March 16, 2015
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - Following a 3-0 week on the road that featured a pair of wins against two top 10 teams, No. 10 Penn State men's volleyball has swept the EIVA Weekly Awards. Senior Aaron Russell was selected as the conference's Offensive Player of the Week, while redshirt sophomore Matt Callaway was named the Defensive Player of the Week.
Penn State went undefeated on the road during its annual spring break trip, sweeping all three opponents to stretch its winning streak to five consecutive matches. The Nittany Lions have also won their last 12 consecutive sets since dropping the opening frame on the road in a 3-1 win at Harvard (2/28).
Russell guided PSU to a 3-0 victory at No. 7 USC with 20 kills, hitting .720 with two errors on 25 swings. Against Cal State Northridge, he recorded his first double-double of the season with 16 kills and 10 digs. He capped off the week with 19 kills in a straight set win against No. 8 LBSU with a team-high 19 kills to go along with Asics Invitational MVP honors. Russell's award marks the second time he's earned EIVA Offensive Player of the Week honors this year.
Callaway led the team with 1.44 blocks per set during the week, totaling 13 blocks in the trio of wins. He highlighted the weekend with a career-high seven blocks in the win against the eighth-ranked 49ers. Offensively, he put down 13 kills on .458 hitting on the week. Callaway was also selected to the Asics Invitational All-Tournament team. The award is the first EIVA Defensive Player of the Week selection for Callaway this season.
Russell, Callaway and the rest of the No. 10 Penn State men's volleyball team (9-9, 4-0) return home from a seven-match road swing this week. The Nittany Lions are set to host Big Ten opponent Ohio State (14-5, 7-3) Saturday, March 21 at 7 p.m. in Rec Hall. The meeting is the second outing between the Nittany Lions and the Buckeyes this season.