Buckeyes Face Nittany Lions in the NCAA Championship Semifinals Thursday

Columbus, Ohio – The Ohio State (24-6) men’s volleyball team will face host Penn State (24-6) in the NCAA Championship semifinals at 9 p.m. Thursday, May 5 in Rec Hall on the campus of Penn State. The Buckeyes, the No. 3 seed, earned an automatic bid to the championship by winning the MIVA Tournament Saturday. No. 2 seed Penn State earned an automatic bid to the championship by winning the Eastern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association Tournament. The first semifinal, at 7 p.m., will be a repeat of the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation Tournament championship match between No. 4 seed UC Santa Barbara (17-14) and No. 1 seed Southern California (23-3). UC Santa Barbara, the No. 4 seed, won the MPSF Tournament championship with a 3-2 (20-25, 25-23, 21-25, 25-18, 16-14) victory over Southern California. The Trojans are the No. 1 seed in the championship. The semifinal winners play for the national championship at 7 p.m. Saturday. All three matches will be carried live by ESPN2 and ESPN3.com.

Ohio State and Penn State have played two matches this season. The Buckeyes won 3-0 (25-17, 25-21, 25-20) in Columbus (Feb. 9) and lost 3-1 (25-21, 18-25, 25-19, 25-9) in University Park (April 10).

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