No. 17 Penn State men’s volleyball (1-7, 1-1 EIVA) got its first win of the season in a sweep against Harvard (3-5, 1-1 EIVA) in Cambridge, Massachusetts, Saturday afternoon.

After being swept by Harvard on Friday night, the Nittany Lions prevented the Crimson from completing the sweep by sweeping them in three sets. Unlike yesterday, Penn State won the first set and overcame a seven-point deficit to win a very tight second set. This comeback gave the Nittany Lions a lot of momentum as they went on to win the third set to complete the sweep.

How It Happened

Harvard won the first point of the game on a kill by Zach Berty before a service error got Penn State on the board. After Matthew Luoma recorded an attack error on the next point, the Nittany Lions put their foot on the gas and went on a 5-0 run to take an early 6-2 lead. This run was highlighted with kills by Luoma, Matt Cosgrove, and Owen Rose along with a service ace by Gabriel Gaige.

However, Harvard responded by winning four of the next six points to trim its deficit to two. Both teams went back and forth for the next four points before an attack error by Gabriel got the Crimson within one point of tying the set at 10. Penn State refused to let Harvard seize its momentum and responded by winning three of the next four points with kills by Michael Schwob, Gabriel, and Will Kuhns to increase its lead to three.

The Crimson recorded a kill on the next point before the Nittany Lions won consecutive points to take a 15-11 lead in the set. This forced Harvard to take its first timeout. This timeout paid dividends for the Crimson as they went on a 3-1 run to get within two of Penn State’s lead.

The Nittany Lions showed their resilience and went on a 5-1 run to make it 21-15 Penn State. Both teams traded blows for the next four points before back-to-back errors by Penn State allowed the Crimson to decrease their deficit to four. On the next point, Harvard committed a service error to give the Nittany Lions their first set point. The Crimson saved two set points on back-to-back kills before Kuhns’ kill allowed Penn State to take the first set 25-21.

The second set started with Harvard getting off to a fast start by winning four of the first five points with a kill and ace by Quinn Bishop, a kill by James Bardin, and a Penn State error. Both teams traded blows for the next six points as Harvard’s lead stayed intact. However, Penn State got sloppy on the attack and committed back-to-back errors to allow the Crimson to increase their lead to five. Penn State head coach Mark Pavlik called a timeout right after.

Out of the timeout, Harvard seized its momentum and went on a 3-1 run to take a 12-5 lead. However, the Nittany Lions refused to go away and got within four points of the Crimson’s lead off a 4-1 run that featured kills by Kuhns and Cosgrove along with a Harvard service error.

Both teams exchanged the next six points before a kill by Kuhns trimmed Penn State’s deficit to three. This back-and-forth affair kept on going for the next eight points as Harvard’s three-point lead remained intact. However, the Crimson committed consecutive attack errors that allowed Penn State to get within one of tying the set at 20.

Berty recorded a critical kill for Harvard on the next point to give it some breathing room. After the Crimson recorded a service error on the next point, they recorded back-to-back kills to get within two points of winning the second set. This forced Penn State to take a timeout. The Nittany Lions won back-to-back points after the timeout to get within one of tying the set at 23 and forced Harvard to take a timeout in hopes of cooling off Penn State’s momentum.

Out of the timeout, Rose recorded a huge kill to tie the set at 23 for the Nittany Lions. On the next point, Kuhns recorded a kill that gave Penn State its first set-point opportunity. Harvard called a timeout as the set started to slip away from it.

The Crimson saved a set point on an attack error by Kuhns after the timeout. However, Penn State refused to let this deter it and Kuhns redeemed himself with a kill to give it its second set point opportunity. Unlike the first time, the Nittany Lions capitalize on an attack error by the Crimson to win the second set 26-24.

Both teams exchanged points as the third set got underway. Penn State began to seize its momentum from the previous set as they went on a 5-0 run to take an early 6-1 lead. This run was highlighted by kills by Kuhns and Luoma, an ace by Gabriel, and two attack errors by Harvard. This forced Harvard to take a timeout as the match started to get away from it.

The Nittany Lions extended the run to seven as they won consecutive points after the timeout. Sawyer Nichols recorded a kill on the next point to end this run. After the Crimson committed a service error, they refused to give up and went on a large 6-1 run to trim their deficit to two. This forced Pavlik to take a timeout in hopes of cooling off Harvard’s momentum.

Both teams traded points after the timeout before back-to-back points by the Crimson tied the set at 11. Both teams went back and forth for the next four points as the deadlock stayed intact. However, Penn State refused to be deterred from blowing a huge lead in the set and went on a 3-0 run to regain the lead. This run was highlighted by a kill by Gabriel and two attack errors by Harvard.

Both teams traded blows for the next four points before a Penn State attack error got the Crimson within one of tying the set at 18. After both teams exchanged points, the Nittany Lions took advantage of a service error and an ace to take a 21-18 lead. Bishop recorded a kill for Harvard on the next point before back-to-back kills by Penn State got it within two points of closing out the match. This forced the Crimson to take a timeout in hopes of regaining their footing.

Owen Woolbert recorded a kill after the timeout before Gabriel’s kill gave the Nittany Lions their first match point. Penn State couldn’t capitalize on its first opportunity as Cosgrove recorded an attack error. However, the Nittany Lions refused to let this opportunity slip away and finished off the third set 25-21 on a block by Cosgrove, Rose, and Luoma.

Takeaways

• Finally, the Nittany Lions are in the win column. After losing seven straight games to start off the season, the Nittany Lions got its first win of the season to avoid their worst start in program history.
• Service errors played a huge factor in determining the outcome of this match. Harvard committed 18 service errors compared to Penn State’s six.
• Kuhns played his best game of the season as he recorded 16 of the team’s 36 kills. Kuhns will have to keep up this momentum if the Nittany Lions are going to turn their season around.

What’s Next?

Penn State will look to get its second win of the season as it hits the road again to take on Saint Francis at 7 p.m. on Friday, February 14, in its third game of EIVA conference play.