When rivals George Mason and Penn State face each other on the volleyball court, only two things are certain: the match will be exciting and the referee will dig in his pocket for a penalty card more than once.

"I hate 'em," senior outside-hitter Robert Pierce said simply. "If the younger players don't, they will. It's just something you learn when you come to Penn State."

"A lot of people think that Mason and Penn State are the top teams in the East," Coach Tom Peterson said. "When I came here that's all I heard, 'Mason, that's our rivalry, we've got to beat them.' "

The Lions (12-9) labored for over two hours to down the Patriots (8-9) in the teams' fourth matchup of the season Saturday. In the process four yellow penalty cards were issued, three going to the Patriots.

"They're just a team you want to crush," Pierce said.

Chase said the rivalry started five or six years ago when George Mason upset and spoiled Penn State's bid to the NCAA Championships, and since that time "we've been fighting for recruits, fighting for rankings, fighting for anything."

The fire was fueled last year when George Mason once again knocked teh 25-5 Lions out of the NCAA tournament by upsetting them in the Eastern finals.

The Lions took vengeance this year by downing them twice in tournaments, once in the semifinals of the Penn State/Mizuno Tournament and once at semifinals of the Golden Dome Classic Newark, N.J. The Patriots took advantage of Penn State's slump a week later, defeating the Lions in five games.

When the Patriots stepped on the court Saturday night and quickly put the Lions in a 1-8 deficit, it looked as though Penn State might be handed its first loss at home in 25 matches. The Lions fought back to tie the first game at 11, and from that point, they battled to put the game away.

The Lions were on the verge of victory, 15-14, when they faltered and found themselves behind, 15-16. They tied at 16, then fell behind again before finally racing ahead to 19-17 in the 45-minute game.

The Lions dropped the second game, 7-15, encouraging the Patriots' upset hopes. They bounced back in the third game, in which neither team trailed by more than two points. Penn State took that game, 15-13. In the final game the team was helped by Pierce's jump serve, which brought the team three points on its way to the 15-11 victory.

Although tensions run high on the court, even Pierce admits that hard feelings aren't held once the match is over.

"I have a lot of friends on the team," Chase added. "But on the court I'm not going to be nice to them."