Four Teams Remain in PSUAC Volleyball Championship, Arrive to Rec Hall Monday
VOLLEYBALL CHAMPIONSHIP PAGE
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - The 2025 PSUAC Volleyball Championship tournament is barreling towards its end next week as four teams vie for the coveted Lion statue trophy and the championship glory. After the first two rounds at campus sites, we now head to Recreation Hall on Penn State's University Park campus next Monday and Tuesday for the final three matches of the event.
Both of our top divisional seeds advanced to the semifinals, as Penn State Shenango and Penn State York swept their way past their opponents. Penn State Fayette, a perennial contender and the West's number two seed, also advanced by a straight set win, while recent powerhouse Penn State Mont Alto, came back to win in five sets against a higher seeded Penn State Hazleton team.
The semifinal matches are scheduled for 5 p.m. and 7 p.m. at Rec Hall on Monday, October 27th, with the championship match slated for Tuesday, October 28th at 6 p.m. in Rec Hall.
HOW THEY GOT HERE
Shenango and York followed very similar paths to the semifinals. Each team finished 10-0 in their respective division of the PSUAC and both teams earned 3-0 wins over intradivisional rivals to earn a trip to State College. Both teams dominated opponents in conference play as Shenango lost only four sets all year while York lost five total. Shenango was taken to five sets only once--a mid-September win over Fayette. York was pushed to the brink twice, both by Penn State Hazleton, a team that was knocked out in the quarterfinals in the upset by Mont Alto.
Shenango is 6-2 in October, and has won nine of its last 11 entering the final four. York, meanwhile, has not lost in October, including seven 3-0 sweeps in nine matches.
Mont Alto is the surprising entrant into the final four field, despite having two conference and two national titles to their names in the last four seasons. After being swept by Hazleton twice during the regular season, Mont Alto used a reverse sweep to down their foes in the quarterfinals, taking a thrilling five-set victory on their road to Rec Hall. Prior to that match on Thursday, Mont Alto had not beaten Hazleton or York, the only two teams ahead of them in the East.
Fayette rounds out the semifinal field after a convincing 3-0 win over Penn State Greater Allegheny. Finishing 8-2 in conference play during the regular season, Fayette's only conference losses came to Shenango, including the five-set loss in September. Fayette enters next week on a three match winning streak and a 5-2 record in October.
CHAMPIONSHIP CREDENTIALS
Hazleton, Mont Alto and York each entered the 2025 season with high hopes. Hazleton was the preseason coaches poll favorite to repeat their historic run in 2024, but Mont Alto squashed that goal in the quarterfinals. Mont Alto's program has had the most success in the last five years, securing two conference titles as well as two national championships--the 2022 and 2023 USCAA Division II Volleyball National Championships.
Although York has never won a PSUAC volleyball title, their recent pedigree has been excellent, including runner-up finishes to Mont Alto in both the 2022 PSUAC and USCAA Championship matches, as well as a USCAA third-place finish in 2023.
Standing in their way is another team with plenty of championship experience, albeit none in the last six seasons. Prior to 2020, Fayette dominated the PSUAC Volleyball scene, winning 12 titles between 2005 and 2019. They capped their historic run with a USCAA title of their own in 2019, the first ever USCAA Volleyball champion from the PSUAC.
Shenango now looks to accomplish what Hazleton did last year and win the program's first-ever PSUAC volleyball crown in just their seventh season of existence under PSUAC Coach of the Year Andrew Frank.
WHO TO WATCH
Fayette, Shenango and York each boast specialty award winners from the PSUAC regular season. Fayette's Amiah DeShields and Shenango's Izzy Mauro shared West Player of the Year honors while York's Kira Eisenberg was named the East Division Rookie of the Year.
Fayette's Zoey Hopkins and Shenango's Jadeyn Zepeda were named West Co-Specialists of the Year, with Hopkins receiving a bulk of her time as a defensive specialist/libero and Zepeda at setter. Shenango also grabbed the West's Rookie of the Year in Savana Shipman.
Mont Alto has one member of the East's First Team in Elizabeth Trella, who stepped up to lead the offensive attack. Sydney Ward of Shenango was also a First Team selection in the West.
While Hazleton dominated the East First Team, Mont Alto and York earned most of the Second Team nods with Arianna Davey (Mont Alto), Shea Leber (Mont Alto) and Gracie Reinhart (York) being honored for their roles as hitters and blockers. York's Joan Olson was the Second Team setter, while teammate Skyla Wyatt was named to the Second Team in the East as a defensive specialist/libero.
Adela Blough and Emma Eckert are multi-year All-Conference selections from Fayette, while Jillian Palumbo of Shenango and Brooklynn Sheridan of Mont Alto were Honorable Mention selections.
WHAT'S NEXT
The PSUAC Volleyball postseason included 11 teams. Play begins with intra-divisional match-ups in the first round and quartefinals before crossing over in the semifinals, which is re-seeded based upon outcomes. The highest remaining seed in the East, York, meets the lowest remaining seed in the West, Fayette. Shenango, the highest remaining Western seed, will play the lowest remaining East seed, Mont Alto. The winners of Monday's two semifinal matches meet in the championship match on Tuesday.
The winner of the PSUAC Volleyball Championship match receives the conference's automatic bid into the 2025 United States Collegiate Athletic Association Division II Volleyball National Championship tournament, scheduled for November 6-8 at Penn State Fayette's Community Center in Uniontown, Pa.
HOW TO FOLLOW AND WATCH
Fans can attend the action live at Rec Hall--there is no admission charge for the event. Fans can also watch the games live and archived on the PSU Campus Athletics Network by downloading our app on their phone, tablet, or smart device (including TVs and streaming sticks) or by watching online at www.psucampusathletics.com. Search "PSU Campus Athletics Network" to find us!
FAN INFORMATION
For more details surrounding your trip to State College and the University Park campus, please check out our fan information page linked below and also available on our Championship page linked at the top.