April 1, 2008
University Park, Pa. - Penn State men's volleyball junior middle hitter Max Holt (Cincinnati, Ohio) earned his fourth EIVA Player of the Week award this season as he aided the top-ranked Nittany Lions to three wins, including two over teams ranked in the top 10 in the national poll.
Holt's award is the fifth of his career and the ninth for a Nittany Lion player this year as senior setter Luke Murray (East Petersburg, Pa.) and junior outside hitter Matt Anderson (West Seneca, N.Y.) have both picked up the honor twice and junior opposite Ryan Sweitzer (Lancaster, Pa.) was honored once.
At Juniata on Tuesday, Holt connected on eight of his 10 errorless swings to hit .800 with three aces and three blocks. Versus No. 10 Ohio State, the junior middle hitter was one of four players with double-digit kills and he led the team with a .632 hitting percentage with four aces and two blocks. Against No. 7 Ball State he again had a clean night, with nine kills on an errorless 12 swings to hit .750 with an ace, two digs and three blocks. For the week, Holt recorded 31 kills (3.10 kpg) on .707 hitting with eight aces and eight blocks.
The Big Ten Network will broadcast the March 28 match with Ohio State on Wednesday, April 2 at 8:00 p.m. ET, and will replay the match on Thursday, April 3 at 2:00 a.m. and 1:00 p.m.
The Penn State men's volleyball team remained at No. 1 in the latest AVCA Coaches Poll, issued Monday, March 31. The Nittany Lions earned 12 first-place votes and 234 total points while Cal State Northridge remained in second place with four first-place votes and 227 total points. Brigham Young moved up to third place with 201 total points and Long Beach State fell to third with 188 total points while Pepperdine remained in fifth with 182 total points.
The Nittany Lions have a bye week before heading west to face Loyola-Chicago and IPFW on Friday and Saturday, April 11-12. As the top seed in the EIVA, Penn State earned a bye in the league quarterfinals and Rec Hall will once again host the EIVA Championship on Thursday and Saturday, April 24 and 26. The winner earns the league's automatic berth in the NCAA National Collegiate Championship Semifinal, held on the campus of UC Irvine on Thursday, May 1. The National Championship match will take place on Saturday, May 3.
For more information on the Penn State men's volleyball team, please visit www.GoPSUsports.com.