It is not every year that Minnesota can come to Rec Hall late in the season and not be the main volleyball story of the weekend.

But this year is different for the No. 2 Penn State women's volleyball team, as the Nittany Lions have already wrapped up the outright conference crown and will be saluting their invaluable seniors before the final regular-season home match against Iowa tomorrow.

The No. 19 Golden Gophers (21-6, 11-5 Big Ten) are set to battle against the Lions at 6 tonight, as Penn State (25-2, 16-0) looks to stay undefeated in Big Ten play.

Penn State's seniors -- Kim Holm, Sam Tortorello and Kaleena Walters -- will be honored before the match with Iowa (14-15, 4-12) at 8 tomorrow evening.

"I might be as sad as I am excited having had the chance to work with them for the last four years," Penn State head coach Russ Rose said of sending off his seniors next month.

"I like them as people, I like how committed they are to the program, I like how successful they are in the classroom and in the community."

This senior class can also hold its own on the court.

Only Hawaii, Nebraska and Florida have posted better records since the 2002 season (the first for this class). Penn State is 110-18 over the last four seasons, while Walters and Tortorello have played in all 434 games during that time.

"There are some players that you can't wait 'til they leave, and there are some players that you hope will never leave," Rose said.

"I feel very positive about [the Penn State seniors'] development as players and as people, and that their contributions to the program have been very positive."

Against Minnesota the Lions will go up against a talented senior in libero Paula Gentil, Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year for her first three seasons in the Maroon and Gold.

That award may be up for grabs in the final weeks of the season, as Walters -- Penn State's libero -- is having another impressive season for the Nittany Lions.

Rose does not know who is better on the court, but is loyal to his players and feels that Walters provides many intangibles for the Lions.

"Would I trade Kaleena for Paula? No, not any of the four years," Rose said. "But [Paula] plays hard, I respect the way she plays, she's a very good server and has a very significant impact on the welfare of her team."

Tortorello is a bit different, however. Earlier in the season Rose remarked that he was willing to trade his All-American setter and co-captain for three macaroons.

Rose can joke, but again, it is not difficult to see his loyalty to those on his team.

"I'm loyal to my players," Rose said. "I'd be hard-pressed to think there are two people in the country better at their positions than [Tortorello and Walters] -- especially on the same team."

Rose has been through the cycle many times before.

When he says goodbye to one outgoing class that he has spent so much time with, another group comes in that requires more effort and molding on his part.

But maybe he's not quite ready to bid adieu to this bunch.

"I've been coaching for 30 years," Rose said.

"Every year Senior Night comes, and every year you lose a little bit of something when they leave because you care so much for them. That's the downside -- it's that you give up something that you really care about."