‘Keep Our Strengths In Front Of Us’: Penn State Men’s Volleyball Aiming To Flip Script After Winless Start
Penn State men’s volleyball’s 2025 campaign has had a less-than-ideal start. Sitting winless at 0-4, it’s the program’s worst beginning to a season in nearly a decade.
For head coach Mark Pavlik’s squad, maintaining a good mentality and sense of focus will be crucial in turning the ship around.
Scheduling, however, has not been favorable. All four of the matches so far have been on the road against ranked opponents, with the group scheduled to return home for the first time to play Ohio State this Thursday. Pavlik said the travel can’t be used as an excuse but rather a chance to show character.
“We’re putting our guys through a little bit of a grind. But I also think that’s something that all teams have to come to grips with,” Pavlik said.
Though the veteran coach acknowledged the team’s struggles, he was also very excited to see how his athletes will overcome such adversity.
“It’ll be interesting to see how our personality emerges. It’s part of the fun,” Pavlik said.
One of the big things that Pavlik points to as an important aspect of overcoming setbacks is leadership. He encourages and believes it’s crucial that everyone on the team, regardless of age or status, demonstrate such capabilities.
“I think everybody at some point in any group, whether it’s athletics or whether it’s business, has to lead,” Pavlik said. “I think with the youngsters, they’re very receptive to talking about these things and understanding.”
Pavlik also talked about the importance of keeping the main thing the main thing. There are a lot of variables in a volleyball match that players can’t control. Sometimes, the score isn’t in their favor. The athletes can’t get caught up in hypotheticals if they want to win games. Focusing on technique and attacking the match one point at a time is important to getting back on track.
“Believe in the process, the score is just that. It doesn’t stop you from doing anything, it doesn’t enhance you from doing anything,” Pavlik said.
While he recognizes that it may be easier said than done, Pavlik’s determined to work with his team, helping them put meaning behind the procedure.
Though their record may not reflect it, Pavlik still likes what he’s seeing during matches. He believes his team will soon reap the benefits of their work in the form of wins.
“We’re capable of playing at a pretty good, high, physical level, but we’re having trouble sustaining consistency,” Pavlik said, referencing the flashes of talent in the second set of the Loyola match and third set of the UCLA match.
The team has a lot of new starters this season, which Pavlik attests to the lack of consistency thus far.
“I think that’s expected a little bit from the group we have, where you’ve got [Matthew] Luoma and [Sean] Harvey making their first starts,” Pavlik said. “You’ve got [Michael] Schwob, who battled for the job last year.”
Though facing hurdles, Pavlik believes that the natural progression of the season, along with the players focusing on the things mentioned earlier, will prove beneficial down the road.
“I think we’ll be capable of playing some very good volleyball, certainly by the end of March and beginning of April,” Pavlik said.
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