Mastodons Head East For Matches at Saint Francis and Penn State

FORT WAYNE, Ind. - The Fort Wayne men's volleyball team hits the road for a pair of matches at EIVA foes (RV) Saint Francis (Pa.) and No. 9 Penn State on Friday and Saturday (Feb. 2-3).

Gameday Information at Saint Francis (Pa.)
WHEN: Friday, February 2 | 7 p.m.
WHERE: Loretto, Pa. | Degol Arena
LIVE STATS: sidearmstats.com/francis/mvball/
LIVE VIDEO: http://necfrontrow.com/schools.php?title=SFPA
LIVE AUDIO: portal.stretchinternet.com/fortwayne
Play-by-Play: Mike Maahs
SERIES HISTORY: Fort Wayne leads 12-6
LAST MEETING: Fort Wayne 2, Saint Francis 3 (25-21, 22-25, 25-22, 21-25, 15-12) | January 13, 2017 | Fort Wayne, Ind.

Gameday Information at No. 9 Penn State
WHEN: Saturday, February 3 | 4 p.m.
WHERE: University Park, Pa. | Rec Hall South Gym
LIVE STATS:http://www.gopsusports.com/gametracker/launch/gt_mvolley.htmlevent=1579087&school=psu&sport=mvolley&camefrom=&startschool=&
LIVE AUDIO: portal.stretchinternet.com/fortwayne
Play-by-Play: Mike Maahs
SERIES HISTORY: Penn State leads 44-15
LAST MEETING: Fort Wayne 0, Penn State 3 (25-16, 25-23, 27-25) | January 14, 2017 | Fort Wayne, Ind.

No. 15 Fort Wayne Mastodons 7-0, 0-0 MIVA
Coach: Ryan "Rock" Perrotte | Third Season (22-42)
Kills: 286 | Pelegrin Vargas (85)
Attack %: .345 | Tomas Gago (.585)
Digs: 166 | Michael Keegan (50)
Blocks: 57.0 | Richie Diedrich (24)
Aces: 33 | Colton Stone (9)

Scouting the Mastodons
Fort Wayne enters the weekend 7-0. Pelegrin Vargas leads the team in kills per set with 3.86, followed by Colton Stone with 3.05 per set. Michael Keegan is pacing the Mastodons' .345 hitting percentage with 10.33 assists per set. Tomas Gago leads the 'Dons with 1.44 blocks per set, a national best. Fort Wayne moved into the AVCA Top 15 Poll on January 29 for the first time since April, 20, 2015.

(RV) Saint Francis (PA.) Red Flash 5-5, 0-0 EIVA
Coach: Mike Rumbaugh
Kills: 352 | Stephen Braswell (93)
Attack %: .216 | Keith Kegerreis (.289)
Assists: 324 | Joseph Koszelak (234)
Digs: 290 | Stephen Braswell (64)
Blocks: 65.0 | Keith Kegerreis (36)
Aces: 47 | Stephen Braswell (20)

Scouting the Red Flash
Saint Francis will enter its match with Fort Wayne with a .500 record at 5-5. It's only win over a Top 15 team was over then No. 8 Stanford. The Red Flash have faced seven teams that were or spent time in the Top 15 this season. Three members of Saint Francis' team have 75 kills or more on the season.

No. 9 Penn State Nittany Lions 3-2, 0-0 EIVA
Coach: Mark Pavlik
Kills: 196 | Aidan Albrecht (49)
Attack %: .346 | Jalen Penrose (.368)
Assists: 182 | Luke Braswell (161)
Digs: 99 | Matthew McLaren (24)
Blocks: 24.0 | Kevin Gear (15)
Aces: 26 | Jalen Penrose (9)

Scouting the Nittany Lions
Penn State starts the weekend 3-2, but will have a match with Ball State on Friday before welcoming the Mastodons on Saturday. PSU has wins over Mount Olive, Alderson Broaddus and USC. Losses came to the Nittany Lions at the hands of UCLA and Ohio State. Penn State has seven juniors and seniors on its squad.

AVCA Top 15 'Dons
Fort Wayne moved into the AVCA Top 15 Coaches Poll on January 29, coming in at No. 15. The Mastodons are ranked for the first time since April 20, 2015, which was also a spot at No. 15.

One of Three
Fort Wayne is one of just three programs in the country with an undefeated record through the month of January. No. 1 Long Beach State is 9-0 and Charleston is 3-0.

National Leader
After arriving on campus on January 2, Tomas Gago is ranked first in the nation in blocks per set with 1.438.He did not compete in Fort Wayne's first two matches of the year, but has since posted five or more blocks in three matches. This is the most on Fort Wayne's roster. This included eight blocks against Harvard and seven against Sacred Heart.

Undefeated Start
Fort Wayne started 4-0 for the first time since 2007. That marked the fourth time in program history that the Mastodons have started 4-0. The best start in program history was in 2007, when the 'Dons started 8-0. In that season, the Mastodons went to the national championship match, before falling to UC Irvine. Through seven matches, the 'Dons are still undefeated, which is the third time in program history to start 7-0. 2007 and 1999 were the two other seasons to have a 7-0 start.

Bringing Out the Brooms
Six of Fort Wayne's seven victories so far this season have been sweeps. The Mastodons only dropped one set in January in a 3-1 win over Harvard.

In the Rankings...
Fort Wayne is ranked in the top five in the country in assists per set (4th), hitting percentage (3rd), kills per set (3rd) and win/loss percentage (T-1st). The 'Dons own 12.09 assists per set, .345 hitting percentage, 13.00 kills per set, and a perfect 1.000 win/loss percentage. Individually, Michael Keegan is sixth in the country and second in the MIVA in assists per set with 10.33. Tomas Gago is first in the nation in blocks per set with 1.438. Pelegrin Vargas is fourth in the country and second in the MIVA with 3.86 kills per set.

Last Time Out
Fort Wayne came away with a three-set victory over the Lourdes Gray Wolves. Pelegrin Vargas led the Mastodons with 13 kills on the night.

Next Time Up
The Mastodons continue its road stretch, and opens MIVA competition with a pair of matches at McKendree and Ohio State. Ohio State is ranked fifth in the AVCA Poll for January 29.

~ Feel the Rumble ~

Mastodons Head East For Matches at Saint Francis and Penn State

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Players Mentioned

Richie Diedrich

Tomas Gago

Michael Keegan

Colton Stone

Pelegrin Vargas

Purdue University Fort Wayne Athletics