Red-hot Spikers clip Eagles' wings

The laws of physics state that an object in motion tends to stay in motion. This holds true for the Penn State men's volleyball team.

Last night, the No. 13 Nittany Lions posted their fifth Eastern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association (EIVA) Tait Division win by ousting the Juniata Eagles on their home court in five games (15-2, 5-15, 16-17, 15-5, 15-11). The win continued Penn State's recent string of success. It was also the Lions' second win against the Eagles this season.

In front of 325 screaming Eagle fans, the Lion offense, led by Mazzullo, caught the Eagles napping in the first game and rolled over them with a 15-2 drubbing. Mazzullo posted 16 kills, 14 digs and three blocks on the night.

Strong serving by the Eagles helped them turn the tables on the Lions in the second game. They took over the game early and posted a 4-1 lead against the Lions.

Led by the outstanding offense of Tim Shawaryn, the Eagles eventually flew over the Lions 15-5. Shawaryn finished the night with a team-high 26 kills, eight digs and three blocks.

While the Juniata defense was warding off the Lions' attack, its offense dished Penn State more of the same in the third by going ahead 10-3. The Lions managed to keep the game close, but the Eagles edged the Lions 17-16.

"I don't know if we fell asleep, but we started to relax," Mazzullo said. "Juniata picked it up. We tried hard in the second and the third but we just stalled."

Mazzullo said Penn State was jump started by the energy of the crowd and he and the other Lions got the ball rolling in their direction again in the fourth. They rolled over Juniata by a score of 15-5.

In the rally game, the Lions were able to convert on key scoring opportunities to finish off the Eagles 15-11.

While Penn State continues to steam ahead to a 13-13 overall record, 5-1 in the EIVA Tait Division, Juniata drops to 8-15 overall on the season with a 3-3 division record.

Although it put up a slash in Juniata's loss column, Penn State coach Mark Pavlik believes last night was not a total loss for the Eagles.

"I hope this kind of match prepares Juniata not only for their matches this weekend at Vassar but also for the EIVA division championship," Pavlik said.

He also added the Juniata fans will also help the Eagles in their postseason ventures.

Penn State is beginning to build momentum for the postseason, but is still enjoying its current victories. The team believes that with its recent success, it is at a fairly fixed place emotionally.

"Our confidence is pretty stable right now," Mazzullo said. "We're at a higher level than we were earlier in the season and our confidence isn't going to fluctuate from match to match."