Penn State Nittany Lions men's volleyball
| Penn State Nittany Lions men's volleyball |
|
|---|---|
 |
|
| University | Pennsylvania State University |
| Conference | EIVA |
| Location | University Park, PA |
| Head coach | Mark Pavlik (20th year) |
| Home arena | Rec Hall (Capacity: 7,200) |
| Nickname | Nittany Lions |
| Colors | Blue and White |
| NCAA Tournament Champions | |
| 1994, 2008 | |
| NCAA Tournament Runner Up | |
| 1982, 1995, 2006, 2010 | |
| NCAA Tournament Appearances | |
| 1981, 1982, 1983, 1986, 1987, 1989, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015 | |
| Conference Regular Season Champions | |
| 1981, 1982, 1983, 1986, 1987, 1989, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015 | |
The Penn State Nittany Lions men's volleyball program has had a long tradition at Penn State University. Founded by Dr. G. Tom Tait, Tait coached the team from 1976–1989, and was named a USA Volleyball All-Time great coach in 2007.
Mark Pavlik has been the head coach since 1995 after serving as an assistant coach for five years. He has led the team to every EIVA conference championship since 1995 with the exception of 1998. Under his guidance, Penn State finished as NCAA runners-up in 1995 and 2006 before winning it all in 2008. He also led the team to an NCAA record of 15 straight (1999–2013) NCAA Final Four appearances. Pavlik was awarded his first ever AVCA National Coach of the Year in 2008.
Penn State made their first ever NCAA Championship match this year. Current head coach Mark Pavlik was a manager on the team. Penn State was swept by perennial powerhouse UCLA in the final at Rec Hall, led by future Olympic gold medalist and Most Outstanding Player Karch Kiraly.
1994 was a historic year, as Penn State became the first non-California university to win the men's volleyball championship. Playing in Fort Wayne, Indiana, the Lions defeated defending NCAA champion UCLA in a five-set match. After falling behind 2 sets to 1, UCLA looked to have the championship in their hands after being up 11–4 in the fourth set, needing to only get to 15. However, the Lions mounted a stunning comeback and went on an 11–1 run to take set four 15–12 and set five with the same score to win the national championship. It was then-head coach Tom Peterson's last year.
Penn State got back to the final four, losing to UCLA in a five-set match in the semifinals. Senior Ivan Contreras was named the AVCA National Player of the Year, the first ever east coast player to win the award. Brad Sweitzer's errant serve in the fifth set cost the Lions a trip to the championship game.
After eight straight years of making the NCAA final four and losing in the semifinals, Penn State finally broke through. They defeated top ranked and top-seeded UC Irvine in the semifinals at Rec Hall in five games. Despite the successful semifinal result, Penn State lost to UCLA in the national championship.
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