FAIRFAX, Va., April 12, 2003 - The ninth-ranked Penn State men's volleyball team capped off a perfect 14-0 Eastern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association season with a three-game (30-26, 30-19, 30-27) win over George Mason on Saturday in Fairfax, Va. Penn State improves to 23-5 on the season while the Patriots fall to 14-9 overall and finish with a 11-3 record in the league.

Senior Carlos Guerra (Tamaulipus, Mexico) led all players with 14 kills while senior Zeljko Koljesar (Kitchener, Ontario) posted 10 kills on 16 attempts with one error to hit .563. Senior Zach Slenker (Dallastown, Pa.) and junior Keith Kowal (Reading, Pa.) recorded nine and eight kills, respectively, with junior Norm Keil (St. James, N.Y.) chipping in seven kills. As a team, Penn State outhit George Mason .356 to .154.

The Nittany Lions recorded another stellar blocking match, posting 14.5 team blocks to George Mason's 11.0. Kowal and freshman Dan O'Dell (Rochester, N.Y.) both posted eight blocks, a career-high for O'Dell. Slenker and Guerra both chipped in four blocks apiece.

O'Dell dished out 43 assists in the win while junior libero Ricky Mattei (San Juan, Puerto Rico) posted a match-high seven digs.

With the win over Concordia on April 5, the Nittany Lions secure home court advantage throughout the EIVA tournament. The conference quarterfinals take place on April 19 with the semifinals held on April 24. The championship match is scheduled for Saturday, April 26 at 6:00 p.m. The EIVA Final will be televised live by CSTV.

The NCAA Semifinals, hosted by Long Beach State, take place on May 1 with the National Championship match to be played on May 3.

Please visit www.GoPSUsports.com for more information and updated statistics on the Penn State men's volleyball team.