This weekend's six-team Mizuno Nittany Lion Invitational features: Ball State (1-0), George Mason (2-0), No. 4 Indiana-Purdue at Fort Wayne (1-1), Ohio State (5-1), No. 5 Penn State (2-1) and Rutgers-Newark (0-0).

At 4 p.m. today, GMU plays Ball State and R-N challenges IPFW in South Gym of Rec Hall. At 7 p.m., the Lions take on OSU in Main Gym of Rec Hall.

Tomorrow at 10 a.m., GMU takes on IPFW and R-N plays OSU in Main Gym of Rec Hall. At 1 p.m., the Lions challenge Ball State in Main Gym of Rec Hall. The 4 p.m. match has GMU playing OSU in Main Gym of Rec Hall. At 7 p.m., R-N takes on Ball State in South Gym of Rec Hall and the showcase match of the tournament has Penn State hosting IPFW in Main Gym of Rec Hall.

Key Stats: Ohio State represented the Midwest in the Final Four last season. Ball State defeated the Lions twice last season. IPFW is ranked fourth in the nation, with their only loss to No. 1 UCLA. George Mason represents the Lions' strongest foe in the Tom Tait division of the EIVA. Rutgers is expected to win the Tom Hay division of the EIVA. Penn State defeated Stanford twice last weekend and is ranked fifth in the latest magazine poll.

Injuries: No major injuries to report.

Preview: Because of the new East-vs.-Midwest format, the Lions will only take on OSU, BSU and IPFW. The Lions are heavily favored against the Buckeyes and Cardinals. The Lions know their strongest opponent will be the No. 4 Mastadons on Saturday night.

Coach Tom Peterson says: "We have to make sure that we send a message to everybody. These teams are the best of the East and Midwest. We want to make sure that we are the best team out here."

No. 3 Penn State (14-7) takes to the road for a 7:30 p.m. game tonight against No. 8 Michigan-Dearborn (13-12-1). The trip continues with a 7:30 p.m. match tomorrow with No. 5 Eastern Michigan (18-7-1).

Key stats: Penn State hopes forward Rob Keegan can continue his torrid pace. The junior has scored six goals in his last two games and leads the Icers in scoring with 44 points.

Injuries: Forward Tom Duhamel is out with a separated shoulder.

Preview: The Icers are looking for a pair of important wins in an effort to solidify the No. 3 seed for the national tournament. Penn State played both teams earlier in the season, defeating Michigan-Dearborn 6-3 and 8-4, and splitting two games with Eastern Michigan. The match with Eastern Michigan is a reunion for forward Mark Konchar and EMU captain Brandon Ransom who grew up together in Jackson, Mich.

Coach Joe Battista says: "We're going to have to play two very smart hockey games. We'll need focus, concentration, and strong team defense to get it done. I think we have to keep these teams to under three goals or less if we're going to win. They both have solid defense and solid goaltending, so I think its going to take a total team effort to be successful."

At 9 a.m. tomorrow at the White Building, Duke, North Carolina, Northwestern, Princeton, Stanford and St. John's University will be on tap for both the men's and women's teams. In addition, Johns Hopkins will be fencing with the men and Farleigh Dickenson University-Teaneck for the women.

Key stats: The Lady Lions head into this weekend with a 5-0 dual-meet record while the men's team is trying to rebound after its last dual meet, a disappointing 2-1 performance at Rutgers. Both Olga Chernyak and Olga Kalinovskaya wear 16-0 records on their chests while Sibyl Goldstein and Jen Prifrel earned 18-2 and 14-2 records, respectively. Tom Strzalkowski leads the men's team with an 8-0 record. Jeff Feinblatt has fenced his way to a 7-2 dual-meet record while Andy Gearhart and Don Guzzetta are both 6-2.

Injuries: No major injuries to report

Preview: Tomorrow is Penn State's last home meet of the season and maybe the men's epe squad's last important meet as well. Coach Emmanuil Kaidanov expects tough competition from all his team's opponents but pointed to Princeton and St. John's as the most difficult. Look for the epe squad to come out serious but relaxed, while the men's foil and sabre and women's foil to perform well.

Kaidanov says: "We will face very strong opponents. We do expect them to be not very delicate with us and trying to do their best to pinch us."