No. 13 Penn State Men’s Volleyball Defeats No. 9 Lewis 3-1
No. 13 Penn State men’s volleyball (4-0, 0-0 EIVA) took down No. 9 Lewis (4-1, 0-0 MIVA) on Saturday night at Rec Hall, winning three sets to one in an upset victory.
The Nittany Lions took the first two sets, winning them 25-21 and 25-18, but narrowly dropped the third set to the Flyers, 25-23. Still, Penn State rallied to win the fourth set and the match, 25-22.
How It Happened
Penn State opened the match with a service error, and Lewis capitalized early as Shawn Baggs and Oguzhan Oguz combined for back-to-back blocks to spark the Flyers. Daniel Haber followed with a kill to give Lewis a 5-2 edge. Sean Harvey got the Nittany Lions going with a kill, while Oguz continued to be a force at the net, later assisting on his third block of the set.
Matthew Luoma was a steady presence for Penn State, recording a kill and teaming with Owen Rose for a block. Luoma’s roll shot cut the deficit to 9-6, and a hard swing by Harvey, followed by Rose’s 67 mph ace, kept the Lions within three. Haber responded with a kill for Lewis, but Luoma stayed hot with his third kill to make it 13-11.
Oguz scored on a swing off the block, yet Harvey answered again. Gaige Gabriel then heated up, putting away an overpass to pull Penn State within one at 14-13. Deyan Todorov notched a block for the Flyers, but Carter Dittman’s kill kept Penn State close. Gabriel delivered an ace to tie the set at 15-15, and a Herr block followed by a Luoma kill gave the Lions an 18-16 lead. Penn State extended the run with a Herr-Gabriel block, Harvey adding a kill, and Rose firing off another ace for a 23-18 advantage.
Baggs and Oguz teamed up for a block, and Oguz’s soft dink down the line forced a Penn State timeout as Lewis trailed 23-20. Harvey took control out of the timeout, landing a cross-court shot and slamming down an overpass to seal a 25-21 Penn State win in the opening set.
Penn State came out strong to open the set as Gabriel scored on a swing off the block, then slammed an overpass straight down the middle to give the Lions a 3-1 lead. Herr followed with a service ace down the line, but Lewis answered with a back-row kill from Faber. Carter Dittman kept Penn State rolling with a kill before Oguzhan Oguz evened the score at 6-6.
Piotr Wymoczyl delivered an ace, but Dittman responded with a tip off the block. Rose notched a block, and Matthew Luoma powered a swing through the Flyers’ block. Dittman found the open corner for another Penn State point. Luoma stayed aggressive with a powerful swing, and Penn State held a 12-10 advantage.
Penn State took over defensively, including Gabriel stuffing the Flyers’ offense with a solo block to extend the lead to 15-11. Luoma continued his strong play, playing off the Lewis block to finish a long rally. Gauthier Brozak answered with a powerful swing for the Flyers, but Sean Harvey flew in from the back row to deliver a kill, pushing the Lions ahead 17-12.
Dittman added another kill to make it 18-13, and a Rose-Herr block extended the lead. Dittman once again found open floor for a kill, and Harvey scored off hands to stretch the lead to 22-15. Although Brozak notched another kill for Lewis, Luoma closed the set with a vicious swing off the block, sealing the 25-18 Penn State win.
Herr opened set three with a thunderous block, but Oguz responded immediately with a kill for Lewis. Gabriel sent a deep shot for a point, and Luoma struck hard off hands to even the score at 7-7. Owen Rose connected with Herr for a middle kill. Gauthier Brozak gave the Flyers the upper hand with a powerful service ace, giving Lewis an 11-8 advantage.
Luoma answered with a kill, but Lewis extended the lead with a block to make it 14-11. Harvey tallied another kill for Penn State, and Gabriel came up with a big block to pull the Lions within one at 13-12. Tristan Hassell kept Penn State close with a well-placed tip and then a cross-court kill to tie the set at 16-16.
Gabriel followed with a service ace, but the teams traded multiple service errors before Lewis finally ended the offensive drought with a kill. Harvey answered with a deep shot for Penn State, but Hoying responded for the Flyers. A Hoying-Baggs block assist forced a Penn State timeout as Lewis took a 21-20 lead. Haber delivered a cross-court kill, and Hoying caught the block to push the Flyers ahead 23-21. Brozak added another kill, and although Hassell kept Penn State within one at 24-23, an unsuccessful Penn State challenge sealed the set 25-23 in favor of Lewis.
Set four was Tristan Hassell’s set. Lewis came out aggressively in the fourth set, swinging hard off the block to set the tone early. Harvey answered with a kill for Penn State, but Baggs delivered a vicious solo block for the Flyers. Hassell chipped in a kill for the Nittany Lions as Lewis held a 4-3 lead. Wymoczyl threw one down for a Lewis point, and Haber followed with a kill to push the Flyers ahead 11-7. An Estrada block forced a Penn State timeout, and Estrada kept the pressure on with a service ace to make it 14-8. Penn State stopped the run with a point off a net violation, then Hassell and Gabriel combined for a block. Hassell followed with a tip to cut the deficit to 15-11.
Hassell continued to catch fire, adding another kill, his eighth of the match. Herr and Rose teamed up for a block to force a Lewis timeout as Penn State pulled within 16-14. Hassell stayed hot with a service ace, and after the teams traded service errors, Rose connected from the middle. Penn State trailed by just one at 19-18. Baggs tallied a kill for the Flyers, but Hassell answered with a tip and then back-to-back kills. Jaidyn Bethel landed a cross-court shot to give Penn State a 21-20 lead and force a Lewis timeout. Hassell closed out the game with a monstrous block and three kills that would give Penn State the 3-1 match win.
Takeaways
- Freshman Tristan Hassell was the dark horse for this Nittany Lion squad. He hit .550 with a team-high 13 kills on the night in just two sets of play. His late-game heroics proved to be game-changing.
- Penn State continues to struggle with service errors, tallying 23 in this match. The Nittany Lions will have to clean up their serving to keep unearned opponent points off the board.
- Ryan Merk continues to put on a strong showing from the libero position. He notched 11 digs in tonight’s matchup from an aggressive Lewis team.
- Lewis had not lost a single set through four games, including an impressive sweep of then-No. 9 Stanford. Penn State definitively ended that.
Up Next
The Nittany Lions will travel to Lebanon, Illinois, to take on McKendree in a two-game weekend series, beginning at 7 p.m. on Friday, January 23. The game will be streamed on the GLVC Sports Network.
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