WHO: Men's Volleyball at No. 6 Penn State
WHERE: Rec Hall, State College, Pa.
FINAL SCORE: Penn State 3, Mason 1
KEY PLAYERS: Christian Malias – 16 kills (match-high), 8 digs (match-high); Dom Edgley – 10 kills (career-high), .533 hitting (match-high); Jack Wilson – 14 kills

State College, Pa. – After a tough loss at Saint Francis on Friday, George Mason University's men's volleyball team came out with a different attitude against undefeated EIVA opponent Penn State and took a set from the sixth-ranked Nittany Lions for the first time since 2014, despite ultimately falling in four sets at Rec Hall on Saturday night.

MATCH NOTES

-Junior outside hitter Christian Malias went hand-in-hand with Penn State's leading attacker Chris Nugent on the night and tied him for a match-high 16 kills and 8 digs. Two more Patriots registered double digits – redshirt junior outside hitter Jack Wilson returned to the starting lineup with 14 kills while redshirt senior middle blocker Dom Edgley had a career night with 10 kills with a match-best .533 hitting performance.

-Spencer Sauter was closest to Nugent in attack productivity for the Nittany Lions, managing 8 kills.

-Penn State was the first team to lead by two in a close first set when a block-out by Matt Seifert putt the Nittany Lions up 9-7. Mason provided a lightning-quick response with a kill by redshirt freshman middle blocker Garrett Kollar, an ace by Malias, and capitalized on a Penn State attack error to get back in the lead. 10-9. Soon after the Patriots picked up their first two-point lead at 15-13 after moments of brilliance by Wilson, who registered two kills and two aces to lead his team on a 4-0 run for its biggest lead of the set. Mason were up on one more occasion after the resulting timeout for Penn State – at 17-15 – but the Nittany Lions tied the score immediately and went on to win five of the next six points to go up 22-18 and get in poll position to win the opening set. The Patriots halved the lead with a kill by Wilson and an ace by Malias, forcing the second Nittany Lion timeout. Later, the Patriots gave Penn State one more scare when they came State's favor, 25-23.

-The second progressed in a different manner. Mason took control early on at the backyard of its prestigious opponent and doubled Penn State's points at 6-3 with a kill by Edgley, shortly before the lead grew to four for the first time at 13-9 with another one of Wilson's five aces in the match, which also forced a timeout by the Nittany Lions' head coach Mark Pavlik. The teams then exchanged runs, one that brought Penn State back on level terms at 15 all and another that recovered Mason's three-point lead at 19-16 with a Wilson kill. However, once Nugent tied the score once again at 19 with his fifth kill of the set, the closing stages turned into a nitty-gritty battle ultimately won by the Nittany Lions with the narrowest of margin once again, 25-23.

-Mason's coaching staff made a rare and rather surprising change at the libero position before the start of the third set, handing Seth Blevins a second appearance in the season. The freshman demonstrated composure from the moment he stepped on the court and provided an assist for Malias' kill that gave the Patriots a 1-0 lead. Solid receiving was the start to many successful Mason attack in one of the team's best executed sets this season. Mason had a four-point lead only 10 plays into the set, 7-3, and doubled Penn State's points soon after at 10-5, forcing a Nittany Lion timeout. The Patriots never let their foot off the gas offensively and hit .667 on their way to lead by as many as nine at 19-10. They closed out the set with the same margin and became the first team to hold Penn State to 16 points in a set this season while limiting the Nittany Lions to a -.053 hitting performance.

-After an even start to the fourth set, Penn State went on a 5-1 run to force a timeout by Mason's head coach Jay Hosack at 13-9. Only three plays later, the teams were by their benches again, this time at the expense of Pavlik, after back-to-back-to-back points by the Patriots cut the Nittany Lions' lead to one, 13-12. The timeout could not, however, cease Mason's momentum and shortly after the Patriots found themselves in the lead on a kill by Malias, 16-15. After several minutes of even play, Penn State pulled away by two at 20-18. Kills by Kollar and Malias brought the Patriots within one on separate occasions, lastly at 21-20, but the Nittany Lions capitalized on several Mason errors to close the set 25-20 and escape with the win, their 11^th straight.

STAT BREAKDOWN

-Mason outhit the sixth-best team in the nation with its collective .241 attack efficiency, which led to 50 kills by the Patriots on the night. Penn State hit .221 in the contest and recorded 43 kills.

-In addition, Mason's aggressive attackers forced 30 digs from their opponents with the Patriots picking up 24 on their own.

-The Patriots served aggressively throughout the match and racked up 7 service aces – five more than the Nittany Lions – which in part cast a shadow over the number of errors that the Patriots committed from behind the line, 22.

POST-MATCH COMMENTS

 “First and foremost, it's always a pleasure to come back to Rec Hall and State College. [Pavlik] is one of the best coaches in the country and has taught me an awful lot and I cannot be more grateful to him for the opportunity when I was here.”

“I thought tonight was the best volleyball that we've played all season. I am really proud of my guys and the way they played tonight.”

“We have watched Seth over the past week and he is starting to turn a corner so Joe and I decided to give him a shot. He did a really nice job, made some digs and sets and handled some really tough serves with which we were struggling earlier. My hat's off to him.” – Mason's head coach Jay Hosack

“Rather than being nervous or scared walking into Rec Hall, we played the same way in which we did against BYU – we had nothing to lose so we just did our thing.” – Mason's junior captain Christian Malias

NEXT ON THE COURT

Mason continues its six-match road trip next weekend with matches at Princeton and NJIT.