Volleyball: Men's
Lions sweep Ohio State
After going to the fifth and final set during their matches against UCLA and Hawaii, Penn State found a way to dispatch rival Ohio State in straight sets (26-24, 25-17, 25-22) Saturday night from the Stan Sherrif Center in Honolulu.
“Even though [Ohio State] is a great group of guys, we’re all out here trying to get the ‘W,’” said Penn State senior Tom Comfort who finished with 10 kills. “We still have that Big Ten pride.”
No. 7 Penn State was tested early on in the match as the opening set saw numerous ties and lead changes that ended with the Nittany Lions narrowly holding on to claim victory.
After Ohio State clawed back to tie the first set at 24 all, junior Peter Russell logged two straight kills to clinch the opener 26-24.
Russell, who finished with 12 kills, was outdone by his younger brother Aaron, a sophomore, who registered a game-high 13 kills.
Penn State as a team finished with an overall total of 44 kills while Ohio State had 34.
The Nittany Lions were the beneficiaries of some much needed breathing room in the second set as they won a commanding 25-17.
Leading the defensive charge for Penn State was redshirt sophomore Connor Curry, who had a team-high 11 digs.
“While blocking is something we’re still working on as a team, our blockers slowed down some tough hitters tonight,” said Curry. “All in all we played well defensively during the tournament.”
The third and final set saw Penn State playing catch-up nearly the entire time until the closing moments, as they came from behind to close out the No. 10 Buckeyes 25-22.
The win over Ohio State concluded the Nittany Lions vacation in Honolulu as the team went 2-1 during the Hawaii Outrigger Invitational with the lone loss coming against tournament champion No. 5 UCLA.
Penn State will return home to host Lewis University on Jan. 18.