There hasn’t been a ton of action yet in the EIVA, but Penn State seemingly has emerged as the front runner in the league. There are questions to who can challenge them, with a few possibilities who will even get a shot at Penn State soon. This should be a one-bid league to the NCAA Tournament too, so the league title race becomes all the more important from start to finish.
With new story-lines emerging and a new season of sorts in league play commencing, VolleyMob will be giving conference updates. Below is analysis as well as the weekly EIVA table, awards, matches of the week and power rankings:
EIVA TABLE:
| TEAM | CONF. | OVERALL |
| #8 Penn State | 3-0 | 8-2 |
| (RV) Charleston | 2-0 | 7-1 |
| #20 George Mason | 2-0 | 6-7 |
| #16 Saint Francis | 2-1 | 7-8 |
| Harvard | 1-2 | 1-8 |
| NJIT | 0-1 | 2-8 |
| Sacred Heart | 0-3 | 2-6 |
| Princeton | 0-3 | 1-10 |
WEEKLY HONORS:
MATCHES OF THE WEEK:
- Feb. 23: (RV) Charleston at #16 Saint Francis
- Feb. 23: #20 George Mason at #8 Penn State
- Feb. 24: (RV) Charleston at #8 Penn State
- Feb. 24: #20 George Mason at #16 Saint Francis
- Feb. 24: Sacred Heart at Princeton
VOLLEYMOB EIVA POWER RANKINGS:
- Penn State
- Saint Francis
- George Mason
- Charleston
- Princeton
- Harvard
- Sacred Heart
- NJIT
THE FAVORITE
- #8 Penn State Nittany Lions
Penn State looks like the top dog once again in the EIVA this season, and has done nothing to dispel that thought through the first half of the season. Even playing with a key injury to Calvin Mende, Penn State has found success in league play and has by far the top hitting percentage (.322 compared to .259 for second) in the EIVA. When combining their efficient attack with a strong serve, it’s easy to see why Penn State is the favorite to repeat in the league.
LOOKING TO MAKE A STATEMENT
- #20 George Mason & (RV) Charleston
Both of these teams have found some nice success in league play after not making much headway in the non-conference. For George Mason, they lost several early matches, while Charleston just didn’t have much attention yet. Now, both are rolling in different ways. For GMU, they’ve hit .359 in their two league matches, while Charleston has done it with serving and defense (led by a league high 2.81 blocks per set in their two EIVA affairs). Both will look to make a statement this week as they take on Penn State in trying to show this isn’t just a one team race at the top.
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