The Penn State men's volleyball team moved a step closer to clinching the EIVA crown Tuesday night by upending Juniata. The Nittany Lions look to move even closer when they take on Concordia tomorrow night.
The Lions (19-3, 11-0 EIVA), who came into the match with a perfect 10-0 record in the EIVA Tait division, dominated Juniata (8-12, 5-9 EIVA) on the Eagles' own home floor.
Behind a stellar performance by junior outside hitter Carlos Guerra, Penn State swept Juniata for the second time this season (30-18, 30-22, 30-24). Playing in only two games, Guerra was next to untouchable as he nailed 10 of 13 kill attempts for a .769 hitting percentage. As a team, the Lions more than doubled the Eagles' hitting percentage, outhitting them .403-.179.
Penn State's higher level of play was the difference in the match, Guerra said.
"If we play at the level that we're capable of playing at, it's not going to be anything different than a victory," he said.
Led by the 6-foot-9 sophomore middle hitter Norm Keil's five blocks, the Lions outblocked Juniata 10-6 for the match. Penn State also won the digging war, tripling up the Eagles 33-11.
Penn State sophomore libero Ricky Mattei led the Lions with six kills.
"We just were confident," Mattei said. "We dominated. Our passing was there. We blocked well. We just did all of the little things."
All three of Penn State's remaining regular season matches are against EIVA opponents. The road to clinching the EIVA title continues when the Lions take on Concordia tomorrow at 4 p.m. in Rec Hall.
The team's graduating seniors Jose Quinones and Jason Hawkins will be rewarded for their contributions to the Penn State program with a pre-match ceremony in Rec Hall's South Gym.
"The fact that it's 4 o'clock in South Gym doesn't make it as dramatic," said Jose Quinones, the team's starting setter since 1999. "It might be the most anti-climatic senior day."
Though Senior Day might feel anti-climatic, the team's match remains critical. Penn State is confident that their momentum from the victory over Juniata will carry over to the match against Concordia.
"I think we've done a pretty good job of raising our level against EIVA teams right now, Guerra said. "If we continue raising our level against EIVA teams, it's going to help us in the long run."
Last time out against Concordia, the Lions needed five games to put them away (30-20, 28-30, 27-30, 30-23, 15-11). Penn State wants to make sure that things are different this time.
"We just have to come out straight from the beginning," Mattei said. "I think the match against Concordia at their place, we were really sloppy. If we keep a good level of intensity and play hard, we'll be fine."
Guerra said Penn State needs to use its home court advantage to go after the Clippers early.
"They're not going to be playing on their home court," Guerra said.
"They're not going to have their fans anymore. They're going to let down and we're going to take advantage of that. So it's really important for us to attack, attack, attack."
Head coach Mark Pavlik is confident about a victory, but remains cautious.
"They're very capable of being as physical as we are," he said. "Would I like us to take care of business quickly? Yes. If Concordia has something to say about it, it'll be a real good, tight match."
