The men's volleyball team won every game of the Saturday's annual alumni match in Rec Hall's South Gym.

Then they lost the most important contest -- the ballpull.

Assistant coach Mark Pavlik said the ballpull began four years ago when All-American Chris Chase was at Penn State. Chase and John "Griz" Phillips, a member of Penn State's 1976 USVBA Championship team, each palmed one side of a volleyball. The object was to pull back until the opponent's hand came off the ball, while continuing to palm it yourself.

"It's a legend of sorts," Pavlik said.

That year, despite Chase's massive hand size, Phillips won. And he hasn't lost yet -- unless you count the time that Chase put stick-um on his hands.

This time, Phillips went up against a newcomer, 6'5" sophomore middle blocker David Muir. After Phillips easily defeated Muir once, the varsity called for a best of three contest. Phillips, more than happy to oblige, quickly handled 6'3" freshman middle blocker Ramon "Muncho" Hernandez, and took care of Muir one more time.

It was payback from the alumni to Muir and his teammates, who captured all five games, 15-3, 15-3, 15-12, 15-8, and 15-10. Hernandez had 14 kills and Muir 11 as Coach Tom Peterson shuffled the lineup in each game.

"We expected a little more competition from them," senior outside hitter Charlie Bertran said. "But it was good to play somebody else."

Muir, a transfer from George Mason, was sometimes dominating at the middle blocker position.

"He's very tough not to watch," Pavlik said. "He can do a lot of things with his athletic ability."

Pavlik hopes Muir will draw attention in the middle, thereby opening up the outside for Bertran, Jorge Perez, and the other outside hitters.

Muir wasn't the only newcomer to draw attention from the alumni and the small crowd, though. Hernandez is one of many outstanding athletes on this season's team. Junior middle blocker Winfield Evens was the only varsity player not to see action. Evens, who separated his shoulder, hopes to be ready for Friday's match against No. 1 USC at the Indiana-Purdue Fort Wayne Invitational.

"I think we're much more athletic all the way around," Pavlik said. "We can smack the ball pretty hard."

Bertran agreed, and said this year's squad had more athletic ability than the 1988 team, which included All-Americans Chase and Javier Gaspar.

"As far as athletic ability, this is one of the best teams we've ever had," Bertran said.

Because of the extensive depth, the coaches haven't yet settled on a starting lineup.

"We'll take a real hard look at people," Pavlik said.

And with a match against USC to start the season, that depth may be immediately tested.

"We're not going to gear everything just to USC," Pavlik said. "We'll gear to late April and early May."

Of course, that doesn't mean the team won't have anything to prove.

"We've got to prove we're going to play well whenever we have to," Pavlik added.