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Trio of Penn State Alums Guide U.S. Women in Defeat of Germany

June 9, 2010

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - Former Penn State women's volleyball players Nicole Fawcett, Christa Harmotto and Megan Hodge aided the U.S. Women's National Team in a 3-1 (19-25, 35-33, 25-20, 25-22) defeat of Germany in the team's second match of the Montreux Volley Masters tournament in Montreux, Switzerland. The team concludes pool play on June 11 against Russia at 3 p.m. ET (9 p.m. local time).

Hodge led the U.S. Women with 27 point on 24 kills and three blocks. She scored 13 of her points in the second set. Harmotto totaled nine points on eight kills and one block, while Fawcett had three points off of two aces and one kill. The trio proved vital in the fourth set. Trailing 19-14, the U.S. scored eight unanswered points all courtesy of the three former Nittany Lions.

Fawcett, Harmotto and Hodge were four-year members of the Penn State women's volleyball team under head coach Russ Rose. Fawcett and Harmotto aided the Nittany Lions in back-to-back NCAA National Championships in 2007 and 2008, while Hodge guided PSU to an unprecedented third straight in 2009.

For more information on the U.S. Women's National Team, please visit www.usav.org.

U.S. Women's National Team Roster For Montreux Volley Masters
1 - Ogonna Nnamani (OH, 6-1, Bloomington, Ill., Stanford)
2 - Kristin Richards (OH, 6-1, Orem, Utah, Stanford)
3 - Christa Harmotto (MB, 6-2, Aliquippa, Pa., Penn State)
4 - Angie Pressey (OH, 5-8, Lake Mary, Fla., California-Berkeley)
5 - Tamari Miyashiro (L, 5-7, Kaneohe, Hawaii, Washington)
6 - Nicole Davis (L, 5-4, Stckton, Calif., USC)
7 - Jill Collymore (Opp/OH, 5-10, Seattle, Wash., Washington)
8 - Cynthia Barboza (OH, 6-0, Long Beach, Calif., Stanford)
9 - Jennifer Tamas (MB, 6-4, Milpitas, Caif., Pacific)
13 - Alexis Crimes (MB, 6-3, Rancho Cucamonga, Calif., Long Beach State)
14 - Nicole Fawcett (Opp., 6-4, Zanesfield, Ohio, Penn State)
15 - Courtney Thompson (S, 5-8, Kent, Wash., Washington)
17 - Mary (Nellie) Spicer (S, 5-9, Barrington, Ill., UCLA)
18 - Megan Hodge (OH, 6-3, Durham, N.C., Penn State)

Head Coach: Hugh McCutcheon (Christchurch, New Zealand)
Assistant Coach: Paula Weishoff (Irvine, Calif.)
Assistant Coach: Jamie Morrison (Dana Point, Calif.)
Trainer: Jill Wosmek (Silver Lake, Minn.)
Technical Coordinator: Jennifer Hirneisen
Team Leader: Jim McLaughlin
Team Doctor: Dr. William Stetson

Montreux Schedule
June 8
Cuba def. Netherlands, 25-18, 25-22, 17-25, 25-23
USA def. Japan, 25-23, 25-23, 25-21
China def. Poland, 25-17, 25-23, 25-17

June 9
USA def. Germany, 19-25, 35-33, 25-20, 25-22
Netherlands vs. China, 6:30 p.m. (12:30 p.m. ET)
Russia vs. Japan, 9 [p.m. (3 p.m. ET)

June 11
Germany vs. Japan, 4:30 p.m. (10:30 a.m. ET)
Cuba vs. Poland, 6:30 p.m. (12:30 p.m. ET)
USA vs. Russia, 9 p.m. (3 p.m. ET)

June 12: Pool Crossover
3A vs. 4B
3B vs. 4A
1A vs. 2B
1B vs. 2A

June 13: Medal Round Matches
Match for 5th Place, 11a.m. (5 a.m. ET)
Bronze Medal Match, 1:30 p.m. (7:30 a.m. ET)
Gold Medal Match, 4 p.m. (10 a.m. ET)

For more information on the Penn State women's volleyball team, please visit www.GoPSUsports.com. The Penn State women's volleyball 2009 season is presented by Rockvale Outlets and The Outlets At Hershey.