Jan. 17, 2017
EIVA Release
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - After leading Penn State men's volleyball (2-2) during a split weekend on the road against No. 15 Ball State and IPFW, senior Chris Nugent and redshirt-junior Kevin Gear have earned their first conference weekly awards of the season, being selected as the EIVA Offensive and Defensive Players of the Week Tuesday afternoon.
Nugent averaged 4.29 kills per set in a 1-1 week for #14 Penn State. Nugent recorded 17 kills on a .289 hitting percentage in a 3-1 defeat to #15 Ball State and followed with a 13 kill and .391 hitting percentage performance in a 3-0 sweep against Fort Wayne. Nugent is currently second in the EIVA in kills (62) and kills per set (4.13). This is Nugent's first EIVA Offensive Player of the Week selection in 2017.
Gear recorded eight total blocks in a 1-1 week for #14 Penn State. Gear finished with six blocks against #15 Ball State in a 3-1 defeat and followed with a pair of blocks in the Nittany Lions' 3-0 win over Fort Wayne. Additionally, Gear had three digs on the defensive end while offensively recording 14 kills on a .619 hitting percentage. This is Gear's first EIVA Defensive Player of the Week selection in 2017.
This is the second consecutive week that one EIVA school has swept the weekly accolades following last week's sweep by SFU's Jeff Hogan and Keith Kegerreis.
Penn State returns to action against Loyola Thurs. Jan 19 at 7 p.m. in their home opener at Rec Hall.