UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – Penn State Men’s Volleyball is the back-to-back champion in the EIVA after beating George Mason 3-1 (24-26, 25-20, 25-22, 25-16) in the final round of the conference tournament Saturday night at Rec Hall.
The Nittany Lions improved to 23-6 on the season while winning the 34th EIVA Tournament title in program history. John Kerr was named the Tournament MVP and was joined on the All-Tournament Team by teammates Toby Ezeonu, Michael Schwoband Michael Valenzi.
Penn State earned the conference’s automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. The bracket will be unveiled during the selection show live on NCAA.com on Sunday at 4 pm
Ezeonu, who played in his first EIVA title match after missing last season’s with an injury, gave George Mason fits in the middle with his 16 kills on .625 hitting, six blocks and a career-high six digs. If it wasn’t Ezeonu taking care of business in the middle, it was Owen Rosewho hit .500 with five kills and six blocks.
Kerr started slow but finished strong with his double-double of 19 kills and 12 digs. Including his 31-kill performance in a four-set win over Harvard in the semifinal round, he averaged 6.25 kills/set for the tournament.
Schwob stuffed the stat sheet as a setter, finishing with 47 assists, eight digs, five blocks, and five aces. His serving played a pivotal role in each of Penn State’s wins in the tournament.
Valenzi and Michael Kowal tallied eight and six kills, respectively. Ryan Merk was his usual presence at libero, finishing with nine digs and a perfect 21-for-21 mark in served receptions.
Penn State was exceptional from the service line with 12 aces compared to 13 service errors. In addition to Schwob’s big night, Kowal had four aces, Ezeonu tallied two, and Kerr chipped in with one.
George Mason’s Jack Bolz and Omar Hoyos made the All-Tournament Team. Bolz hit .302 with 20 kills against Penn State, while Hoyos added 13 kills on .312 hitting.
Set 1
Bolz started strong with eight kills to lead George Mason to a 26-24 win in the opening set. Sam Peters put the Patriots up 24-21 with a kill before Penn State stormed back to tie it at 24-24 with a 3-0 run. Valenzi, Kerr, and Kowal scored the Nittany Lions’ points with kills. Peters then ended the run with another kill. The Patriots followed with a block by Hoyos and Lucas Little to take a 1-0 lead in the match.
Set 2
Two aces apiece by Schwob and Kowal helped Penn State take set two by a 25-20 score. Kowal’s first ace gave the Nittany Lions an early 6-1 lead. That lead was eventually erased as George Mason used a 3-0 run to go up 12-11. The teams battled close for a while until Penn State went on a 4-0 run to go up 21-16. Each of Schwob’s two aces in the set came during that run. The Nittany Lions led by at least three the rest of the way until scoring set point on a George Mason attack error.
Set 3
Kerr turned it up a notch in the third set with eight kills to help Penn State get a 25-22 win. Schwob added three more aces, which again came during critical moments. The first two came back-to-back during a 4-0 run that helped the Nittany Lions erase a 5-2 early deficit. The third ace followed a kill by Kerr and tied the score at 15-15. The score was tied as late as 19-19 before Penn State scored consecutive points thanks to a kill by Kerr and a block by Ezeonu and Kowal. The Patriots got within one at 21-20 and 22-21 but gave points to Penn State both times with service errors. Kowal came through with another ace to put the Nittany Lions up 24-21. Set point was scored shortly after with a kill by Ezeonu.
Set 4
Ezeonu took over in the final set, going a perfect 5-for-5 on his attacks to lead Penn State to a 25-16 win and the tournament title. The Nittany Lions added three more aces, which came from Kowal, Kerr, and Ezeonu. They went up 6-2 early and never relinquished the lead. Penn State used a 3-0 run to go up 15-10 and a 5-0 run to go up 20-11. Match point was eventually scored on an ace off the tape by Kerr.
Career Highs
Toby Ezeonu – digs (6)
Michael Schwob – aces (5)
