, it’s also fallen short in a few games it should have won. Losses against Kansas and Nebraska are inexcusable, especially as a team who was two wins away from a WBIT championship last year.
If the Lady Lions want to play into March, whether it be the Big Ten Tournament or going dancing in the NCAA Tournament, they need to start winning, both the easy games and the hard games.
Starting with their Feb 4 matchup against Washington, the Lady Lions pretty much need to win out. Besides its matchup against Rutgers in January, Penn State will likely fall to Ohio State, Michigan State and Maryland.
From there, they can and should win at least three of the last games of the season, as Rutgers, Purdue and Northwestern all sit without wins in conference play.
Coach Carolyn Kieger can’t put off wins for much longer, but given another two weeks of ranked opponents, Penn State’s postseason aspirations may be more of a dream than a reality this season.