FAIRFAX, Va. – No. 3 Penn State men's volleyball clinched its third-straight EIVA regular season title with a 3-0 (25-20, 25-17, 25-20) win at George Mason on Saturday. The Nittany Lions head back to Happy Valley with a record of 22-3 overall and 8-0 in the conference, while the Patriots dipped to 10-14, 2-6.
With the regular season title, Penn State secured hosting rights for the 2023 EIVA Tournament. The event will be held at Rec Hall on April 19, 20, 22. The Lions will be the top seed and will start the tournament in the semifinal round on the 20th.
Cal Fisher had another big match for Penn State, hitting .591 with 14 kills. Michal Kowal was right behind him with 13 kills on .440 hitting and added eight digs. They paced the offensive attack as the team hit .386 behind 35 assists from Cole Bogner. Owen Rose and Michael Valenzi chipped in with six and five kills, respectively.
George Mason was held to .117 hitting. Ryan Merk finished with a team-high 10 digs and was a perfect 11-for-11 on serve reception. Toby Ezeonu was in on four of the team's eight blocks. Bogner and Rose had three blocks apiece.
Omar Hoyos had 11 kills to lead the Patriots in the category for the second night in a row. Paul Wyszynski did his part with seven digs.
Penn State has won 26 consecutive EIVA regular season matches. The Lions have won 25 straight sets during that stretch.
Set 1
Fisher dominated the opening set, hitting .778 with seven kills and two blocks to lead Penn State to a 25-20 win. Kowal made it a one-two punch for the Lions, hitting .400 with five kills and three digs. The Lions pulled away with a 6-0 run to go up 18-12. Fisher had two kills during the run and teamed up with Rose on a pair of blocks.
Set 2
Penn State never trailed after going up 2-1 as it rolled to a 25-17 win in the second set. The Lions led by as much as nine at multiple points during the set. Bogner distributed his 10 assists to numerous players as Fisher tallied three kills and Valenzi, Rose, and Kowal had two apiece.
Set 3
It was Kowal's turn to take over in the final set, hitting .667 with six kills to lead Penn State to a 25-20 win. Fisher had four kills, while Rose recorded three on three swings. The Lions hit .419 behind an impressive 15 assists from Bogner. Valenzi came through with back-to-back aces, which came during a 3-0 run that put the Lions up 13-8. George Mason later fought off two Penn State attempts at match point before Valenzi finished off the sweep with a kill.
Up Next
Penn State closes the regular season with home EIVA matches against Charleston (WV) on April 14-15.
