Sept. 3, 2009
NITTANY LION INVITATIONAL - TOURNAMENT CENTRAL
Complete Invitational Notes in PDF Format
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -
The No. 1 Penn State women's volleyball team opens its home slate on Sept. 4-5 when it hosts the Nittany Lion Invitational at Rec Hall. The Nittany Lions face Buffalo on Friday, Sept. 4 at 7 p.m., Robert Morris on Saturday, Sept. 5 at 10 a.m. and Pittsburgh Saturday night at 7 p.m.
Livestats will be available for all tournament matches via a link at www.GoPSUsports.com and the three Penn State matches will be streamed live online.
Tickets are $8 for adults and $6 for youth and are available in advance at 1-800-NITTANY or at the door. Friday tickets are valid for both the Robert Morris-Pittsburgh match at 4 p.m. and 7 p.m. Penn State-Buffalo match. Saturday's tickets are good for all four matches scheduled.
Nittany Lion Preview
Top-ranked Penn State enters the Nittany Lion Invitational with a 3-0 record after a successful weekend at the Active Ankle Challenge hosted by No. 19 Saint Louis. Senior Megan Hodge leads all players averaging 4.11 kills per set and freshman outside hitter Darcy Dorton is second on the team averaging 3.67 kps. Senior setter Alisha Glass paced the Nittany Lion offense with 11.44 assists per set, while junior libero Alyssa D'Errico has a team-high 4.33 digs per set average. In blocking, junior Fatima Balza and Arielle Wilson take top team honors. Balza averaged 1.50 blocks per set, while Wilson averaged 1.33 bps. As a team, Penn State is hitting .376 with 13.89 kps, 12.67 aps, 1.44 aces per set, 14.56 digs per set and 3.06 blocks per set. The Nittany Lions held their opponents hitting to .059.
Scouting The Bulls
The Bulls arrive in Happy Valley with a 2-1 record after their first weekend of competition. On Aug. 28, Buffalo won its season opener for the first time since 2005 with a 3-0 defeat of Boston College. The Bulls went on to win the University at Buffalo Invitational with a 3-2 win over Fordham, despite suffering a 3-0 setback to Seton Hall.
The Series: Penn State vs. Buffalo
The Nittany Lions lead the Bulls 2-0 in a series that began in 1977. The squads have not met since September 28, 1979 when Penn State won 2-0 (15-3, 15-13) at the Pitt Invitational.
Scouting The Colonials
The Colonials are 3-2 after their opening weekend and a Tuesday night matchup with Cleveland State. Junior middle blocker Amanda Graham and freshman opposite Amanda Craig took the first NEC weekly honors after guiding the Colonials to a 3-1 record in the Duquesne/Robert Morris Invitational.
The Series: Penn State vs. Robert Morris
Penn State owns a 5-0 record against the Colonials. The series began in 1977 and the teams last met in 2003 in the first round of the NCAA Tournament hosted by Penn State. The Nittany Lions won, 3-0 (30-10, 30-18, 30-11).
Scouting the Panthers
The Panthers are 3-1 after opening their weekend at the Sheraton Riverfront Cardinal Invitational and a Wednesday matchup with Kent State. Pitt earned victories against Belmont (3-2), Wichita State (3-0) and Kent State (3-1), but suffered a 3-1 setback to Arizona.
The Series: Penn State vs. Pittsburgh
The Nittany Lions and the Panthers have met 45 times since their first meeting in 1977. Penn State holds a 28-17 advantage in the series. The two squads last met in the second round of the NCAA Tournament at Rec Hall in 2003 with PSU winning 3-0 (25-30, 33-31, 30-21, 30-21).
Tournament Schedule
9/4/09 - Robert Morris vs. Pittsburgh, 4 p.m.
9/4/09 - Penn State vs. Buffalo, 7 p.m.
9/5/09 - Penn State vs. Robert Morris, 10 a.m.
9/5/09 - Buffalo vs. Pittsburgh, 1 p.m.
9/5/09 - Robert Morris vs. Buffalo, 4 p.m.
9/5/09 - Penn State vs. Pittsburgh, 7 p.m.
What's Next?
Penn State heads back on the road the weekend of Sept. 11 traveling to Durham, N.C. for the Duke Invitational. Penn State squares off with Loyola (Md.) on Friday, Sept. 11 at 5 p.m. in Duke University's Cameron Indoor Stadium. On Saturday, the Nittany Lions take on the College of Charleston at 12 p.m., following by Duke at 7 p.m.