By Kelsey Detweiler, GoPSUsports.com Student Staff Writer
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - The Penn State men's volleyball team will continue its postseason run for yet another week thanks to a 3-1 victory over George Mason in the EIVA Championship match on Saturday night.

With the win, the Nittany Lions captured a 14th consecutive conference title in Rec Hall and earn a spot in the NCAA National Tournament where they will meet UC Irvine in the semifinals on Thursday in Los Angeles.

In what was the toughest conference competition that they said they've faced all season, the Lions took the first two sets by scores of 25-16 and 25-21 and dropped the third to the Patriots by a score of 25-20. But Penn State battled back in the fourth to a 25-22 set win and match victory.

Ten of the 17 rostered Nittany Lions saw action in the championship match as head coach Mark Pavlik said he used several of his deep lineup's assets to overcome George Mason.

"We weren't afraid to be wrong with our moves, and I think it paid off in the long run," Pavlik said of him and his coaching staff. "It just seemed like we maybe focused a little bit more on being dynamic and explosive and more or less kind of taking the game to them as opposed to just kind of reacting to what they were doing."

Aside from the first set, George Mason kept things interesting all night long tagging at the heels of the Lions and testing their defense by serving tough and finding ways to avoid the block.

Pavlik said that even when his team was down or when the Patriots gained momentum, he was confident that it would power through.

"Sometimes the toughest games to win are the ones you're supposed to," said Pavlik. "These guys have been told all season, you're 14-0 in the EIVA, you're going to win again, and I think that's the toughest match to win."

And the effort came from freshmen, sophomores, juniors and seniors to get the job done. Fifth-year senior Joe Sunder led the Lions with a resounding 15 kills while his freshman counterpart Aaron Russell followed with 11.

Pavlik said that he saw a fight in his team from top to bottom that remained constant and confident, and that he was particularly proud of the competitive maturity he saw in his veterans.

"Throughout the entire year they've managed to find a way to get back," said Pavlik. "I think that's really the experience that [Edgardo Goas]'s had and the experience that Joe's had saying, okay we've been here before, everybody take a deep breath and keep doing what we're doing."

Senior setter Goas said that he and Sunder couldn't take all of the credit, however, as he recognized that the bulk of the touches on the Penn State side were coming from the younger athletes.

Thirty-five of the 50 kills that the Nittany Lions put down came from the hands of underclassmen.

"These young guys are talented," said Goas. "I just like how everyone played and responded when we were against the wall."

At the end of the match, Goas, Russell and Sunder earned EIVA Championship All-Tournament honors and Sunder took home the plaque for Most Outstanding Player of the tournament.

Sunder said that for his last match in Rec Hall, winning the conference title wasn't a bad way to go out.

"I think that's the first time, since I've been here, that we've celebrated like that after winning the EIVA Championship," said Sunder. "You can't take that feeling away - that was a lot of fun."

By Kelsey Detweiler, GoPSUsports.com Student Staff Writer
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - When charter buses roll into the parking lots surrounding Rec Hall in the late weeks of April and young men taller than most professors here on campus step off, it can only mean one thing.

Postseason volleyball.

In the first night of the EIVA postseason competition in Rec Hall, the top-seeded Nittany Lions handed the fourth-seeded Princeton Tigers a 3-0 (25-20, 25-12, 25-22) loss.

Earlier in the evening, third-seeded George Mason defeated second-seed Harvard as well. The two winners, Penn State and George Mason, will play for the EIVA Championship title on Saturday at 7 p.m. back in Rec Hall.

The Nittany Lions out-hit and out-served the Tigers to roll to their first victory of the postseason, posting an attack average of .418 to Princeton's .208 and registering nine service aces to the Tigers' two.

Penn State was able to power its offense behind strong performances on every inch of the court, as head coach Mark Pavlik said his team looked more determined than he had seen it before.

"We've been practicing really well the last two weeks," said Pavlik. "I think that everybody's on the same page. I told these guys in the locker room after the match that this was as focused of an effort we've gotten."

And after a 21-5 regular season record, Pavlik said that a team effort is the only thing he expected to see at the start of postseason play.

"I think this is what the legacy of Penn State men's volleyball is," said Pavlik. "At this time of year, this isn't about any individual; this isn't about look at me, look what I can do, it's all about let's get through the EIVA and get to the NCAAs."

In order to get to where their head coach wants them to be, the Nittany Lions will need to ride offensive efforts like the ones sophomore Tom Comfort and senior Joe Sunder had against the Tigers. Comfort rendered a match-high 12 kills and hit .500 for the night while Sunder notched 11 kills of his own to swing at an average of .625 for the match.

"I just really wanted to go out and send a message and just make sure that our team gets off to a good start," said the sophomore opposite.

Comfort added that his team's mentality during the postseason is the same 'never say die' attitude that it has carried all year long.

"We've got to stay focused, listen to what the coaches tell us and just play hard," said Comfort. "Every day we play hard in practice and we get better so we've just got to keep doing the things that we always do."

"It's a Penn State volleyball tradition thing."

If the Nittany Lions pull off another conference win on Saturday night in the EIVA final, they will be appearing in the NCAA Tournament for the 26th time in program history and capture their 14th consecutive EIVA Tournament title.

As Pavlik sat by, smiling, sophomore outside hitter Jace Olsen pointed out that a 14th straight conference title is something that his team needs to have.

"If you see on our EIVA trophy, we'll have one whole side after this year," said Olsen. "It's the Penn State side."

By Kelsey Detweiler, GoPSUsports.com Student Staff Writer
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - Under head coach Mark Pavlik and his decorated staff of volleyball veterans, the Penn State men's volleyball program has had quite a bit of success.

In his 18th season at the helm of the program, Pavlik has led the Nittany Lions to 16 NCAA Tournament appearances, a 2008 NCAA National Title and has compiled a record of 434-125 overall.

The head coach has also managed to guide his student-athletes to 16 conference titles, 13 of which have come in the last 13 years.

After the Saint Francis match last Saturday night, which marked the completion of Penn State's regular season schedule, Pavlik reminded everyone that his team's season is far from over.

"We've still got more volleyball to play," said Pavlik.

The Nittany Lions are getting set to host the EIVA Championships in Rec Hall beginning Thursday evening. By dominating the conference with an undefeated 13-0 record, Penn State holds the top seed of the four teams that will be playing for an EIVA title. Harvard earned the No. 2 seed, George Mason holds the No. 3 seed and Princeton rounds out the group as the fourth-seeded team.

After Harvard and George Mason square off at 5:30 tomorrow night, Penn State and Princeton will take the court at 8 p.m. The winners of the two games will then vie for the conference crown on Saturday at 8 p.m.

Pavlik said that he is excited to be entering into the postseason swing and even more pleased to be able to host the conference championships for another year.

"This is I think the 14th year in a row that we will have hosted this thing and every year I get more and more anxious for it," Pavlik said of the EIVA Championships. "It's that postseason atmosphere and that 'never say die' attitude that players have that really show everyone what men's volleyball is all about."

The head coach said that it was important for his team to finish on a high-note with a sweep over Saint Francis, and that now his job is to keep his athletes focused with their foots on the gas.

With their eyes on a national title run, Penn State has just a few short weeks to make their final statements for the 2012 season.

"You look and you say that we have four matches left, and that's it," said Pavlik. "So everything that they've done to get to this point, you hope has prepared them for what they're going to see in the next four matches."

All season long, Pavlik has said that one of the most important aspects of a successful team is the ability to play with a sense of competitive maturity. The head coach said that the need for respect and communication and unwavering drive on the court is something that will most likely never change, and something that he has seen truly grow in his team this season.

At the beginning of the year, the head coach sat in his Rec Hall office in front of picture frames and trophies and albums from years past and made a season prediction with a smile on his face.

"We're ready to go and we'd like to take as much as we can get this year," said Pavlik. "I don't think a National Championship is too much to ask."

Beginning tomorrow night, the Nittany Lions will start their run for Pavlik's one, small request.

This weekend the team saw the end of the regular season by celebrating Senior Night during our last scheduled home match. It was great having a lot of friends and family to support us along with the many cookies, brownies and cupcakes that filled the locker room supplied by Mrs. Seifert and Mrs. Comfort. 

We started off strong in the match jumping out to a lead but Saint Francis responded well and evened out the score. The rest of the match went the same way with Saint Francis keeping it fairly close, but we pulled out the win by taking three straight sets. All of the seniors got into the match and were recognized for their commitment and leadership over our volleyball careers. It was a lot of fun getting to play with Tor and Wolfy as well as Eddy towards the end of the third set because it hasn't happened all that much over our four years.

On Sunday afternoon the annual senior luncheon was held at the Nittany Lion Inn. The brunch spread was incredible, complete with an omelet bar. Harry Kauffman put together a great program where each of us seniors had a chance to speak to our teammates, coaches, and families as a group. It was a little nerve wracking at first but once the microphone was in my hand, figuratively, it turned out to be a lot of fun. Overall the weekend was a great success and I will always remember the memories and experiences I have shared with Tor, Ryan and Edgardo. This week we look to continue to work hard in practice and prepare ourselves for the EIVA tournament on Thursday.

Joe Sunder

Greetings Penn State Nation!

This past weekend wasn't one of our best with two losses to BYU. Despite coming off strong in the first game on Friday night the Cougars found a way back in it and finished us off in 4 and then defeated us in 3 the next night. Thankfully, since BYU isn't in our conference, those losses won't have any effect on our standings in the EIVA; so we are still all set to host the championship here on home court at the end of April and have all of our fans (mostly our parents..) cheering for us to win yet another EIVA championship.

This week of practice has been short yet effective as all of us are getting excited for our final push through the playoffs. We will be preparing ourselves for our last regular season match against St. Francis in which we will be honoring our seniors for all the hard work they have put into our program over the years.  Unfortunately Main Gym was taken today so our team and the girl's team had to practice at the same time in South Gym, practicing at the same time as the girls in South Gym could be considered a form of torture due the headaches caused from the girls' constant screaming. Seriously, we can't even hear ourselves think.

In other news we finally caught that mouse in our locker room that has been torturing Ian and eating all the food he leaves in his locker for the past couple weeks. And by mouse, I mean mice, all ten of them. Hopefully now we can finally live in peace knowing that Ian is no longer being outsmarted by a rodent.

You stay classy Penn State,

Kyle Gregan #16

Greetings from Happy Valley. This past weekend we faced two EIVA opponents in the Pioneers of Sacred Heart, and the Crimson of Harvard. Friday night brought us the Pioneers, from watching video and what we focused on in practice we knew we couldn't take them lightly even though we had beaten them in three games back in February. The match started out with a couple big points and a huge block by Jace Olsen and Aaron Russell; we had practiced a lot of blocking in practice during the week and with Sacred Heart's slower offense we were confident we could win the blocking battle. Sacred heart never gave up though and had a few players that could put some heat behind the ball, it may have been a three game sweep but each game was hard fought. In the end though we won the battle on the net, played hard, and came away victorious. Saturday night we had Harvard in Main gym with the chance to clinch home court advantage for the EIVA tournament, expectations were high, and we were looking forward to the challenge. The first set started off with our side gaining an early 13-7 lead, only to see Harvard storm back to win the set 25-20. The second set had Harvard winning 25-21; we hadn't been down 0-2 to an EIVA opponent all year and went into the locker room knowing we would have to go 5 sets if we wanted to clinch home court. After the halftime speech from Pav and the coaches we came out and showed our home crowd what we could do by easily beating the Crimson in the third, fourth, and fifth sets clinching home court advantage. It was a great ending to a stellar match. We never had a doubt in our minds we'd be in the position we are now and look forward to the rest of the season.  Thanks for stopping by and thanks for all your support, we'll see ya back in Rec April 21^st for our final EIVA match of the season.

By Kelsey Detweiler, GoPSUsports.com Student Staff Writer
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - For seven consecutive matches the Penn State men's volleyball team was away from State College and playing as the visiting team. On Friday night, the Nittany Lions snapped their road streak and returned to their home court confinements in Rec Hall where they swept Sacred Heart.

Thanks to a productive offense that swung at a .380 clip, collectively, and a defense that tallied a season-high 15.5 blocks, the Lions sailed to their 12th conference win of the season. With just two EIVA matches left to go play this season, Penn State remains atop the leader board in conference standings with an undefeated 12-0 mark.

The Nittany Lion defense made it tough for the Pioneers to score as it relied on the big single-, double- and triple-blocks throughout the night. Penn State held Sacred Heart to just a .085 offensive average for the match and won 25-19, 25-22 and 25-19 respectively.

Penn State head coach Mark Pavlik said that the blocking effort that his team put up all evening was just about as good as it has been all season long.

"You saw our best blocking defense tonight," said Pavlik. "I think what you saw what were the results of the work we've been doing in the past couple of weeks with it."

The freshmen kept things especially tight at the net as Aaron Russell led the pack with eight block assists and Nick Goodell followed with another six. Pavlik said that the team has been focusing on their block technique and really concentrating on the block during practices especially for the past three or four weeks.

The head coach said that one of those freshmen in particular has really turned his game around since the beginning of the 2011-'12 season.

"Goodell, who at one point in the fall we were wondering if he could block an intersection with a car, he did a really nice job on our block and defense," said Pavlik.

While Goodell laughed at his coach's critique, he too agreed that his improvements and his team's have been a huge help defensively at the net.

"It's just all starting to pay off," Goodell said of the blocking game. "Even in practice, not just getting blocks but just touching the ball and keeping it on our side. It's just hard work really paying off."

Penn State led the way offensively as well with the help of redshirt senior Joe Sunder's match high 13 kills hitting .409 for the evening. Sunder said that his performance on the court has not been as productive as he would have liked in recent matches, and that his match high hitting was a good reminder of what he can do.

"It felt like something I haven't really done in a while," said Sunder. "Tonight was the first time in a while that I felt confident coming out strong."

Sunder said that it was an especially nice feeling to be able to wake up in his own bed and catch a short ride to Rec Hall for the night's match rather than have to meet in a hotel lobby and ride a charter bus to an opposing team's gym.

Pavlik agreed, and said that the idea of having home court advantage is something that usually gets taken for granted.

"That is one of the underrated joys of coaching," said Pavlik. "Waking up in your own bed after long road trips and on game-day saying, you know everything can be in a normal routine."

The Nittany Lions will host Harvard on Saturday night in hopes of a 13th conference win, which would make Penn State the owner of the EIVA title yet again and allow the team to host both the conference semifinals and finals at the end of the month.

Hello Penn State Fans!

This past weekend we took on Princeton and George Mason. On Friday night Princeton gave us more than we had expected, but we squeaked out a five set victory. It would be an understatement to say we didn't play our cleanest volleyball the first three sets of the match, but Princeton was taking advantage of our mistakes. After being down two sets to one and facing match point in the fourth set, it was amazing to see how easy the game of volleyball is when you step on the court and just have fun and compete. Joe Sunder and Jace Olsen came up with some crucial swings in the fourth set and we overcame seven match points to take the set 37-35. As long as I've been at Penn State, I think this was the highest scoring set I've been a part of and probably the most that we've been pushed by an EIVA team. We might not have played our best or prettiest match, but sometimes it's good to be punched in the mouth and see how you will respond.  Princeton played a great game, but it was good to see us fight through the match when things weren't going our way and come out on top.

On Saturday we headed down to Virginia to take on George Mason. It was interesting to see how we were going to respond after playing a long five set match the night before. Once again, our opponent came out firing and rode the support of their loud crowd to a first set victory. After that we responded, by quieting their crowd and taking control of the match.  We went on to beat Mason in four sets.

After a long month away, we finally return home to Rec Hall this weekend. Our countless number of hours spent on the bus seemed to take its toll on our bodies, and we will enjoy not having to travel for a week. As much I love being cooped up on a bus with the guys for hours upon hours, I can safely say I will never have to endure a bus ride again! It's been fun experiencing snowstorms, broken down busses, and nauseating smells from the back of the bus for the past four years, but I can't say I will miss it. However, I am saddened to say that I will no longer be greeted by or hear Kurt, our bus driver's motivational speeches as he has kick started our journey to many victories.

I look forward to seeing all your faces in Rec Hall. Until next time...

Ryan Wolf #14

Greetings once again from the road!

We are headed North on Route 15 back to PA from Fairfax, VA where the Nittany Lions defeated the George Mason Patriots 21-25, 25-19, 25-16, 25-20 to move to 11-0 in the EIVA. Today Harvard defeated NJIT which puts them currently in second place in the EIVA with a record of 8-2. The Nittany Lion magic number is 2: any combination of Nittany Lion wins and/or Harvard losses will clinch the EIVA top seed for us. Since we host Sacred Heart and Harvard next weekend we are looking to clinch then!

Tonight's match against the Patriots had me concerned about our recovery from last night's five gamer against Princeton. It seems like we have been running on fumes and we were back on the bus this morning at 11:30 AM for the three-and-a-half hour trip to Fairfax. The Patriots had returned last weekend from their spring break trip to the west coast but had defeated Saint Francis yesterday in four games. I was hoping they would be feeling the effects of their travel but their scores against SFU indicated nothing of the sort.

We rolled into Fairfax about 3:30 PM and stopped for a pre-game meal at Jason's Deli. Our trainer extraordinaire, Kelly Saxton, gave the Deli her blessing as a great place for a pre-game meal...besides, it offered free ice cream. I was in!

We headed to the gym and managed to get 45 minutes of passing and serving and the guys seemed to be in great spirits and ready to play. In GMU's new Recreation and Athletic Center, the volleyball gym is well lit (a bright contrast from Dillon Gym at Princeton) and a great facility in which to compete.

Game one began with GMU seemingly blocking everything at which we tried to swing! With GMU up 10-13 they had already recorded five blocks! Our offense just didn't have any pop and we certainly weren't giving GMU much to worry about. The best we could do was to get to 19-22 but GMU wouldn't let us get any closer and a Mason kill gave them game one 21-25. Mason stuffed seven balls in game one. My concern about recovery after last night's match seemed accurate.

Game two began with PSU gaining a 5-1 lead. We stretched it to 15-8 with a solid sideout game and we were starting to create opportunities with our serving and blocking that we were finishing with our transition game. The closest Mason could get was 23-18. An Aaron Russell kill ended the game 25-19 and tied the match at one game apiece.

Game three had the Nittany Lions pick up right where we left off in game two. Our blockers were forcing GMU in altering their shots and our defense was doing a great job picking them up and we were putting them away. All of sudden the lethargy of the first half of game one was completely gone. It was replaced with a very enthusiastic energy that kept us dictating to the GMU crowd their silence and the Nittany Lion faithful in attendance kept their support loud and often. It appeared that we were carrying our crowd with us. We found ourselves up 20-13 and not allowing Mason to mount any type of sustained effort put us up 24-16 when a Sunder kill ended game three 25-16.

Game fours always make me apprehensive on the road. If we take too much for granted we could be in a game five with a revitalized GMU team and crowd. We needed to keep doing what we were doing. We reminded the team that 10-10 was a good score for the first twenty points and just keep the pressure on them with our serving and passing. Well, we were at 11-11 when things started to unravel for the Patriots. It all started with a very poor pass by us which we had to desperately throw back over the net. We threw it high but it was only five feet off the net. It was an overpass that had GMU salivating...until the GMU hitter miss-timed his swing and hit it straight down - on his side of the net! This hitting error was followed by two more GMU hitting errors and we had separation at 14-11. That was all we needed as GMU would come no closer. At 24-20, a GMU serving error closed out the match 25-20.

We have finished our seven game road trip at 5-2. 5-0 in EIVA road matches and can clinch hosting the EIVA semifinals and finals next weekend! Our guys found some revitalizing formula somewhere in game one. Jace Olsen entered the game and gave us good passing and delivered some key kills but he certainly brought his own brand of energy. Match leaders for the Nittany Lions were Aaron Russell (Kills - 12; Blocks - 5), Olsen (Kills - 12), Goas (Blocks - 5; Aces - 3) and Sunder and Curry (Digs - 11). PSU out-hit GMU .76 to .194; out-blocked them 9 to 8 (remember they had seven in game one!); out-dug them 38 to 33 while both teams served five aces!

One of the best things about the Princeton - GMU road trip is the number of PSU MVB alums who make the trek to either gym. Last night in Dillon Gym we had visits from Bo Hunkins and four of five his boys. We saw Jose Rubayo and Fred Gozum. Tonight it was Jay Stauffer, Ricky Mattei , Marcus Neumann and John "Griz" Philips to name but a few! Thanks to all who manage to greet us in gyms across the country in Blue-and-White. We truly appreciate your support!

Now we get to enjoy the friendly confines of Rec Hall for next weekend's matches against Sacred Heart and Harvard. It would be great to have a big crowd to help us clinch the 2012 EIVA regular season championship! We'll get the guys some rest this week and have them ready to go next weekend!

Enjoy the rest of your weekend!

All the best,

Pav, Colin, Jay and the guys

Greetings once again from 95 South!

We are heading down to George Mason after a great five game match at Princeton last evening which we managed to pull out 23-25, 25-22, 23-25, 37-35, 15-12!

It was a match that had everything a fan would want to see and certainly every emotion a fan would want to experience...and it didn't matter which team that fan supported. This match had great personal and collective efforts. It had stretches of great volleyball and moments of great controversy but more than anything else it had a team which showed it claws and bared its fangs when they realized we weren't playing great. Princeton didn't go away; in fact, they kept the pressure on us through most of the match.

Game one started like so many of our matches at Dillon Gym. We had a good many PSU faithful in the stands and the Nittany Lions with a 9-5 lead that forced a Princeton timeout. Princeton closed to 17-13 but then three PSU hitting errors made it 17-16. Princeton tied it at 21 but two more hitting errors by the Nittany Lions gave Princeton a 23-21 lead. Sideouts were exchanged with the final sideout belonging to Princeton for a 23-25 win. Game one leaders for PSU were Aaron Russell (Kills - 5; Aces - 1), Goodell and Peter Russell (Blocks - 1) and Curry (Digs - 5). PSU hit .212 while Princeton hit .429.

Game two had PSU up 6-3 on Princeton's first timeout. The Tigers tied it at 12. A Goas overpass kill from a Turko serve made it 18-16. That was the separation we needed as the teams traded sideouts and a Tiger serving error gave PSU game two 25-22. Leaders for the Nittany Lions were Comfort (Kills - 6) Peter Russell (Blocks - 1; Aces - 1), Goas (Blocks - 1) and Curry (Digs - 4). PSU hit .320 while the Tigers hit .269.

Game three once again had Princeton take the first timeout as we were up 8-4. Once again, like a bad movie that you've seen on every cable movie channel at 1 AM, Princeton tied and went ahead 15-14. PSU went up 22-21 on a Peter Russell kill but then two Princeton blocks plus a PSU hitting error gave them the 22-24 lead. A Comfort kill gave us the serve at 23-24 and we dug a ball but Princeton stuffed our swing to tie for a 23-25 win. Game three PSU leaders were Comfort (Kills - 4), Aaron Russell (Blocks - 1), Turko (Aces - 1) and Curry (Digs - 6). PSU hit .077 while Princeton hit .276.

Game four's first timeout was taken by - guess who - Princeton! Yep, they were down 8-5. Kinda getting the "been there, done that" feeling yet? You no doubt knew that the score would be tied at 14! Neither team could pull away. From that point on the game was tied twenty more times! Princeton served at 23-24 but a Sunder kill fought off the first of what was to be eight match points. Sunder put away five of the eight. PSU had one game point early at 25-24 after a Russell kill but the Tigers fought back to the advantage and held it from that point on the game was tied twenty more times! Princeton served at 23-24 but a Sunder kill fought off the first of what was to be eight match points. Sunder put away five of the eight. PSU had one game point early at 25-24 after a Russell kill but the Tigers fought back to the advantage and held it until a Goodell/Turko stuff gave PSU the advantage at 34-33. Then Sunder came through one more time at 36-35 with a kill to force a game five with a 37-35 game four win! Leaders for PSU were Sunder (Kills - 14; Aces - 1), Goodell, Goas, Aaron Russell and Turko (Blocks - 1) and Olsen (Digs - 4). PSU hit .288 while Princeton hit .349.

Game five once again had PSU gain the early advantage as Jace Olsen started serving. Jace started us off with a 6e as Jace Olsen started serving. Jace started us off with a 6-0 lead aided by -0 lead aided by three Princeton hitting errors, an ace and two Sunder kills. "Great, "I remember thinking sarcastically as Princeton called timeout at 4-0, "Princeton has us right where they want us!"  The guys were the ones reminding each other that it was far from over before I could. Princeton, true to form, brought it back to 10-8 on a PSU hitting error, but an Olsen kill gave the serve to Turko who responded with an ace. The next Princeton swing sailed wide and PSU had a 13-8 lead! The teams traded sideouts for a 14-10 score, but, as Lee Corso, ESPN College Football talking head would say, "Not so fast, my friends!" A Princeton kill gave them the serve at 14-11. They then stuffed our first swing and then our next swing to make it 14-12. In our timeout, Edgardo had the offense spelled out. He then went out and delivered a great set to Aaron Russell off of a tight pass which Aaron planted for the 15-12 win! Game five Nittany Lion leaders were Aaron Russell (Kills - 3), Turko (Aces - 1) and Curry (Digs - 3). PSU hit .286 while Princeton hit .111.

It was a match that was easy to see what we didn't do well but it was the first EIVA match in about six or seven years that we came back to force a game five and win it. Recently, at least in the last five years or so, we had lost similar matches in similar situations in four games. Last night we just competed. It seemed we finally relaxed when we were in the extended part of game four. At that time we went back to just doing what we needed to do without trying to do more.  Three outstanding efforts deserve special mention. Jace Olsen came off the bench and handled the Princeton float serves as only he can. He had a couple of crucial kills and digs but Jace's six serves to start game five off really gave us the jump we were looking for! Connor Curry had a personal high of 21 digs. The vast majority of them were settable leading to point scoring opportunities. He made some tough digs and his passing was solid. Then, there was Joe Sunder. Joe was hitting .048 after game three, but then he delivered the most clutch performance of his year with 14 kills in game four! And five of those to fend off match points! Joe hit .524 in game four when his team needed him the most for the longest stretch! Match leaders for PSU were Sunder (Kills - 25; Points - 26), Goodell, Goas and the brothers Russell (Blocks - 2), Turko (Aces - 2) and Curry (Digs - 21). Princeton out-hit us .299 to .227 (but we out-killed them 77 to 63) and out-blocked us 15.5 to 6.5. We out-aced them 7 to 2 and out-dug them 43 to 33.

This was a great EIVA match! I have no doubt that Princeton will be giving us all we can handle in another year or so. They are young and talented and will be fun to play.  Coach Sam Shweisky is doing all the right things and if he can warrant a little more administrative support for the team they will be making a lot of noise. Between them and Harvard the EIVA is starting to develop some young talent. We must be ready for some serious barn-burners in upcoming years...and certainly in the upcoming weeks as the EIVA playoffs take shape. So, if you missed this one you missed a good one! Now we have GMU. They are sitting in the fourth and final playoff spot and no doubt they will be as desperate as Princeton was against us. It'll be a typical Patriot - Nittany Lion match: closely fought with a wild crowd. Can it be any more fun?? I'll fill you in on the way back home tonight!

All the best,

Pav, Colin, Jay and the guys