A crowd of 2,371 filtered into Gregory Gym in Austin this past weekend, to see the No. 2 Penn State women's volleyball team meet the No. 7 Texas Longhorns in one of the young season's premier matches.

And when the 2,371 walked away from the facility, each left with his or her own opinions of what happened.

But for one in attendance -- Texas head coach Jerritt Elliott -- the Nittany Lions left a mark that will remain for a while.

"I mean, they're very well coached and they've got two of the premiere outside hitters in the country," Elliott said. "They've got a great balance and they're deservedly the No. 2 team in the country."

That's high praise from a coach with one of the nation's best teams in his own gym and considering how inexperienced this Penn State team is.

The Lions are still breaking in freshmen at two starting positions and getting used to life without three-time All-American setter Sam Tortorello and libero Kaleena Walters. And if their passing and defense can improve as the season marches forward and those freshmen maintain their level through December, Elliott thinks that they will be in the national title hunt.

"If they develop their serve-receive, they've got the attackers to [succeed in the post season]," he said. "At the high end, it comes down to the serve and passing, and if they can do that, with their outsides, they'll have a legitimate shot [at a national championship]."

Elliott mentioned that there are a "handful" of teams in the mix this year, including No. 1 Nebraska, No. 4 Washington, No. 6 Florida, No. 7 Stanford and a few others from the Pac-10 conference.

"Absolutely, they're one of the definite contenders," Elliott said. "I don't think there's a clear cut favorite right now."

The fifth-year Longhorns' coach had high praise for some of the younger members on this Penn State team, particularly sophomore outside hitter Nicole Fawcett and two freshmen -- outside hitter Megan Hodge and setter Alisha Glass.

Against Texas, Fawcett pounded 21 kills on .263 hitting and added five blocks. She was named MVP of the Texas Invitational and Elliott particularly liked her ability to hit all different types of shots.

"She's arguably one of the best outside hitters in the country," he said. "There's not many players in the country who can do things that she does."

Of Hodge, he had similar praise. "She's really talented; she's got a tremendous upside," Elliott said. "She really holds down that outside hitting spot."

And in the setter spot, Glass stepped up well this weekend. She had career-highs in assists in back-to-back matches, first against Missouri (44), then against Texas (63). Glass has helped fill the void left by Tortorello and as the season progresses, Elliott expects her to develop nicely.

"She's a special athlete, she's going to get more consistent throughout the season," Elliot said. "If they can solidify their ball control and serve-receive, and Glass is comfortable at setter, they're going to be tough to beat."

Penn State head coach Russ Rose said on Monday that Texas could end up soaring at the end. He sited Destinee Hooker, a freshman outside hitter, as one of the nation's best newcomers and thinks that once the young Longhorns begin to bond, they might make a nice post-season run. Rose mentioned Texas as a team that the Lions might meet in the NCAA tournament.

Elliott said his team's blocking needs to improve, but he would embrace meeting Penn State in the playoffs.

"It would be fun to be able to play them in the national championship match or the final four."

For now, though, he'll hold off on making predictions.

"The thing about that team is that they're talented, but they're young," Elliott said. "Once those youngsters have developed from that core group, their upside is tremendous."