And so it begins.

The No. 9 Penn State men's volleyball team (23-5, 14-0 EIVA Tait) will begin its quest for the team's second national championship tomorrow night at 7:30 as it plays No. 8 seed Vassar (17-5, 8-4 EIVA Hay) in the first round of the EIVA playoffs at Rec Hall.

This will be the Nittany Lions' first match of the season against a team from the EIVA Hay division, and only the third time that the two teams have met since 1995. Penn State beat Vassar in the EIVA playoffs in 1995, 3-0, and beat the Brewers again four years later in the regular season by the same count.

Penn State, a No. 1 seed in the tournament, is riding an eight-game winning streak into Rec Hall, so Penn State doesn't expect to change its game plan anytime in the near future.

"If it ain't broke don't fix it," Penn State men's volleyball coach Mark Pavlik said referring to a change in strategy for the playoffs.

While the Lions seem extremely confident heading into tomorrow's match, the players can't overlook this talented Vassar team.

The Brewers are led by senior captain Jesse Lam. The 6-foot-2 hitter from Honolulu, led Vassar in kills and hitting percentage this season. His 351 kills are only four fewer than the total of Penn State's leader, Carlos Guerra, and Lam was able to do that in six fewer games than Guerra. Lam's hitting percentage was also greater than several of the Lions' main hitters.

Pavlik isn't too worried about his team looking past the Brewers because he expects his seniors to keep the team focused.

"This team has been here the past three years," Pavlik said. "They know what they are here for so let's get down to business."

While this is an experienced Penn State team, there is one starter that will be playing in his first EIVA playoffs.

Freshman Dan O'Dell has been the Lions' setter since the third game of the season after he replaced senior captain Nate Matthews. O'Dell has shown signs of maturity and his poise has impressed everyone on the team. He said he knows how good Penn State is and is looking forward to the playoff run.

"I'm not nervous because I'm pretty familiar with most of the teams," O'Dell said. "It seems that we're peaking at just the right time."

O'Dell also said that the seniors on the team have treated him like he's been around for years, especially the man he replaced, Matthews.

"The older guys have definitely encouraged me all season," O'Dell said. "Nate always helps me out by telling me what he's noticing the other team doing or what I could do better."

With the No. 1 seed in the EIVA playoffs, Penn State is guaranteed home-court advantage throughout. The Lions are now just three wins away from an EIVA championship, but more importantly, just five wins away from their second national championship.