The men's volleyball team's match against George Mason yesterday in the semifinals of the Nittany Lion-Mizuno Invitational was not the Battle of the Bulge, but do not tell that to the team.

For nearly three hours the Lions and the Patriots battled back and forth until the home team prevailed 15-10, 10-15, 15-17, 15-9, 15-10. The victory propelled the Lions into the tournament final where they defeated Indiana-Purdue/Fort Wayne last night.

The marathon semifinal match left the players, coaches and fans physically exhausted. In describing the match the word "gutsy" came up often from the players and Coach Tom Peterson.

Senior co-captain Robert Pierce said the defense was the key to the game.

"We got defense from guys who we normally don't get it from," Pierce said. "That's the sign of an improving team. I think Chris (Chase) in the back row and in the front row was very effective."

In the first game, the Lions jumped out to a 5-1 lead, but the Patriots came back to within two points and eventually tied it at 9-9. The Lions became stingy after that and went on to win 15-10.

The Patriots raced out to a 7-2 lead in the second game and held on to win after the Lions fought back to a one point deficit.

The third game was a marathon itself, highlighted by five ties and six lead changes. After the Lions fell behind 3-2 they went ahead until the Patriots knotted the score, 9-9, and then went ahead. The score was 14-9, but the home team scraped its way back to 14-14, tying the score on a Chase kill. The Patriots, however, overcame the Lions and won, 17-15.

Compared to the other games, the fourth game was a relatively easy win for the Lions. The Patriots got as close as one point (6-5), but the Lions were not to be denied as they went on to win, 15-9.

After the Patriots jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the final game, the Lions fought back and tied it at 4-4. Penn State then relinquished four straight points, but timely kills and blocks by Jorge Perez, along with the serving of Pierce and Todd Shirley brought them back.

With the score 14-10 the co-captain's jump serve ended the game and propelled the Lions into the finals.

"We have a supporting cast of diggers and passers that get the ball to the center," said Peterson, who credited teamwork for the victory. "I hate to point out individuals because everybody did a great job."

Patriots captain A.J. Jinosko, who was a penalized one point after receiving his third card for unsportsmanlike conduct, said his team was playing with a different lineup.

"I think we played really well," commented Jinosko. "We switched to a different lineup yesterday and it wasn't too successful. I think our serving was key today. We didn't serve well at all."