No. 9 Men's Volleyball Set for Two Matches Against No. 1 Ohio State

Image Credit: Steven Walter

No. 9 Penn State Men's Volleyball is set for two matches against the top-ranked team in the nation this week. The Nittany Lions travel to Columbus to take on No. 1 Ohio State on Thursday at 6 p.m. and then host the Buckeyes at Rec Hall on Sunday at 3 p.m.

Penn State and Ohio State will play for the 122nd time in program history. The teams first played in 1978. The Nittany Lions are 15-22 against the Buckeyes on the road and 34-12 at home. Penn State won six of the past seven matchups, including two of three last season. The most recent win was in the quarterfinal round of the NCAA Tournament.

Toby Ezeonu has hit .517 while averaging 1.76 kills and 0.86 blocks per set in six career matches against Ohio State. Owen Rose has hit .652 while averaging 1.15 kills and 1.31 blocks per set in three career matches.

John Kerr had a breakout performance in a 3-1 win over the Buckeyes early last season. He hit .545 with 21 kills, one ace, five blocks, and four digs in a road victory.

SCOUTING OHIO STATE

Ohio State is 6-0 following five-set wins over then-No. 1 UCLA and then-No. 13 USC at the First Point Collegiate Challenge in Austin, Texas last week. The Buckeyes are one of just ten remaining unbeaten teams in the country. Jacob Pasteur, a first-team AVCA All-American and reigning MIVA Player of the Year, ranks fourth in the nation in points/set (5.06) and sixth in kills/set (4.19).

Penn State is set to play the top-ranked team in the nation in three consecutive matches. The Nittany Lions played then-No. 1 UCLA last week in Austin, Texas, and now have two games this week against new No. 1 Ohio State. The Nittany Lions have never played the No. 1 ranked team in consecutive matches, let alone three in a row.

On seven occasions, Penn State has played the No. 1 and No. 2 ranked teams in back-to-back matches.

Toby Ezeonu ranks second in the nation in hitting percentage (.548).

John Kerr ranks third in the nation in both points/set (5.14) and kills/set (4.39). Will Kuhns is coming off an excellent performance against UCLA in the last match. The senior provided a spark off the bench with a career-high nine kills on .400 hitting.

Thursday marks Penn State's first true road match of the season. The Nittany Lions opened the season with four straight wins at Rec Hall before dropping a pair of neutral-site matches. Sunday's match at Rec Hall is the team's annual Wear White Match. All fans are encouraged to wear white.

Penn State travels to play Ball State on Feb. 2 and Purdue Fort Wayne on Feb. 3.