April 16, 2009
University Park, Pa. -
The seventh-ranked Penn State men's volleyball team (23-3, 12-0 EIVA) closes out the regular season on the road against No. 15 Ball State and No. 11 Ohio State. The Nittany Lions and Cardinals meet on Friday, April 17 at 7:30 p.m. at Worthen Arena in Muncie, Ind., before the Lions and Buckeyes square off on Saturday, April 18 at 7:00 p.m. at St. John Arena in Columbus, Ohio. Live scoring for both matches will be available via a link at www.GoPSUsports.com, and the Penn State-Ball State match will be streamed live for free on the web.
Previewing Penn State
The Nittany Lions come into the weekend with an overall record of 23-3 and a perfect 12-0 in EIVA play after sweeping Princeton (30-16, 30-19, 30-18) and George Mason (30-25, 34-32, 30-19) last weekend on the road. Senior opposite Ryan Sweitzer and junior outside hitter Will Price lead the squad with 3.47 and 3.44 kills per game, respectively, as junior middle hitter Max Lipsitz chips in 2.85 kills per game on .491 hitting and senior middle hitter Max Holt adds 2.64 kills per game on a nation-leading .551 hitting. Redshirt freshman setter Edgardo Goas directs the offense with 12.73 assists per game while sophomore libero Dennis Del Valle leads the defense with 3.16 digs per game, good for fourth in the country. Lipsitz heads the blocking front with 1.26 blocks per game while Holt posts 1.10 blocks per game. As a team, Penn State is leading the nation with a .391 hitting percentage, also adding in 15.47 kills per game, 2.07 service aces per game, 9.19 digs per game and 2.87 blocks per game.
The Series: Penn State vs. Ball State
Penn State leads Ball State, 55-19, in a series that began in 1977. The previous meeting this season was a four-game Nittany Lion win (30-20, 24-30, 30-19, 30-26) on Jan. 23, 2009 at Rec Hall. The last meeting in Muncie, Ind., was a four-game Penn State win (30-23, 28-30, 30-27, 34-32) on Jan. 18, 2008.
The Series: Penn State vs. Ohio State
Penn State leads Ohio State, 61-22, in a series that began in 1978. The teams have met twice this season, with the Lions taking a three-game win (30-27, 30-24, 30-19) on Jan. 9 at the Outrigger Invitational in Honolulu, Hawaii and then claiming a three-game win (30-20, 30-27, 30-21) on Feb. 14 at Rec Hall. The last meeting in Columbus, Ohio, was a three-game Penn State victory (30-22, 37-35, 30-24) on Jan. 19, 2008.
Conference Champs
Penn State claimed its 25th regular-season Eastern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association (EIVA) title with the sweeps of Princeton and George Mason last weekend. It is also the first time in program history that the Nittany Lions have swept all of their conference opponents in a season, having not dropped a set in 2009 to a league foe. Penn State has now earned the right to host the EIVA Championship, slated for April 30 and May 2 at Rec Hall. This will be the 11th consecutive season that the EIVA Championship will be held at Penn State.
Next Up
Penn State has a bye in the EIVA quarterfinals on April 25 and then hosts the EIVA Championship on April 30 (4:30 & 7:30 p.m.) and May 2 (7:00 p.m.) at Rec Hall. The winner of the EIVA Championship earns an automatic berth into the NCAA National Collegiate Semifinals, slated for Thursday, May 7 in Provo, Utah. The NCAA National Collegiate Championship match is scheduled for Saturday, May 9, also in Provo, Utah.
For more information on the Penn State men's volleyball team, please visit www.GoPSUsports.com. The Penn State men's volleyball 2009 season is presented by Rockvale Outlets and The Outlets At Hershey.