Penn State Men’s Volleyball Looks to Extend Win Streak in 2 Weekend Games
No. 3 Penn State has been cruising through the regular season.
After a 4-3 start, the Nittany Lions have reeled off 16 straight victories, putting them at 20-3. During the winning streak, Penn State has won 48 sets and only lost six, with 11 of the matches being sweeps.
In their latest match, Penn State beat Saint Francis last Saturday in a 3-0 sweep.
The first set was the closest, with the teams dead even at 24-24 at one point.
Then, Brett Wildman took over, scoring three of the Nittany Lions’ final four points to lead a 28-26 set win.
Wildman was a force offensively during all three sets, leading in kills (12) and service aces (7).
After the first set, Penn State didn’t look back, winning the next two sets 25-21 and 25-18 respectively.
Looking for wins No. 17 and 18, the blue and white will face off against St. Francis Brooklyn on Friday followed by New Jersey Institute of Technology on Saturday.
Friday is not just a regular match. It will be senior night for seniors Canyon Tuman and Will Brantle.
There are six seniors altogether, but due to athletes being granted an extra year of eligibility due to the cancellation of the 2020 season, Wildman, Cole Bogner, Sam Marsh and Cal Fisher will all be returning for the 2022-23 season.
After starting the season 7-4, the Terriers have dropped seven of their last 10 matches. Their first loss to start the down stretch came against the Nittany Lions.
The last time the two teams faced off on Feb. 25, Penn State swept St. Francis Brooklyn 3-0.
The Nittany Lions dominated the first two sets, winning 25-18 and 25-14, respectively. The blue and white offense recorded hitting percentages of .409 and .474 in the two sets.
The third set didn’t play out the same, with the two teams going back and forth for a close finish.
After the Terriers took a 24-23, it was all Penn State, as they would finish on a 4-1 run to secure a 27-25 set win.
For Friday’s matchup, the Nittany Lions’ defense will have to key in on David Vorfi and Jack Hershman, who each recorded eight kills in the last matchup.
In Saturday’s matchup, NJIT is coming off a 3-0 win over Harvard on Saturday, improving its record to 13-8.
Out of all the matches during Penn State’s winning streak, its matchup against the Highlanders was one of the closest.
In the two teams last matchup on Feb. 26, they fought in a grueling first four sets to a 2-2 tie.
In the fifth set, Toby Ezenou and Wildman took over to finish it off, recording the team’s final five points to get the Nittany Lions a 15-13 set victory.
Penn State hopes for a better offensive performance on Saturday after recording a .150 hitting percentage in February.
The Highlanders’ defense made life difficult, recording 14 blocks and 54 digs. Griffin Fieseler and Joe Kennedy combined 32 of the 54 digs.
For its struggles on the offensive side, the defense picked up the slack, holding NJIT to a .214 hitting percentage.
The blue and white defense also tacked on 15 blocks, seven from Ezenou, to go along with 38 digs.
On Saturday, the Nittany Lion defense will have to key in on Julian Meissner and Alessandro Negri, who recorded 16 and 15 kills, respectively.
Timothy Lonas is a third-year majoring in digital/print journalism. To contact him, email him at tpl5336@psu.edu.
