April 10, 2011
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - - The 10th-ranked Penn State men's volleyball team defeated the ninth-ranked Buckeyes on Sunday afternoon, 3-1 (25-21, 18-25, 25-19, 25-9). Seniors Alan Mars (Rochester, N.Y.) and Dennis Del Valle (Toa Alta, Puerto Rico) were honored prior to the match for their contributions to the Nittany Lion program.
In honor of All-American Matt Anderson 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. Mars was named the Mike Anderson Player of the Game for his efforts against the Buckeyes.
Sophomore Tom Comfort (Orchard Park, N.Y.) had a team-best 14 digs, while redshirt junior Joe Sunder (Greensburg, Pa.) finished second on the team with 11. Redshirt junior Edgardo Goas (San Juan, Puerto Rico) dished out 36 assists to pace the Nittany Lion offense. Sophomore Nick Turko (Lewisberry, Pa.) tied for first on the team with Sunder with three aces apiece. Freshman Jace Olsen (Manhattan Beach, Calif.) tallied seven digs as did Del Valle. Mars had a team-leading five blocks, including three solo.
The Nittany Lions (21-5) attacked at a .337 clip and held Ohio State to .242. Penn State totaled 44 kills, 11 aces, 25 digs and 9.5 total team blocks. The Buckeyes posted 41 kills, one ace, 25 digs and 8.0 team blocks.
The first set was close to start with Ohio State taking a 6-4 lead. A 4-0 run by the Lions moved Penn State into the lead, 8-6, and sent Ohio State to the bench for a timeout. The Buckeyes fought to within one, 10-9, and trailed by no more than two until a 3-1 run by the Lions moved the Lions up by three, 15-12. Soon after kills from Comfort, Olsen and Sunder had Penn State leading, 19-15, and Ohio State calling a second timeout. The Buckeyes cut the gap to one, 20-19, with a 3-1 run. Two kills each from Comfort and Sunder and a Goas ace secured set one for PSU, 25-21.
Ohio State opened set two taking an 8-3 lead. The Nittany Lions used an early timeout and fought to within three, 13-10, midway through the frame. A 5-2 Buckeye run had Penn State behind by six, 18-12. Freshman Scott Kegerreis (Honeybrook, Pa.) pounded three kills as the set wore on, but three PSU errors and two Ohio State kills kept the Buckeyes firmly in control. Trailing by seven, 23-16, Turko served up an ace. However, the Buckeyes took the ball back on the next play when John Klanac tallied a kill to put the OSU at set point, 24-17. Klanac registered an attack error to bring PSU within six, 24-18, but setter Steven Kehoe closed out set two for Ohio State with a kill, 25-18.
The third stanza was close from the start, but Penn State had a two-point edge halfway through, 12-10. After an Ohio State timeout, Penn State used a 3-1 run with two kills from Comfort and one from Olsen to take an 18-14 lead. Ohio State called a second timeout, but Penn State failed to slow down. A Comfort ace and back-to-back kills from Sunder increased Penn State's lead to six, 22-16. A PSU error and an Kehoe kill had the Buckeyes within four, 22-18, but Penn State was back up by six after an Ohio State service error and a Goas ace. A Nittany Lion service error delayed the inevitable before a Mars kill gave Penn State a 25-19 third set win.
Penn State dominated the fourth and final set taking a 7-3 lead to start. Ohio State called a timeout, but Penn State continued on a roll using a Sunder kill, two blocks and an OSU error for a ten-point advantage, 13-3. A service error and an Ohio State kill cut off Penn State's run momentarily, but a 4-1 Nittany Lion run had Penn State leading by 11, 17-6. Kevin Heine pounded a kill for the Buckeyes before a Comfort ace and Olsen kill moved Penn State up by 13, 20-7. Klanac tallied a kill for the Buckeyes, but Sunder and Comfort followed suit to make it 22-8 in favor of Penn State. Shawn Sangrey recorded one final kill for the Buckeyes before a Turko ace and a Sunder kill gave Penn State a convincing 25-9 fourth set triumph.
What's Next?
The Nittany Lions close out the regular season on the road with matches at IPFW and Ball State on April 15-16. Penn State has earned a bye in the quarterfinals of the EIVA tournament after finishing the season with an unblemished conference record. Penn State will host the EIVA Semifinals and Championship on April 28 and 30 at 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.