Penn State men’s volleyball wins conference opener

No. 9 Penn State swept away No. 14 St. Francis to open the conference schedule in the Eastern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association.

The Nittany Lions (5-2, 1-0) prevailed 25-16, 25-22, 25-23 Friday night at DeGol Arena.

Chris Nugent paced the offense with 15 kills, followed by Spencer Sauter’s eight as the team hit .372. Matt Seifert posted three blocks, Taylor Hammond gave out 39 assists, and Hammond, Nugent and Royce Clemens had five digs apiece.

The Red Flash (3-4, 0-1) were paced by 10 kills from Jeff Hogan and nine from Stephen Braswell, brother of backup Penn State setter Luke Braswell. St. Francis hit .222, and the Nittany Lions led in kills (46-34), blocks (5-2) and digs (26-20).

The Nittany Lions are back in action Feb. 6 hosting Mount Olive.

This story was originally published January 29, 2016 at 10:40 PM with the headline "Penn State men’s volleyball wins conference opener."