The men's volleyball season is set up like a long marathon, not a sprint. Even so, Penn State will look to kick off preseason competition tonight with a strong and powerful start out of the gates. The Nittany Lions will host Ohio State at 7 tonight and tomorrow in Rec Hall.

The exhibition twin bill was set up for this weekend so that the team could capitalize on a home football weekend crowd, the same masses that flock to the women's games during their home weekends. Coach Mark Pavlik hopes that such exposure will lead to increased popularity for his Lions, who will host the 2006 NCAA Championship.

"We thought this was a good weekend to try to showcase men's volleyball, and try to draw on some of the football fans that stay for the women's matches," Pavlik said. "This gives them the chance to come and see us.

"With us hosting in 2006, we want fans to start to catch us now."

The two matches against the Buckeyes should also serve as an early preseason test for the Lions, who began practice two weeks ago and will kick off the regular season in Hawaii in January.

"You can practice all you want, as hard as you want -- but there's nothing that compares to seeing a different uniform on the other side of the net," Pavlik said.

And for the younger players, lining up opposite the men of Scarlet and Grey -- in front of a sizeable crowd, no less -- should serve as a barometer of where they're at right now.

"You want them to get the experience now that the crowd is reacting and the pressure is there," Pavlik said. "You want to see how they deal with it.

"It's not like in practice when you go back and get a ball to serve, and you look up into the mezzanine and the judo class is there."

No disrespect to the judo class, of course, but you get the feeling that Pavlik is very excited to show off his team to a new audience. The coach has been very pleased with the level of play at the Lions' 10 practices so far, saying that the intensity has exceeded that of years past.

"I'm just anxious to see how that pays off when we get into a real live situation," Pavlik said of the strong practices the team has been having.

The Lions' six returning starters have looked good in practice, and Pavlik reports that captains Keith Kowal and Nate Meerstein have led the way.

The only injury to report at this time is a slight pull or tear of sophomore Kyle Masterson's tricep. The ailment will keep him sidelined for the rest of the preseason.

With the intense efforts, relative health and increased spotlight this weekend, Pavlik is pleased with where the Lions are right now.

"I like where we've been after about 10 practices now," Pavlik said. "If that's anything we can hang our hats on for the rest of the year, then I kind of like where this team has the potential to be come late April, early May."

For now, though, it's time to see where this team is in early November.