They stood next to each other this weekend, watching from the sidelines during a match -- a stunning, blatant contradiction.

One of them, Nicole Fawcett, an outside hitter with a powerful swing and a 6-foot-4 body that seems built to punish volleyballs. The other, Roberta Holehouse, a slight 5-foot-8 defensive specialist without all of the attention that comes with being a strong-armed hitter for the No. 2 Nittany Lions.

But this weekend for the Penn State women's volleyball team, the low-profile Holehouse piqued the interest of at least one person in Rec Hall.

Perhaps most important of all, it was Penn State head coach Russ Rose who was attentive to Holehouse's play at the Penn State Invitational tournament. Significant because the Lions (6-0) are searching for some help with their passing, particularly at the libero position, and Holehouse just might be the answer.

"Certainly, if I was going to play tomorrow, there's no reason why I wouldn't try Roberta [at libero]," Rose said after Saturday's match against Duke. "I mean, she's got a great serve. Yeah, come to practice Monday; Roberta's going to be out there."

Early on in the weekend, Penn State struggled with its defense and passing, which accounted for an ugly first game Friday night against Eastern Kentucky. The Lions hit .200 for the game and it took a while for them to finally slip past the Colonels, 30-23.

Holehouse regularly subbed in as a defensive specialist to help shore up the passing and first contact, which in turn helped kick-start Penn State's offense.

In the three weekend matches, Holehouse finished with a team-best 21 digs, including a nine-dig effort against Duke, earning her All-Tournament honors.

Holehouse said she felt confident in her performance over the weekend and would embrace a switch to libero.

"If it gives me more time on the floor, more digs, more passing, then, yeah, I'm all for it," she said. "I could do a pretty good job. I feel pretty confident at that position."

Holehouse was also excellent at serving, finishing the weekend with four aces. And she seemed to grow as a leader, too, taking on a more vocal role as the tournament progressed.

Though Holehouse took strides this weekend, Rose thought the others involved in the libero position battle, junior Kate Price and sophomore Laura Holloway, still deserve consideration. The position will remain open until someone steps up.

"We're looking for some sparks, is what I'm looking for," Rose said. "I'm just looking for it, that's the problem. When the coach keeps looking, it's not such a good thing. I'm sure it's not fun for the girls, it's certainly not fun for me."

Who will provide that shot of energy and earn the libero job?

"Everything's up in the air except for our schedule," Rose said. "That's the only thing that's confirmed."

In addition to Holehouse, three other Penn State players were named to the All-Tournament team this weekend at the Penn State Invitational.

Sophomore outside hitter Fawcett was named tournament MVP. Sophomore middle hitter Christa Harmotto and freshman Megan Hodge were also honored.

Harmotto injury update

Harmotto, who suffered a complete ACL tear of her right knee last season against Iowa on Nov. 19, said everything is "100-percent." Though she's been playing and practicing with a bulky knee brace this season, she said it will come off in a few weeks once the team starts its weightlifting program.

Southern girl

The win against Atlantic Coast Conference preseason favorite Duke this weekend could act as a nice building block for the Lions. But for one player in particular, the win was much more important.

Freshman outside hitter Hodge, a top-ranked recruit and academically-successful senior last season -- she basically could've picked any college she wanted -- is a native of Durham, N.C. Durham, home of Duke University. So if the Lions lost, you would have been sure Hodge would've heard about it from plenty of people back home.

"Coach already said we can't lose to the state that any of our players are from, so we had to do that," Hodge said. "It felt good."

Block party

The Lions are leading the nation in blocks per game (4.22), with No. 1 Nebraska (3.96) and No. 20 Louisville (3.75) at second and third, respectively. At the net, Penn State is led by 6-foot-3 middle hitter Melissa Walbridge (2.00) and Harmotto (1.45).