Jan. 12, 2012
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - The seventh-ranked Penn State men's volleyball team is back in action in 2012. The Nittany Lions open the 2012 season against No. 8 and defending national champion Ohio State. Action begins at 7 p.m. at OSU's St. John Arena in Columbus, Ohio.
Nittany Lion Preview
Head coach Mark Pavlik, in his 18th season leading the men's volleyball program, welcomes back 13 letterwinners, including six returners with starting experience for the 2012 season. Included in the group are 2011 AVCA First Team All-American Joe Sunder (Greensburg, Pa.) and AVCA Second Team All-American Edgardo Goas (San Juan, Puerto Rico). Other starting returners include junior middle hitter Nick Turko (Lewisberry, Pa.), junior middle hitter Ian Hendries (Cardiff, Calif.). junior opposite Tom Comfort (Orchard Park, N.Y.) and sophomore outside hitter Jace Olsen (Manhattan Beach, Calif.). Other letterwinners include senior setter Tor Covello (Yardley, Pa.), redshirt freshman Nick Goodell (Ambridge, Pa.), junior outside hitter Kyle Mars (Rochester, N.Y.), sophomore outside hitter Peter Russell (Ellicott City, Md.), senior outside hitter Ryan Wolf (York, Pa.) and redshirt sophomore outside hitter Scott Kegerreis (Honeybrook, Pa.). Joining the squad this year are four newcomers, including setter Taylor Hammond (Mission Viejo, Calif.) and middle hitters Kyle Gregan (Pittsburgh, Pa.), Matt Seifert (Reading, Pa.) and Aaron Russell (Ellicott City, Md.).
The Nittany Lions are coming off a season where they posted a 24-7 record, won their 27th ECVL/EIVA title and earned a spot in the NCAA Tournament for the 26th time.
Last season, Penn State finished the year ranked 11th in the nation with a .309 hitting percentage. The Nittany Lions finished fifth with 13.55 kills per set, sixth in aces per set with 1.41, eighth in assists per set with 12.49 and in the top 30 in blocks per set with 2.02. Sunder ranked ninth nationally in hitting percentage at .361, while Goas' 11.03 assists per set ranked eighth and former Nittany Lion Dennis Del Valle led the country in digs per set with 2.65.
Penn State vs. Ohio State
The Nittany Lions are 65-25-1 all-time against the Buckeyes dating back to 1978. Penn State and Ohio State met three times in 2011. In the first meeting, Ohio State swept the Nittany Lions, 3-0, in Columbus, but Penn State earned a 3-1 victory against the Buckeyes on April 10 at home in Rec Hall. The squads met a third time in the NCAA National Semifinals with the Buckeyes winning, 3-1, before moving on to win the 2011 NCAA National Collegiate Men's Volleyball Championship.
Scouting the Buckeyes
Ohio State is 1-2 so far this season after traveling to the UC Santa Barbara Invitational on Jan. 6-7. The Buckeyes opened the season with a 3-2 win against UC Santa Barbara on Jan. 6. However, OSU suffered a 3-0 setback to UCLA and a 3-2 loss to LBSU to close out their opening weekend of play.
For more information on the Penn State men's volleyball team, please visit GoPSUsports.com. The Penn State men's volleyball 2012 season is presented by Rockvale Outlets and The Outlets at Hershey.