UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — The Penn State men's volleyball team secured the EIVA champion title at Rec Hall this past spring for the first time since 2015. With many classes of athletes having graduated through the program, the 2021 championship banner, which was raised at Rec Hall this past Friday prior to the Nittany Lions' match against Princeton, has been a reminder of what this team has endured and where it is going.
"For the guys, it is always nice to see a reminder of what we did in the past," head coach Mark Pavlik said. "I think it's great that our guys get a chance to celebrate a little bit of their hard work that they put in last year, and it's a nice way to recognize them."
At the start of the 2020 season, the Nittany Lions were on a positive trajectory with hopes to secure the EIVA championship title until COVID-19 canceled the second half of the season — leaving no conference and national title winner. Having battled back from a missed opportunity, the 2021 team went 22-4 and capped its EIVA championship victory against George Mason off senior outside hitter Brett Wildman's kill from a Patriots' block.
Wildman said having the banner is a good visualization of what this team has endured — with current and past athletes — and sacrificed to get to that position. The banner itself has been a reminder of what the team had to do, knew they could do and what they did do.
"I think it makes it that much better because it's a two-year culmination almost, instead of just one, which can probably be said about most championships ever won," Wildman said. "It's not just a year thing, it is normally a couple of years, the people before you helping you too. The seniors who lost their opportunity to win it — just kind of taking what they felt, using it and then winning it for ourselves.
"I think it'll be fun seeing it, but in reality, I think this group wants the big boy banner."
These past six years have been the longest time since the EIVA championship made its way back to Rec Hall since 1976, where it took until 1981 — five years — to achieve the title again. With this most recent title, the Nittany Lions have now won 32 EIVA championships.
With having gone through a global pandemic, a chance to win a conference and national title stripped away, and all the factors to return to the game safely with familiar faces graduated, the banner represents more than the win on April 24, 2021. The banner poses as a reminder of all the steps, people behind the scenes and the effort put in to compete in the game Penn State loves.
"The announcement that was made summed it up pretty well," Pavlik said. "What these guys went through last year — and not just through the season, but to get ready to play — and then to go through what they went through. I know, personally, with all the testing going on, I was tested over 100 times. These guys had the same test schedule as me, and they don't have the luxury necessarily of jumping in a car, getting over there then coming to the gym, and practicing in masks.
"I think it's something that we're going to look at that 2021 banner and know that there was a lot that went into it by a lot of people, not just us on the court, but everything that was done to ensure that we could safely be on the court and have fun at what we love to do. I think if we look closely there might be a mask up there."
Thus far in the 2022 season, Penn State is 2-0 in the EIVA and fourth in the AVCA rankings. Recalling what this season meant to this veteran-filled roster, libero Will Bantle said despite the craziness of the past few years, there is no better time than now.
"It does mean a lot, I mean for what's happened these past couple of years — both personally and the world — it is just crazy to be out here," Bantle said. "Just thankful for it every day. Keep going, keep getting better, because might as well do it this year."
