The fantasy held in the minds of the Penn State men's volleyball players since Day 1 has been of the team celebrating an NCAA championship before a sold-out crowd at Rec Hall.

And those dreams have never been closer to being realized, which accounts for the buzz that has wound up in the No. 11 Nittany Lions' locker room of late. The exciting atmosphere doesn't figure to leave any time soon -- that is, unless their dreams come crashing down prematurely.

The fervor has been mounting and has yet to reach its apex, but has still been felt by some team members as early as last weekend.

"This weekend was definitely a lot more exciting than it has been in a while," senior setter Dan O'Dell said. "Just because we haven't [played] teams this good since we played in California.

"Just going through EIVA teams and Ohio State, it was nice to play a couple of top teams on the road."

It looks like the teams the Lions might face will improve in quality the further they move through the playoffs. Teams coming to Penn State for the EIVA tournament might include the likes of No. 13 George Mason, who beat the Lions earlier this year, or Saint Francis (Pa.), who is seeded third in the tournament.

And if the Lions are to make it out of the EIVA tournament, teams such as No. 2 Hawaii might be lurking around the corner. Hawaii, for example, is hitting at the highest percentage of any team in the nation (.347), behind outstanding play from some of the nation's best players.

Warriors libero Alferd Reft is second nationally in digs per game (3.18), middle hitter Dio Dante is second in the nation in blocks per game (1.71) and outside hitter Jose Delgado is 14th nationally in kills per game (4.26). Helping Delgado to his 328 kills this season has been setter Brian Beckwith, who, by the way, is tied for third nationally in assists per game (13.58).

With that collection of stars it becomes immediately clear how difficult the road ahead just might be, especially if the Lions run into a powerhouse from the West Coast like Hawaii.

"Honestly, it's pretty much imperative that we get focused in the next two weeks," said senior co-captain Matt Proper. "We're not at the point that we can cruise for any point. Just from what we've seen how we've played lately, we have to be 100 percent from here on out because it's do or die. We have to play our hearts out."

O'Dell, who will also be making his last run at a national championship, echoed Proper's sentiment.

"We need to treat every point like it's the last one," he said. "We gotta go all out every point to get where we want to be at the end of the year. There's no reason to be lazy. At this point in the season, we need to make sure we do that."

It's all on the line now, but it seems that some of the Lions may be thriving off of the energy that's steadily growing.

The culmination of the frenzy which seems as though it will soon envelop the team will come, if they succeed, at about 9 p.m. on May 6, when a national champion is crowned in Rec Hall's Main Gym.

Can the Lions continue to feed off of the fever that's sweeping through Happy Valley's volleyball community and live out their ultimate dreams? Or will they be overcome by the pressures of postseason play and having the sport's biggest match on their court?

Over the next two weeks, the story will unfold. Until then, Nittany Nation will be left waiting.