UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – Penn State men's volleyball sophomore middle blocker Toby Ezeonu was chosen the EIVA Defensive Player of the Week for his individual performance in two matches last week as announced by the league office Monday afternoon.
In two victories over No. 13 Ohio State, Ezeonu was a dominant physical presence for the Nittany Lions. The North Brunswick, N.J. native finished the two matches with seven total blocks, including five in Tuesday's win in Columbus. One of those blocks clinched the second set for Penn State in its 3-0 victory.
Ezeonu was also very effective offensively in both matches against the Buckeyes. He had seven kills on Tuesday and 11 on Sunday and had just two hitting errors all weekend to finish the weekend with a .640 hitting percentage.
Ezeonu's double-digit kill performance Sunday was his fourth of the season. Three of those outings included hitting percentages over .750.
The sophomore middle blocker has had a breakout season for the second-ranked Nittany Lions. He ranks third on the team with 122 kills, 2.00 kills per set, a team-best .518 hitting percentage which ranks second in the country among players with at least 3.25 attacks per set.
Defensively, Ezeonu is averaging 0.87 blocks per set with 53.0 total blocks, good for fifth best in the EIVA.
The weekly conference honor is the second for Ezeonu this season.
Ezeonu and the No. 2 Nittany Lions return to EIVA action this weekend with matches at Princeton Friday, March 18, and George Mason Sunday, March 20.
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