UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – No. 2 Penn State men's volleyball is back at Rec Hall for the first time in a month when it hosts Saint Francis for a non-conference match on Saturday at 7 p.m. It is the Lions' second match this season with the former EIVA opponent.
FOLLOW THE ACTION
Saint Francis (6-10, 4-2 NEC) at #2 Penn State (17-2, 4-0 EIVA)
Date: Saturday, March 18
Time: 7 p.m.
Place: Rec Hall
Watch: B1G+
Stats: Live Stats
PARKING
• Parking for all Penn State Athletics' non-football events will require a valid permit or payment of the applicable parking fee for campus lots. Fans with valid Penn State University Park parking permits will be permitted to park at non-football athletics events for free, following Transportation Services parking policies and access.
• Parking for men's volleyball matches, fans are asked to park in the Nittany Deck or West Deck. Fans without a permit are encouraged to prepay for event parking at a discounted rate of $6.00 through ParkMobile - https://psu.parkmobile.io/. Prepayment is available through 11:59 p.m. the day prior to each event. Event day parking will be $10 per vehicle and is cash only/can be purchased on the ParkMobile app.
•Parking for all non-football athletics events is managed by Penn State Transportation Services. For more information or questions, visit transportation.psu.edu or email parking@psu.edu.
CLEAR BAG POLICY
SERIES HISTORY
• Penn State is 51-3 in the all-time series with Saint Francis, including a 3-2 win in Loretto earlier this season.
• John Kerr hit .360 with 15 kills and eight digs in the win over the Red Flash this season. Toby Ezeonu hit .625 with 11 kills. Cole Bogner recorded a double-double with 48 assists and 17 digs.
• The Lions have won 11 straight matches against the Red Flash. Eight of those wins came with a sweep.
• Penn State is 27-2 against Saint Francis in matches played at Rec Hall.
SCOUTING SAINT FRANCIS
• Saint Francis is 6-10 overall and 4-2 in the NEC following back-to-back wins over Fairleigh Dickinson and Queens.
• The Red Flash have won four of their past six matches since the last time they played Penn State.
• Ryan Parker ranks fifth in the NEC in aces/set (0.34) and assists/set (8.25).
• Senior middle blocker Thomas Leahy is a graduate of State College High School. He is an engineering major at Saint Francis.
LAST TIME OUT
• Penn State is coming off a 4-1 road trip that included wins over No. 1 Hawaii and No. 6 UC Irvine, both in the home gym of their opponents.
• The win over top-ranked Hawaii helped the Lions win the Outrigger Invitational in Honolulu. Ryan Merk and Michal Kowal were named ot the All-Tournament Team.
• Cal Fisher and Toby Ezeonu had big performances in the win over the Rainbow Warriors. Fisher recorded a double-double with 12 kills and 10 digs. He hit .385 and added three aces. Ezeonu hit .533 with 10 kills and five blocks.
• Penn State's win over Hawaii was its first over a team ranked No. 1 in the nation since the Lions beat No. 1 Ohio State in 2017. It also ended Hawaii's 25-match winning streak.
PENN STATE NOTES & STATS
• Penn State picked up numerous awards over the past two weeks. Following wins over Concordia Irvine and No. 6 UC Irvine, Owen Rose was named the EIVA Defensive Player of the Week for the second time this season. After the title at Hawaii's Outrigger Invitational, Toby Ezeonu was named the Off the Block Middle Attacker of the Week and the EIVA Defensive Player of the Week, while Ryan Merk was selected as the Off the Block National Libero of the Week for the first time in his career.
• The Lions were ranked second in the latest AVCA Coaches Poll. They were ranked third for five straight weeks before that and were ranked fourth in the first five polls of the season.
• Penn State is 7-2 against nationally-ranked opponents, including a 6-2 mark against teams that were ranked in the top 10 at the time of the match.
• Toby Ezeonu, who led the NCAA in hitting percentage at .528 last season, again ranks first in the category this season with a .500 percentage. He has hit .500 or better 10 times this year. He tallied double-digit kills in seven of those matches.
• Cole Bogner ranks second in the EIVA and third nationally in assists/set at 10.18. He has averaged at least 10 assists/set in 12 matches. Penn State has hit .300 or better 12 times this season, including six times against ranked opponents.
• Owen Rose, a sophomore, took over one of the starting spots at middle blocker this season and has seized the opportunity. He ranks first in the EIVA and eighth nationally in blocks/set (1.15/set).
• One of Penn State's strengths this season has been its depth. Off the bench, the Lions can turn to Michael Valenzi (2021 EIVA Freshman of the Year and second team All-EIVA selection), Sam Marsh (two-time honorable mention All-EIVA honoree), and John Kerr, who currently ranks sixth in the EIVA in hitting percentage (.317).
UP NEXT
- No. 2 Penn State hosts No. 15 Ohio State on Tuesday at 7 p.m.
For more information on Penn State men's volleyball, follow the Nittany Lions on Twitter @PennStateMVBALL and Instagram @pennstatemvball and "like" the Penn State men's volleyball page on Facebook.