After a blowout loss to No. 2 Long Beach State last Friday, No. 9 Penn State continues its challenge at California Road with a matchup against No. 16 CSU Northridge.
The top-20 matchup was a disappointment, with Penn State holding off a strong Matadors comeback and winning 3-1.
Both teams struggled to get to the service line early in the first set, with the Matadors committing three service errors and trailing 6-3.
Meanwhile, the Nittany Lions took advantage of CSUN's mistakes and found their own offense on the service line. Blue-White took a 12-5 lead in the first set thanks to Toby Ezeonu's ace.
Despite their own mistakes, the Matadors fought back after the second timeout and went on a 3-0 run, taking advantage of their tough team defense at the net with three blocks. CSUN came back into the game with a 13-11 lead.
Both teams settled in and started finding themselves on both sides of the net, with Kyle Horvath leading CSUN with three kills. As for the Nittany Lions, John Kerr and Michael Valenzi led the way with three kills each, helping lead Penn State by a score of 19-17.
Penn State was able to survive a ferocious comeback from the Matadors and win the first set 25-21 thanks to Matt Cosgrove's ace late in the set.
The story of the first set was that both teams struggled on the service line, with a combined six service errors. The main difference was that the Nittany Lions hit two aces to secure the first set victory.
The same pattern continued in CSUN's second set, with four early service errors keeping Penn State in the set early. Although the Matadors' attack was successful, the game ended in a 5-5 tie.
The Matadors continued to have great success at the net on offense, but six service errors kept Penn State in the game and led 13-11.
In the second set, the Nittany Lion offense, specifically attackers Michal Kowal and Owen Rose, began to dominate the match, and Penn State opened up a 19-16 lead late in the second set.
Opposing batter John Kerr, 9, jumps to spike the ball during a game against NJIT on Saturday, Feb. 24, 2024, at the South Gym. Penn State defeated NJIT 3-0.
Rose was able to shut out the Matadors perfectly, allowing Penn State to win the second set 25-21. The reason for CSUN's loss was that they struggled at the service line with nine service errors in the set.
The Matadors jumped out to start the third set with two kills from Donovan Constable and Horvath and capitalized on Penn State's mistakes to take a 5-2 lead early in the third.
CSUN extended its lead in the third set with two kills from Matteo Salvador and some great play at the net, extending their lead to 10-6.
The Nittany Lions tried to pull the Matadors to just two points and claw their way back into the set. Instead, Kyle Horvath had a kill, followed by two consecutive aces to give CSUN a 15-10 lead.
The Matadors offense turned up the heat on Penn State and began dominating the net, increasing their lead to 23-17, shutting down the Nittany Lions offense and attacking their defense. '
CSUN shut the door on the blue and white and took advantage of five Penn State service errors while winning the third set 25-17 behind a great attack from Horvath and Salvador.
Carr had two kills early in the fourth set, giving the Nittany Lions a narrow 8-5 lead and closing the door on CSUN's comeback.
Both teams continued to battle on the service line, making four consecutive service errors, two on each side, and John Kerr's 10th kill of the game gave Penn State a narrow 15-13 lead. Ta.
The Nittany Lions' defense kept the Matadors hot at the net, allowing Carr 12 kills and extending the lead to 22-16.
CSUN responded to the heat by scoring five straight points against Penn State, cutting the lead to 22-21.
Ezeonu closed the door on CSUN's comeback with a game-ending block. This gave Penn State a 25-23 lead in the fourth set and a 3-1 victory.
The Nittany Lions will stay in California to take on No. 12 USC on Wednesday night at 10 p.m.
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Like many students, Penn State kicked off spring break with a road trip Friday.
