March 20, 2015
| #10 PENN STATE vs. #11 OHIO STATE | | | | 9-9, 4-0 (EIVA) | 15-5, 7-3 (MIVA) |
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UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - No. 10 Penn State men's volleyball (9-9, 4-0) returns home after nearly a month on the road to host non-conference Big Ten opponent Ohio State (15-5, 7-3) Saturday, March 21 at 7 p.m. in Rec Hall.
The Nittany Lions enter the matchup riding a five-match winning streak, having swept all three matches on the road last week during its spring break trip on the west coast.
Among those three victories, PSU also picked up a pair of wins against two teams ranked within the top 10. Penn State knocked off No. 7 USC before topping CSUN and No. 8 LBSU on the way to the Asics Invitational title.
QUICK SETS
* Penn State has won its last 12 consecutive sets since dropping the opening frame in an eventual 3-1 win at Harvard (2/28).
* The Nittany Lions own a 70-29 advantage in the all-time series against the Buckeyes, despite coming up short in a 3-0 loss on the road at OSU in the first meeting between the two teams earlier this season. Both Aaron Russell and Nick Goodell contributed double figure kills.
* PSU swept the EIVA Weekly Awards with Aaron Russell earning Offensive Player of the Week honors and redshirt sophomore Matt Callaway notching Defensive Player of the Week laurels.
* Senior Aaron Russell also earned AVCA/Sports Imports DI-II National Player of the Week honors after leading PSU to the undefeated week on the road. The honor is the first of his career.
* The Nittany Lions picked up three Asics Invitational All-Tournament team selections. Matt Callaway and Taylor Hammond were on the All-Tournament team while Aaron Russell garnered MVP honors.
* PSU jumped five spots to No. 10 in the latest AVCA DI-II Coaches' Poll after moving back into the top 15 for the first time in a month last week.
* Penn State is ranked among the top 10 nationally in kills per set averaging 12.94, which is slated second in the country and leads the EIVA. Senior Aaron Russell's contributing a team-high 4.63 kills per set which ranks second in the nation and first in the league.
* The Nittany Lions are ranked within the top five nationally in digs per set, averaging 2.50 per set which is fifth and leads the EIVA. Redshirt senior Connor Curry is leading the way with a team-high 2.50 digs per set, which is eighth nationally and first in the conference.
PENN STATE SWEEPS EIVA WEEKLY AWARDS
Following a 3-0 week on the road that featured a pair of wins against two top 10 teams, Penn State 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.
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.
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.
RUSSELL NAMED AVCA/SPORTS IMPORTS DI-II NATIONAL PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Senior Aaron Russell earned AVCA Sports Imports DI-II National Player of the Week honors after leading PSU to an undefeated week on the road with wins at No. 7 USC, CSUN and No. 8 LBSU. The honor is the first of Russell's career and the 15th time a Nittany Lion has been selected for the weekly award. Russell is the first Nittany Lion to earn the award since Joe Sunder was tabbed Player of the Week in 2011.
THREE EARN ASICS INVITATIONAL ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM HONORS
Three Nittany Lions earned Asics Invitational All-Tournament team honors after Penn State knocked off No. 8 Long Beach State to capture the event title. Redshirt junior Taylor Hammond and redshirt sophomore Matt Callaway earned Asics Invitational All-Tournament team honors, while senior Aaron Russell was named the Most Valuable Player.
Callaway led the team with 10 total blocks across both matches, matching a career-high mark with seven against the 49ers. Hammond set the team to a .244 hitting percentage, averaging 12.33 assists per set. Russell amassed 35 kills against both teams, highlighting the weekend with 19 kills on .414 hitting at LBSU.
AVCA DI-II COACHES' POLL UPDATE: MARCH 16
Penn State jumped up five spots to No. 10 in the latest AVCA Top 15 Coaches Poll averaging moving back into the top 15 last week. Prior to the repositioning, PSU spent a month receiving votes. The Nittany Lions have now seen or will see a total of nine teams from the top 15 at some point during the regular season.
PAVLIK APPROACHING CAREER MARK
In his 21st year at the helm of the program, head coach Mark Pavlik has amassed 491 career victories. His all-time mark puts him just nine shy of the milestone 500 career-wins plateau.
BUCKEYES: LAST TIME OUT
The Nittany Lions came up short in a 3-0 (24-26, 22-25, 23-25) loss on the road at then-No. 12 Ohio State in the most recent meeting between the two teams on the road at St. John Arena. Senior Aaron Russell and redshirt senior Nick Goodell led the offense with double digit kills.
Russell tallied a team-high 14 kills to go along with four digs and three blocks. Goodell logged 12 kills, adding five digs. Sophomore Chris Nugent finished third on the team with seven kills and four digs, while redshirt sophomore Matt Callaway chipped in four kills and three blocks. Redshirt junior Taylor Hammond dished out 33 assists, while also tallying two kills and a career-high five blocks. Redshirt senior Connor Curry anchored the defense with 13 digs, marking his third consecutive double-dig performance.
1,000 CAREER KILLS CLUB
Both Aaron Russell and Nick Goodell are ranked among the top five in the NCAA DI active career leaders in kills. Russell leads the duo with 1,301 career kills which ranks first in DI and is the third-most among all three division. Goodell is ranked fourth in DI with 1,058 career kills. Russell and Goodell are also two of only six active NCAA players to reach the 1,000 career kills plateau in their career.
A FORCE FROM THE SERVICE LINE
With 170 career aces, senior Aaron Russell leads all active NCAA players with the most aces. On the Penn State record list, he's ranked second all-time and needs 37 more aces to match Max Holt (2006-09). On the year, Russell is averaging 0.53 aces per set, which ranks fourth nationally and second in the EIVA standings.
EXPERIENCED VETERANS ON THE COURT
Senior Aaron Russell and redshirt senior Connor Curry are leading all active DI players with the most career appearances on the court. Curry's 110 matches ranks first, while Russell's 109 matches ranks second.
STEPPING UP!
Six weeks ago, sophomore Chris Nugent highlighted the weekend with a pair of career high performances. In his first career start against Mount Olive, Nugent led the offense with a match-high 16 kills on .500 hitting, adding three aces, five digs and two blocks to earn Mike Anderson Penn State Player of the Match honors. The next night, he set another career-high mark with a match-high seven aces against Saint Francis. Against Erskine, he tied for first on the team with 12 kills, while also adding two aces and a career-high five blocks. Since earning his first start, he's ranked third on the team with 2.25 kills per set and second in aces per set (0.35) with 19 aces on the year, which ranks sixth in the EIVA and 21st nationally.
Redshirt freshman Aidan Albrecht has also seen increased action on the court. He made his collegiate debut in the 2015 EIVA opener against Saint Francis, before posting a career-high four blocks against Erskine. Against George Mason he tallied a career-high five kills.
Redshirt freshman Jalen Penrose had a career weekend at the Asics Invitational. He highlighted the event with nine kills, eight digs, four aces and three blocks at No. 8 Long Beach State. He finished second on the team with six kills and six digs the night before against CSUN, adding six digs and three blocks.
WHAT'S NEXT?
The Nittany Lions remain home next week, welcoming a pair of EIVA teams to Rec Hall. First up, Penn State hosts Princeton Friday, March 27 at 7 p.m., before squaring off against NJIT at 4 p.m. Seeing each team for the first time this season, both matches will take place in south gym.
