April 27, 2010
EIVA Tournament Central
Complete Release in PDF Format
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - Penn State and Rec Hall is set to host the 2010 Eastern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association (EIVA) Men's Volleyball Championship on Thursday, April 29 and Saturday, May 1. The top-seeded Nittany Lions (21-7) are set to take on fourth-seeded Springfield, who defeated Saint Francis in the EIVA Quarterfinals on April 24, at 8 p.m. on April 29. No. 2 seed Princeton will face No. 3 seed George Mason at 5:30 p.m. in Rec Hall in the first semifinal match. The winner of the two matches will meet on Saturday at 7 p.m. in Rec Hall.
Tickets for the match are $8 for adults and $5 for youth and groups of 10 or more. Group tickets are available at for $4 per person if purchased in advance by calling 1-800-NITTANY. All students with a valid id from their institution will be admitted for free. All three matches will be streamed live on GoPSUsports.com via Penn State's All-Access. The cost is $2.99 per match if not an All-Access subscriber. Live stats will be available via a link at GoPSUsports.com.
Penn State Preview
The Nittany Lions head into Thursday's EIVA Semifinal match with a 21-7 overall record. Penn State was last in action on April 17 when the Lions earned a 3-1 win at George Mason to close out the regular season. Senior Will Price led the team with 7.25 kills per set, while redshirt sophomore Edgardo Goas averaged 13.25 assists per set and 2.00 blocks per set. Junior libero Dennis Del Valle had a team-best 3.50 digs per set.
As a team, Penn State leads the nation with 16.30 kills per set and ranks fifth with a .323 hitting percentage. The Nittany Lions are averaging 15.28 assists per set, 1.32 aces per set, 2.79 blocks per set and 11.49 digs per set.
Penn State vs. Springfield
The Nittany Lions are a perfect 30-0 against Springfield, in a series dating back to 1977. Penn State and Springfield met twice in 2010. The Nittany Lions defeated the Pride on Jan. 23, 3-0, in Massachusetts before hosting the squad on Feb. 6 at Rec Hall and winning, 3-1.
Notes on the Pride
Springfield defeated UC Santa Cruz, 3-1, on April 17 in Kenosha, Wis. for the program's sixth national championship at the 2010 Molten Division III Men's Invitational Volleyball Championships. It is the fifth national title under head coach Charlie Sullivan. The Pride went on to defeat Saint Francis, 3-1, on April 24 in the EIVA Championship Quarterfinals. The Pride meets Penn State for the third time this season in the second EIVA Semifinal at Rec Hall. Springfield is 20-10 overall and finished the regular season with a 4-6 record in conference play.
Penn State vs. Potential EIVA Championship Opponents
Princeton
Penn State leads the series with Princeton 40-2 after sweeping the Tigers twice so far in 2010. The teams first met in 1977 and Penn State has not lost to Princeton since March 27, 1998 when the Tigers won, 3-0.
George Mason
Penn State is 85-14 all-time against the Patriots in a series beginning in 1977. The squads have met twice this season, with the Nittany Lions securing a 3-0 sweep of GMU on March 6 and a 3-1 win at the Patriots home gym on April 17. The teams met in the 2009 EIVA Semifinals with the Nittany Lions advancing to the league championships with a 3-0 victory.
Around the Nation
The MIVA Championship will feature No. 1 Ohio State (20-7) against fourth-seeded Ball State (19-10) in Columbus, Ohio, as well as No. 3 seed Lewis (19-9) at second-seeded Loyola (19-5) on April 29. Both matches are set for 7 p.m. ET. The MIVA Championship match is slated for Saturday, May 1 at 7 p.m. at Ohio State.
The MPSF Championships, hosted by Stanford, features second-seeded BYU (22-8) vs. third-seeded Cal State Northridge (22-8) at 5 p.m. PT and top-seed Stanford (20-6) against fourth-seeded Hawai'i (19-9) at 7:30 p.m. PT. The MPSF Championship match is scheduled for May 1 at 7 p.m. at the Maples Pavilion.
What's Next?
The winner of the EIVA Championship earns an automatic berth into the NCAA National Collegiate Semifinals, slated for Thursday, May 6 in Stanford, Calif. The NCAA National Collegiate Championship match is scheduled for Saturday, May 8, also in Stanford, Calif.
For more information on the Penn State men's volleyball team, please visit www.GoPSUsports.com. The Penn State men's volleyball 2010 season is presented by Rockvale Outlets and The Outlets At Hershey.