UC Irvine celebrates with teammates after scoring in the second game of the NCAA men's volleyball tournament against Penn State on Tuesday, April 30, 2024 at Walter Pyramid in California State Long Beach. middle blocker Connor Campbell (17 years old). (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Pasadena Star-News/SCNG)
LONG BEACH — The University of California, Irvine men's volleyball team remained in contention for another day at the NCAA Championships with a convincing victory over Penn State in the quarterfinals Tuesday afternoon at Walter Pyramid.
The fourth-seeded Anteeters gradually closed the gap on fifth-seeded Penn State as the game progressed, eventually winning by a score of 26-24, 25-16, 25-19.
Irvine (20-10) will play top-seeded UCLA in the semifinals Thursday night.
“At this point in the season, it feels like you're playing against these guys for days on end,” UCI coach David Kniffin said. “If we win, we are guaranteed at least two more days.”
Hilil Henno had 15 kills and five blocks to lead the Anteeters, who finished with a .284 attack percentage.
The Nittany Lions (23-7) hit just .188 while committing 15 service errors.
“I probably didn't enjoy that game as much as I should have,” Kniffin said. “That's the nervousness I sometimes experience when playing against people I respect.”
In the opening game, neither team led by more than three points.
Henno got a kill after a long rally to give the Anteeters the game point at 24-22, but Penn State scored two straight points on a service error and a hitting error.
Akil Tangtur spiked into the back line to give Irvine another game point, and after a big dig from Henno, Tangtur won the joust at the net for UCI's opening win. .
“When I'm in the front row, obviously Hilil gets the majority of our attempts. When he's in the back row, our attack needs to be a little more spread out,” Tangtur said. “Both of those times I was pretty much one-on-one (with my blocker) and I was down a chip, so I think it’s just a credit to me that I was able to make the pass toward the end of the set.”
The Anteeters scored five straight points off Brett Sheward's serve in the second game to take an 8-2 lead.
The Nittany Lions struggled to get within four points before Irvine pulled away and won 25-16.
The Anteeters jumped out to an early 9-4 lead in Game 3, but this time Penn State closed the gap and the score was tied at 10.
After a service error gave the lead back to the Aunties, a Penn State hitting error resulted in a block by Connor Campbell, increasing UCI's lead to 13-10.
The Anteeters extended their advantage to 18-13, with Penn State twice cutting the gap to two.
Henno's off-speed kill gave Irvine the game point at 24-19, and a Penn State net violation ended the game.