March 18, 2011
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - The ninth-ranked Penn State men's volleyball team (16-5) earned a 3-0 (25-18, 36-34, 25-17) victory against Ball State (11-8) of the MIVA. Penn State is back in action on Saturday, March 19 against IPFW at 7 p.m. in Rec Hall.
In honor of All-American Matt Anderson's father Mike Anderson, who passed away unexpectedly in 2010, the Penn State volleyball family has chosen to honor one Nittany Lion at the conclusion of each match in honor of Mike. Freshman Jace Olsen (Manhattan Beach, Calif.) was named the Mike Anderson Player of the Game for his efforts against Ball State.
Redshirt junior Joe Sunder (Greensburg, Pa.) had a match-high 17 kills on .542 hitting, while sophomore Tom Comfort (Orchard Park, N.Y.) and freshman Jace Olsen (Manhattan Beach, Calif.) put down nine kills apiece. Redshirt junior Edgardo Goas (San Juan, Puerto Rico) dished out 40 assists, while Comfort tallied four aces. Sunder led the Lions with eight digs and sophomore Nick Turko (Lewisberry, Pa.) had a team-high four blocks.
The Nittany Lions registered a .316 attack percentage and held the Cardinals to .195. Penn State totaled 49 kills, 10 aces, 20 digs and 7.0 team blocks. Ball State finished the match with 34 kills, two aces, 24 digs and 10 team blocks.
Penn State jumped out to a 6-1 lead in set one forcing a Ball State timeout. The Cardinals fought to within five, 10-5, and soon capitalized on three straight errors by the Lions to be within two, 12-10. Two Olsen kills moved Penn State back ahead by three, 14-11, but a PSU error and a BSU ace had Ball State within one, 14-12. The Cardinals came within one of tying the set twice more before a 3-0 run by PSU moved Penn State ahead by four, 19-15. Ball State called a second timeout and managed to tally a kill. However, with a 20-17 advantage, Penn State closed out the set with a 5-1 run for a 25-18 win.
The second set was close to start but Penn State had a 16-13 lead midway through the frame. Ball State called a timeout, but Penn State's lead grew to six, 19-13, after a Comfort ace and an Olsen kill. The Cardinals used a 5-1 run to fight to within two of the Nittany Lions, 20-18. Penn State called a timeout, but a kill from Greg Herceg had the Cardinals trailing by one, 20-19. Despite a Sunder kills, two PSU errors had the score tied at 21-21. Comfort pounded a kill, but a kill and a block by BSU had the Cardinals leading, 23-22. Penn State called a second timeout and a Ball State service error had the score knotted at 23-23. Herceg put the Cardinals in set point position, but Sunder tied it up once again with a kill. The Cardinals had to more set points before a Turko kill and a BSU attack error put PSU back in the lead, 27-26. Ball State called a timeout and a PSU service error made it 27 all. A second straight PSU error moved the Cardinals into set point position for a fifth time, but Sunder slammed a kill to keep the set going. A Turko ace pushed PSU ahead, but the Cardinals didn't go away. The score tied six more times before an Olsen kill and a joint stuff by Turko and Goas won set two for Penn State, 36-34.
The third set began much like the second with neither team managing to gain any momentum to take control. It wasn't until a solo stuff by Comfort, a Turko kill and a BSU error moved the Lions ahead by three, 9-6. The Cardinals called a timeout, but Penn State's lead grew to six, 14-8, thanks to two Turko kills, one by Sunder and an Olsen ace. Ball State called a second timeout, but it failed to slow the Lions that maintained at least a four point lead for the remainder of the stanza. With a 20-15 lead, three consecutive BSU errors had Penn State ahead by seven, 23-26. Marcus Imwalle recorded one final point for the Cardinals before an Olsen kill and a BSU error secured set three for PSU, 25-17.
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.