Player to Watch: Captain and libero Ryan Walthall. He's Penn State's vocal leader.
#2 St. Francis
Overall Record: 15-11
EIVA Record: 7-5
Coach: Mike Rumbaugh, 9th season
St. Francis' Season: The Red Flash recorded their highest EIVA finish in program history this year, taking second place behind Penn State. This gave them an automatic bid into the semifinal round of the conference tournament. Two wins over MIVA foe Ball State highlighted their season. After finishing second to the Lions in the EIVA tournament last season, St. Francis will be hungry to knock Penn State off its pedestal.
Tournament Breakdown: With the bye in the quarterfinal round, the Red Flash begin their postseason play against George Mason. Led by arguably the top middle hitter in the country and this year's Uvaldo Acosta Memorial Player of the Year, Marc Honore, St. Francis is very capable of advancing and posing a challenge to the No. 1 seeded Lions.
All-EIVA Performers: First Team: Setter Shane Conley, middle hitter Marc Honore. Second Team: Opposite hitter Jordan Varee, libero Zach Nanni.
Player to Watch: Middle hitter Marc Honore. He leads the nation, averaging 2.11 blocks per game and leads the EIVA in hitting percentage with a .521 clip.
#3 George Mason
Overall Record: 12-9
EIVA Record: 7-5
Coach: Fred Chao, 9th season
George Mason's Season: With as strong a schedule as the other three teams in the Final Four of the EIVA tournament, the Patriots will be a very formidable foe for St. Francis. A West Coast win against UCSD highlighted their season along with some time spent in the top 15 in the country. When it takes on Marc Honore and the Red Flash today, however, George Mason will need to find a way to beat a team it lost to 3-1 in both matches this year.
Tournament Breakdown: After taking the No. 3 seed in the EIVA tournament with a win over No. 6 seed East Stroudsburg, the Patriots will battle St. Francis in the first match of the semifinals today. Led by freshman opposite hitter Will Price, George Mason has a feisty lineup and one that gave Penn State quite a battle early on in the season. The loss of sophomore Hudson Bates could ultimately hurt the team's chances against the Red Flash.
All-EIVA Performers: First Team: Outside hitter Kyle Gramit, opposite hitter William Price. Second Team: Outside hitter Jeremy Barndt.
Player to Watch: Outside hitter William Price. This year's EIVA Newcomer of the Year leads the conference in kills with 5.51 per game and service aces, averaging .66 per game.
#4 Princeton
Overall Record: 12-9
EIVA Record: 6-6
Coach: Glenn Nelson, 16th Season
Princeton's Season: The No. 4 seed Princeton Tigers edged out No. 5 seed Juniata in the quarterfinals last weekend for a spot in the EIVA semifinals today. Rebounding from a slow start to the season, the Tigers are in the position to cause an upset over the No. 1 seed Lions. Despite limited non-conference success, Princeton still played a better match against Cal-Baptist than Penn State did, winning one game to the Lions' none.
Tournament Breakdown: Led by junior outside hitter Peter Eichler and sophomore middle hitter Mike Vincent, the Tigers have talent but perhaps not enough to top the Lions. Penn State handed them two of its six conference losses this season with a potential third on the way. The chance of an win over the Lions is always present, but it would be the EIVA upset of the year if Princeton is playing in Rec Hall come Saturday night.
All-EIVA Performers: Second Team: Outside hitter Peter Eichler, middle hitter Mike Vincent
Player to Watch: Outside hitter Phillip Rosenberg. Against Juniata, he recorded 13 kills and 14 digs.
Kate Aras' Predictions
It's no surprise to anyone that, once again, Penn State is the favorite to take the 2007 EIVA title. After going 12-0 in regular season conference play, the Nittany Lions have every advantage going into this weekend. They are rested since their most recent match was two weeks ago. Senior Alex Gutor, who did not play in the last match because of an ankle sprain, is healthy and will play today. The rest of the team is healthy and ready to repeat. The team also has home court advantage, something it's held on to for the past nine years. Look for the Lions to rule the weekend and take their ninth title in a row.
Semifinals:
In the first match of the EIVA tournament, No. 2 seed St. Francis will battle No. 3 seed George Mason at 4:30 today in Rec Hall. Expect this to be the more exciting match of the day as both teams are very similar. In the end, however, the Red Flash will prevail, defeating the Patriots in five games. When the No. 1 seed Lions take on the No. 4 seed Princeton Tigers, expect an exciting yet routine match. The Lions will win in three games and move on to the finals.
Finals:
With the 2007 EIVA finals setting up exactly like the 2006 finals, expect both teams to be hungry for a chance to take the title and to move on to the NCAA Final Four next week. In a battle of two very physical teams, Penn State will prevail on at 7:30 on Saturday night in Rec. Hall, defeating St. Francis in four games to win its ninth consecutive EIVA title.
Dean Myers' Predictions
After losing several key contributors from last season's team, which finished as the NCAA runner-up, nobody was sure of what to expect from this year's edition of the Penn State men's volleyball team. The Lions entered the season with minimal depth and a freshman in the starting lineup. Their projected starter at libero wasn't even on last year's travel squad until late in the season. Ever since, these Lions have been exceeding expectations, including their own. Look for their success to continue and result in Penn State celebrating its ninth consecutive EIVA title come Saturday night.
Semifinals:
Look for the start to the EIVA semifinals to provide one of the closer matches played in Rec Hall this season. While George Mason's schedule this season was significantly easier than that of St. Francis, George Mason's Will Price is an amazing talent and is no stranger to Penn State (he's the younger brother of former Penn State outside hitter Andrew Price). Mason should win in a very close five games. When Penn State and Princeton face off, Princeton coach Glenn Nelson (one of the most colorful characters in men's college volleyball) will do all he can to will his band of Ivy Leaguers to victory, but in the end, Penn State cruises in three.
Finals:
Saturday night's all right for a conference championship match. The previous two meetings between Penn State and George Mason have been perhaps the most entertaining of the year. Both of the priors lasted four games, so expect another hard-fought match as Penn State's Max Holt and Matt Anderson square off against fellow U.S. Junior National Team member Will Price. Penn State heads to Columbus, Ohio in four.
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