March 13, 2011
LONG BEACH, Calif. - The 10th-ranked Penn State men's volleyball team (15-5) suffered a 3-1 (21-25, 21-25, 29-27, 20-25) setback to No. 5 Long Beach (10-8) Saturday night. Redshirt junior Joe Sunder (Greensburg, Pa.) led all players with 17 kills.
Freshman Jace Olsen (Manhattan Beach, Calif.) finished the match second on the team with 14 kills. Redshirt junior Edgardo Goas (San Juan, Puerto Rico) dished out 41assists and had six kills in seven errorless swings. Senior Dennis Del Valle (Toa Alta, Puerto Rico) led the team with nine digs and Olsen finished second on the squad with a career-high eight. Sunder and sophomores Ian Hendries (Cardiff, Calif.) and Nick Turko (Lewisberry, Pa.) each had four blocks.
Long Beach held PSU to .258 hitting, while the 49ers registered a .321 attack percentage. The Nittany Lions totaled 56 kills, four aces, 31 digs and 10.0 team blocks. The 49ers had 55 kills, eight aces, 27 digs and 18.5 team blocks.
Penn State opened the match taking a 3-0 lead after kills by Sunder and Olsen and a 49er attack error. LBSU used a 4-1 run to tie it up at 4-4. The 49ers worked up to a 7-5 advantage, but a service error and a Goas ace had the score tied again at 7-7. The score tied five times before a Turko kill and an Olsen ace moved the Lions head, 14-12. The Nittany Lions maintained the lead briefly until a 6-1 run by Long Beach had the 49ers leading by three, 20-17. The timeout failed to slow the 49ers who used a kill and a block to increase the gap to four, 23-19. Penn State managed two more kills before a putdown by LBSU's Taylor Crabb secured set one for LBSU, 25-21.
The second frame was close from the start until a 5-0 run by LBSU put the 49ers ahead by four, 9-5. Hendries notched a solo stuff, but a 4-1 Long Beach run increased the 49ers' lead to six, 12-6. The 49ers held on to at least a four-point lead until kills from Turko, Goas and Sunder had PSU within three, 16-13. Long Beach worked back to a five-point lead forcing a Penn State timeout. A Comfort putdown and back-to-back blocks by Turko cut LBSU's lead to two, 20-18. LBSU called a timeout and the teams traded points until a Sunder kill put PSU within one, 22-21. The 49ers burned a second timeout and failed to let the Lions score any additional points and closed out the set winning 25-21.
The third stanza began much like the second with neither team developing a substantial lead. It wasn't until a 3-0 run by LBSU that the 49ers grabbed a comfortable 9-6 advantage. Penn State was unable to get any closer than two points and another 3-0 run by Long Beach had Penn State trailing by five, 18-13. Following a PSU timeout, the 49ers held on to their five-point advantage, 20-15. However, a 4-1 PSU run had the Nittany Lions within two, 21-19. A PSU error and a Long Beach block put the 49ers up by four, 23-19, but two Long Beach errors and a Goas ace had Penn State within one, 23-22. Long Beach called a timeout and tallied a kill, but a 49er error and a PSU stuff had the set knotted at 24-24. The squads went back and forth with three kills by Olsen put the Lions ahead by one, 27-26. The score tied once more before a Sunder kill and a huge block by Turko and Goas gave Penn State a 29-27 win.
Neither team was able to develop any momentum in the fourth set. The score was tied at 15-15 midway through the frame. Soon after, two consecutive blocks by LBSU gave the 49ers an 18-16 edge. The Nittany Lions stayed close, but a 5-0 run by LBSU gave the 49ers a 25-20 fourth set triumph.
What's Next?
The Nittany Lions return home March 18-19 to face Ball State and IPFW. Both matches are set for 7 p.m. in the main gym of Rec Hall.
For more information on the Penn State men's volleyball team, please visit GoPSUsports.com. The Penn State men's volleyball 2011 season is presented by Rockvale Outlets and The Outlets at Hershey.