The No. 7 Penn State men's volleyball team must like the snooze button because it took the Nittany Lions awhile to wake up last night.

Penn State, the No. 1 seed in the EIVA tournament, beat the No. 5 seed, Princeton, 30-28, 30-27, 30-22, at Rec Hall last night to advance to the EIVA final against George Mason on Saturday.

The Lions won ugly, especially in the match's first two games, as Princeton wouldn't go away like a nagging rash. The Tigers found themselves even with Penn State at 28-28 during the match's first game. Carlos Guerra then posted one of his game-high 16 kills, as the ball that looked to be going out hit a Princeton player. A Princeton hitting error then gave Penn State the win.

Freshman setter Dan O'Dell struggled early and was pulled with Penn State down 6-4 in the second game. Senior co-captain Nate Matthews filled in and led the team with 27 assists. Matthews hadn't seen significant action since he was replaced by O'Dell early in the season during the Penn State Invitational.

"At this point in the season, it's not about gaining experience," Penn State men's volleyball coach Mark Pavlik said. "My patience is a little bit shorter."

Matthews said adjusting to game speed is difficult right away, but after a few points, he just goes back to doing what he's been doing his entire career.

"I didn't know what to expect when I first got in," Matthews said. "The first few points were tough because there is no way to replicate game speed."

Despite Matthews directing the Lions' attack past Princeton, Pavlik said that O'Dell would start on Saturday in the EIVA final. Pavlik gave the Tigers credit and said that the team historically improves greatly as the season goes on. He said Princeton handled Penn State's jump serves well and is a very good passing team. Princeton was able to match Penn State's physical play at times, as both teams amassed eight blocks. The eight blocks marked the second consecutive game that the Lions have failed to reach double-digit blocks. Senior co-captain Zach Slenker had probably his most successful game in the past month, as he tallied 15 kills and hit .478 for the match. Now, the Lions look ahead to 6 p.m. tomorrow when the team will take on George Mason in the final. At stake is a trip to Long Beach, Calif., to compete in the final four.

George Mason is the last EIVA team to beat Penn State, and took the Lions to five games earlier this season at Rec Hall. Saturday's game will mark the last game at Rec Hall for seven seniors, including Slenker.

"I want to leave with a win," Slenker said. "I'm not going to lose here."