Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/503016
MEN'S VOLLEYBALL Penn State's Pavlik claims 500th career victory As a former setter, Mark Pavlik knows a lot about the importance of teamwork. So after one of the more momentous vic- tories of his career, it wasn't surprising that he passed much of the credit on to the people around him. Pavlik earned his 500th career victory on April 25, as the seventh-ranked Nittany Lions swept host Saint Francis, 25-21, 25- 19, 25-22, to wrap up their regular season. The win secured an undefeated mark in EIVA action for the Nittany Lions, im- proving their record to 12-0 in conference play and 18-9 overall. It was also a milestone for Pavlik, one that he credited largely to the players and assistant coaches with whom he's worked over the years. "More than anything else, in the last 500 games, I can officially say I haven't served a ball, hit a ball, blocked a ball or passed a ball," he said. "The real credit goes to the guys who have come before and have made every one of those wins possible. And I've been very fortunate to have some great assistant coaches." Pavlik's association with Penn State volleyball began in the early days of the program. He played for its founder, Tom Tait, and later served as the top assistant coach to Tait's successor, Tom Peterson. Pavlik became head coach in 1995 after Peterson left for BYU. Going into this year's EIVA tournament, he had compiled a 500-151 career record, and he guided Penn State to a national title in 2008. "Maybe the thing I'm most proud of is that we've continued to build on the strong foundation that Tom Tait established when he started this program in the late '70s," Pavlik said. "And to all the alums who are out there, I'm really proud of being part of what you guys started." ■ EIVA names Gaspar to Hall of Fame class The EIVA has announced its fourth Hall of Fame class, which is highlighted by former Nittany Lion Javier Gaspar. Gaspar played at Penn State from 1985-88, earning AVCA All-America honors all four years. He was also a four- time All-EIVA honoree and helped the Nittany Lions to back-to-back NCAA tournament appearances in 1986-87, as well as three consecutive EIVA tourna- ment championships from 1985-87. Following graduation, Gaspar went on to play professionally at the interna- tional level. He also was the starting set- ter for the U.S. National Team in 1989.