Friday, February 2
Fort Wayne, Ind.
7 PM
Purdue Fort Wayne
vs
Saint Francis (Pa.)
Axel Melendez Watts
Photo by: Josh Gales
Mastodons Host Trio of Men's Volleyball Matches Over Five Days
1/31/2024 2:47:00 PM | Men's Volleyball
FORT WAYNE, Ind. - Purdue Fort Wayne men's volleyball will play host to Saint Francis (Pa.), No. 8 Penn State and No. 13 Loyola Chicago in a five-day span.
Game Day Information
Who: Saint Francis (Pa.) | Penn State | Loyola Chicago
When: Friday, Saturday, Tuesday | February 2, 3, 6 | 7 PM
Where: Fort Wayne, Ind. | Gates Sports Center
Live Stats: Link
Watch: Friday | Saturday | Tuesday
Tickets: Friday | Saturday | Tuesday
Game Notes: Purdue Fort Wayne | Saint Francis | Penn State | Loyola Chicago | MIVA
Know Your Foes
• Saint Francis is 3-4 to start 2024 with wins over Dominican, Central State and Queens. The Red Flash fell to Ohio State in the season opener in four sets. Against the common foe of NJIT, SFU lost in five sets, the same as the Mastodons. Andrew Deardorff is averaging a team-best 3.28 kills per set while Nathan Zini is pitching in 2.74.
• Penn State is 6-2 and is coming off a pair of wins against then-No. 1 Ohio State. It was a four-set win on the road and a five-set reverse sweep in University Park. That win over Ohio State is their only result in a true road environment. John Kerr is the best Nittany Lion attacker, averaging 3.59 kills per set and a .352 hitting percentage.
• Loyola Chicago is 5-5 in the first 10 matches of 2024, but the Ramblers have played one of the toughest schedules in the nation. They split with No. 3 Hawaii, took No. 8 Stanford and No. 9 BYU to five, fell to No. 1 UCLA in three, and topped No. 16 George Mason in four. Parker Van Buren has been a mainstay for LUC over the last three seasons, averaging a NCAA second-best 4.20 kills per set for his career.
Series Histories
• Purdue Fort Wayne leads the all-time series against Saint Francis 15-7 and has won three of the last four meetings. Saint Francis won last season's meeting 3-2. It has not been a 3-0 match between the two teams since 2016, an SFU victory. The series dates back to 2003 when the 'Dons won 3-0.
• Penn State holds a 46-16 advantage over the Mastodons in the series which dates back to 1984. The Nittany Lions won the first 10 meetings. The Mastodons are 9-20 against PSU in Fort Wayne, including a 3-1 win in 2019. Penn State won last year's meeting in Hawaii 3-0.
• Loyola Chicago leads the series 41-24 dating back to 1996. The 'Dons have won two of the last three, including last year's match in Fort Wayne. That match saw Jon Diedrich record 19 kills and Bryce Walker add 14 kills and nine blocks.
Hello Old Friend
Former Purdue Fort Wayne assistant coach Lindsay Brown is now an assistant coach at Loyola Chicago. After her time in Fort Wayne, she spent a year at Princeton before joining Loyola's staff in May of 2023.
Home Hype
In their second match against Hawaii, Purdue Fort Wayne had an attendance of 1,385, which was the most in a home match since 2008, the year following the Mastodons' trip to the NCAA championship match.
That Seems Good
Andrej Polomac ranks 10th in the nation and is second in the MIVA with 9.76 assists per set this season.
Efficient Hitting
Purdue Fort Wayne is second in the MIVA and 14th nationally with a .317 hitting percentage this season. The Mastodons have hit over .300 in four of the five matches this season, including three over .400.
Movin' Up The List
Jon Diedrich joined the 1,000-kill club in 2023 in a match against Charleston. He is among the 20 Mastodons that have eclipsed this mark. Here's where he ranks.
12. Andrew Sellan - 1315 (2008-11)
13. Darryl Shank - 1310 (2008-11)
14. Raul Papaleo - 1264 (1990-93)
15. Ted Owen - 1206 (1984-87)
16. Jon Diedrich - 1204 (2020-24)
Papa Jon
Fifth-year player Jon Diedrich is the active NCAA career leader with 1,204 kills. Ohio State's Jacob Pasteur is right behind with 1,201.
Last Time Out
Hawaii took a pair of matches from Purdue Fort Wayne 3-1 and 3-0. In the second match, Jon Diedrich had eight kills on 14 errorless swings.
Coming Up
Purdue Fort Wayne will visit Queens for a pair of MIVA matches on February 9-10. This is Queens' first year in the MIVA.
Game Day Information
Who: Saint Francis (Pa.) | Penn State | Loyola Chicago
When: Friday, Saturday, Tuesday | February 2, 3, 6 | 7 PM
Where: Fort Wayne, Ind. | Gates Sports Center
Live Stats: Link
Watch: Friday | Saturday | Tuesday
Tickets: Friday | Saturday | Tuesday
Game Notes: Purdue Fort Wayne | Saint Francis | Penn State | Loyola Chicago | MIVA
Know Your Foes
• Saint Francis is 3-4 to start 2024 with wins over Dominican, Central State and Queens. The Red Flash fell to Ohio State in the season opener in four sets. Against the common foe of NJIT, SFU lost in five sets, the same as the Mastodons. Andrew Deardorff is averaging a team-best 3.28 kills per set while Nathan Zini is pitching in 2.74.
• Penn State is 6-2 and is coming off a pair of wins against then-No. 1 Ohio State. It was a four-set win on the road and a five-set reverse sweep in University Park. That win over Ohio State is their only result in a true road environment. John Kerr is the best Nittany Lion attacker, averaging 3.59 kills per set and a .352 hitting percentage.
• Loyola Chicago is 5-5 in the first 10 matches of 2024, but the Ramblers have played one of the toughest schedules in the nation. They split with No. 3 Hawaii, took No. 8 Stanford and No. 9 BYU to five, fell to No. 1 UCLA in three, and topped No. 16 George Mason in four. Parker Van Buren has been a mainstay for LUC over the last three seasons, averaging a NCAA second-best 4.20 kills per set for his career.
Series Histories
• Purdue Fort Wayne leads the all-time series against Saint Francis 15-7 and has won three of the last four meetings. Saint Francis won last season's meeting 3-2. It has not been a 3-0 match between the two teams since 2016, an SFU victory. The series dates back to 2003 when the 'Dons won 3-0.
• Penn State holds a 46-16 advantage over the Mastodons in the series which dates back to 1984. The Nittany Lions won the first 10 meetings. The Mastodons are 9-20 against PSU in Fort Wayne, including a 3-1 win in 2019. Penn State won last year's meeting in Hawaii 3-0.
• Loyola Chicago leads the series 41-24 dating back to 1996. The 'Dons have won two of the last three, including last year's match in Fort Wayne. That match saw Jon Diedrich record 19 kills and Bryce Walker add 14 kills and nine blocks.
Hello Old Friend
Former Purdue Fort Wayne assistant coach Lindsay Brown is now an assistant coach at Loyola Chicago. After her time in Fort Wayne, she spent a year at Princeton before joining Loyola's staff in May of 2023.
Home Hype
In their second match against Hawaii, Purdue Fort Wayne had an attendance of 1,385, which was the most in a home match since 2008, the year following the Mastodons' trip to the NCAA championship match.
That Seems Good
Andrej Polomac ranks 10th in the nation and is second in the MIVA with 9.76 assists per set this season.
Efficient Hitting
Purdue Fort Wayne is second in the MIVA and 14th nationally with a .317 hitting percentage this season. The Mastodons have hit over .300 in four of the five matches this season, including three over .400.
Movin' Up The List
Jon Diedrich joined the 1,000-kill club in 2023 in a match against Charleston. He is among the 20 Mastodons that have eclipsed this mark. Here's where he ranks.
12. Andrew Sellan - 1315 (2008-11)
13. Darryl Shank - 1310 (2008-11)
14. Raul Papaleo - 1264 (1990-93)
15. Ted Owen - 1206 (1984-87)
16. Jon Diedrich - 1204 (2020-24)
Papa Jon
Fifth-year player Jon Diedrich is the active NCAA career leader with 1,204 kills. Ohio State's Jacob Pasteur is right behind with 1,201.
Last Time Out
Hawaii took a pair of matches from Purdue Fort Wayne 3-1 and 3-0. In the second match, Jon Diedrich had eight kills on 14 errorless swings.
Coming Up
Purdue Fort Wayne will visit Queens for a pair of MIVA matches on February 9-10. This is Queens' first year in the MIVA.
~ Feel the Rumble ~
Players Mentioned
OH/OPP
/ Men's Volleyball
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/ Men's Volleyball
MB
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