During a tough five set loss earlier this week to Saint Francis, Penn State has to find a way to bounce back – with the loss of Chris Nugent and Aidan Albrecht.
In the loss, Nugent came down with an ankle injury that removed him from the match. Head coach Mark Pavlik is doubtful that he will be making a return to the court for their two weekend matches. With Nugent is down with an injury, Albrecht, the back-up outside hitter has recently fell sick – being marked as questionable for the weekend.
It is unclear as to how Pavlik will handle the loss of two players for their weekend matches to Harvard and Sacred Heart, especially after dropping a five setter earlier in the week. With the loss to Saint Francis it knocked the Nittany Lions out of first place in the EIVA.
The loss of Nugent will hit the Nittany Lions hard, as he is their top producer so far this season with 175 kills on a .320 hitting percentage. He also is tied for second in service aces on the team with 10. Defensively, they are losing a consistent player, as Nugent has picked up 63 digs this season.
Before this week, Penn State had to test their depths with their starting setter, Luke Braswell, out of the lineup with an injury – where true freshman Nathan Smith has stepped up to the task.
The Nittany Lions will bounce back into action this weekend with two home matches against Harvard on February 17 and Sacred Heart on February 18.
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