Volleyball looks to hand PSU first home loss in 7 years

Tonight, Penn volleyball makes its second consecutive appearance in the NCAA Tournament as it faces No. 13 Penn State on the road in State College, Pa.

Win or lose tonight, the Quakers' 2002 season will be classified as a success.

The Red and Blue have earned their second straight Ivy League championship and garnered five All-Ivy selections.

Penn enters the match ranked seventh in the Northeast region, the highest rating in the program's history.

And the Quakers have played extraordinarily well recently, winning their last 12 matches and 21 of their final 22.

Yet this streak pales in comparison to the one that the Nittany Lions bring into today's match.

PSU has not lost at home since Nov. 25, 1995, a win streak of 80 matches.

And, in case you didn't realize, the Nittany Lions will be hosting tonight's match in Happy Valley.

But the Quakers relish the fact that they are the underdog.

"We have nothing to lose," senior co-captain Liz Watty said. "We'll leave our hearts on the court."

But one can only be so optimistic when facing the Nittany Lions.

Their over-towering height -- each PSU player is at least two inches taller than the average Penn player -- will be a big factor in the match.

"As one of the shorter players on the team, blocking is going to be really difficult," junior setter Meghan Schloat said. "We need to be incredibly disciplined."

Penn coach Kerry Carr has constructed a gameplan that aims to "use the block," a phrase which refers to essentially hitting around the block rather than hitting through it.

"Penn State has two strong middles with [Cara] Levy and [Mishka] Smith," Carr said. "Levy is their number one player so we will be tracking her and have two blocks on her at all times."

Even with their current win streak and extensive scouting report, the Quakers understand that a victory over Penn State will not be easy.

Nonetheless, the Quakers are determined to make a name for Penn and Ivy League volleyball.

"We are as good as scholarship schools," Carr said. "Penn State will have to play at the top of their game to beat us."

In last year's tournament matchup with No. 8 UCLA, Penn put up a valiant fight, but fell, 30-26, 30-25, and 30-23.

The Quakers vow that their performance this year will be even better.

"We hope to not only surprise people, but also to win a game or even the whole match," Watty said.

If Penn finds a way to defeat the Nittany Lions, it would not be the first 2002 Penn team to reach the second round of the NCAA tournament, as the men's soccer team defeated Seton Hall just two weeks ago.

But a Penn victory over PSU would mark the first ever win for an Ivy League team in the NCAA Volleyball Tournament.

"A victory over a top-20 team would be huge," Carr said.

"It would be incredible to win," Schloat said. "We would make history."

But as optimistic as the Quakers are, odds are that Penn will not be able to pull out a win in the match.

Indeed, even winning one or two games would be impressive.

One could even argue that winning one game against the Nittany Lions would be a victory.

"No on expects us to win," Watty said. "But our work ethic is so strong, and we'll just try to play smart."

The Quakers have had a great season regardless of the outcome of this match, dominating the Ivy League and setting several new records for the Penn volleyball program.

As they face the No. 13 team in the country, there is no pressure on the Red and Blue to win.

All the Quakers want is respect.

"Win or lose," Carr said, "we will show that we belong there."

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