As Cara Smith's serve knifed towards the Army side of the court, a smaller than usual crowd at Rec Hall stood in anticipation of the match's final point.

The ball, like so many before it, caused panic in Army's ranks and could not be returned and the match ended in a familiar fashion.

A Penn State victory.

Smith's ace gave the No. 15 Nittany Lions (9-0) a 3-0 victory over Army (30-12, 30-15, 30-17) and concluded a perfect weekend for this rapidly improving team at the Penn State Classic.

In three matches, spread between Friday night and Saturday afternoon, the Lions took the action to each of their opponents --Villanova (5-6), Morgan State (1-9) and Army (2-7) -- never losing a game and rarely looking challenged. The Lions defeated the Wildcats (30-10, 30-27, 30-20) and Morgan State (30-23, 30-22, 30-13).

"I'm not overly inflated by our performance," Penn State women's volleyball coach Russ Rose said. "We were a step slow against a very athletic Morgan State team. Our challenge is to find people other than Mishka [Levy] that can put the ball on the floor and be an offensive weapon."

Despite Rose's concerns, there is no doubt relief to be undefeated and playing hard when so much was up in the air when the season began.

"We're better than when we started two weeks ago," Rose said. "But we know we have to get better. Some teams in our conference have played a tougher schedule and will be more tested."

Despite the suspect quality of opposition, the bright spots for Penn State were still hard to overlook or question.

Sophomore outside hitter Syndie Nadeau, who looked to be rounding into form last weekend at the Fairfield Invitational, continued her torrid pace, combining kill after blistering kill with a strong service game to earn the tournament's MVP award.

Freshman setter Sam Tortorello, who looks to be firmly entrenched in a starting role, continued her maturation, calmly dictating the tempo in each of the Lions' three wins.

Rose also had the luxury of giving his reserves some game action, a factor that will become critical as the season begins to wear on the Lions.

Also there, subtle enough that it may go unnoticed by fans in the bleachers, is the chemistry this team is forming.

"There's an overall great feeling with this team," Smith said. "It feels great to go to the gym and practice. It's easier to trust each other and we're confident in each other and we play better because of it."

The Lions will need that confidence when they face their biggest challenge to date when they take on Florida in Washington, D.C., on Friday night.

"Florida will be the best team we play all year," Rose said.

"I hope our players recognize this opportunity and realize they need to get better."