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Feb. 14, 2015
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - Penn State men's volleyball (4-8, 2-0) swept past George Mason (2-8, 0-2) in straight sets (26-24, 26-24, 25-18) to earn its second consecutive EIVA conference win of the season Saturday evening at Rec Hall.
Senior Aaron Russell fueled the offense with a match-high 17 kills, adding eight digs and three blocks, including two solo stuffs. Redshirt senior Nick Goodell also posted double digit kills, tallying 11 on .318 hitting, adding seven digs and three blocks.
Redshirt sophomore Matt Callaway logged seven kills on a team-high .545 hitting clip, while also leading the squad with four total blocks. Redshirt freshman Aidan Albrecht and sophomore Chris Nugent added five kills each.
Redshirt senior Connor Curry anchored the defense with a match-high nine digs to earn Mike Anderson Penn State player of the game honors.
Tied up early in set one, 6-6, a kill from Russell and a block by Albrecht and Goodell lifted the Nittany Lions ahead, 8-6. The Patriots cut off the run with a block to move within one, 8-7, but Penn State followed with a 4-1 streak to pull ahead, 12-8, causing GMU to call a timeout.
Callaway came out of the break with a kill, but the Patriots tallied the next four straight to move back within one, 13-12. Goodell cut off the run with a kill, sparking a 3-1 stretch that moved PSU ahead by three, 16-13. George Mason rallied with a 3-1 burst to climb back within one, 17-16, but the Nittany Lions responded with a 5-3 run to go up by three, 22-19, causing the Patriots to call a timeout.
GMU scored three straight out of the break to tie the frame, 22-22, but Goodell followed with two kills in between one from Mason to make it set point, 24-23. A Penn State attack error held off an attempt before another Goodell kill and a solo stuff from Russell secured set one, 26-24.
Penn State and George Mason kept it close in the second stanza, fighting point-for-point for most of the first half of the second set. Knotted a 15-15, a Patriot service error and a solo block from Russell gave the Nittany Lions a two-point edge, 17-15. George Mason continued to battle back, matching PSU at every point to keep the score locked up.
With the Nittany Lions leading 22-21, a Patriot kill and a Penn State attack error moved GMU on top, 23-22, forcing PSU to call a timeout. Russell came out of the timeout with a kill to keep the score knotted, 23-23, but a George Mason block made it set point, 24-23. The Nittany Lions held off the Patriots as a GMU attack error, an ace from Hammond and a kill from Russell gave Penn State set two, 26-24.
Tied at 7-7 in set three, Albrecht sparked a 3-0 run with a kill to build a three-point cushion, 10-7. The Nittany Lions were unable to sustain the momentum as the Patriots matched Penn State point-for-point to keep within one. Leading 15-14, a PSU error and a George Mason kill tied the score, 15-15, but a kill from Russell pushed Penn State ahead, 16-15. The two teams traded points before a Goodell and Callaway followed a kill from Russell with a block to make it 19-16.
The Nittany Lions had no trouble down the stretch using a 6-2 run to secure a 25-18 win in the third set to complete the sweep.
Next up, Penn State hits the road for a seven-match road swing. The Nittany Lions will kick off the road trip at with round two of matches against Lewis and Loyola. PSU takes on the No. 2 Flyers Friday, Feb. 21 in Monroeville, Ill., before heading to Chicago to square off against the top-ranked Ramblers Saturday, Feb. 22.