Russ Rose knows how to celebrate.

The Penn State women's volleyball head coach, after winning his third consecutive outright Big Ten championship Saturday, did not engage in any parties, shindigs or Midwestern hoe-downs.

Nor did his players.

"There was no celebration," Rose said. "It's an indication that they have their eyes set on something a little different than just the Big Ten portion of the season, but certainly that's not to diminish how hard it is to win a Big Ten championship."

No less, the team has won three straight championships, with the latest installment in the Nittany Lion trilogy coming with relative ease.

Penn State (25-2, 16-0 Big Ten) has allowed opponents to post more than 25 points in just seven of the team's 51 conference games and has lost only three such stanzas.

After a sweep at Illinois, the Lions learned that Minnesota defeated Wisconsin, giving Penn State the outright title. The team's celebration consisted of sleep and a 5 a.m. wakeup call yesterday morning, as it was time to get back on the road and trek home to State College. Further festivities were carried out at a Midwest airport, where the team rested on the floor for more than four hours before it could jet back to Pennsylvania.

"You can't get too high on yourself after doing that," Rose said.

Excuse the Lions if they are not erupting with joy and energy after clinching the championship with two weeks to play in the regular season. With another conference crown in hand, the No. 3 Lions have their eyes on bigger prizes, namely a perfect conference season and a trip to the national championship in San Antonio.

Even so, the significance of a third consecutive Big Ten title is not lost on the juniors and seniors who have earned it -- now is just not the time to be basking in conference glory.

"It'll sink in maybe next semester when I actually see those banners hanging and get to see those pictures up in our locker room," senior setter and co-captain Sam Tortorello said. "It's a great accomplishment, and the team is all very happy."

Rose is pleased with his team and its accomplishments for the time being but is not the type to allow the Lions to coast through the final four matches of the regular season.

"I'm pleased with how the girls are playing and their attention to detail," Rose said. "But we also haven't played the perfect match yet where everybody's been on and everybody has played well. We still have room to get better, and hopefully the players will recognize that and continue to work to achieve that."

A concern is that Penn State's key freshmen, upon whom the Lions rely heavily, might become tired or worn out as the season rolls along. Rookies Nicole Fawcett and Christa Harmotto are doing their best to cope with the length of the season. This weekend, their best was more than good enough, as the two led dominant efforts over Purdue and the Fighting Illini.

"It can be a long season, but especially this weekend, I've been able to pull past it and play well, along with all the other freshmen," Fawcett said.

After winning the conference as underdogs last year, the Lions have now had a chance to enjoy the view from the top for a full season, as they were tabbed preseason favorites this past August.

"It feels great being picked No. 1 and then proving to the conference that we were and that we earned it," Tortorello said. "It all depends on what happens in the end."

And for these Lions, the end result is the main focus now. They just hope that result will be ample reason for Rose to celebrate.