University Park, Pa. — Three members of the Penn State men’s volleyball team (22-6) were named AVCA All-Americans, the American Volleyball Coaches Association announced Thursday. Redshirt junior Joe Sunder (Greensburg, Pa.) earned First Team AVCA All-America honors, while redshirt junior Edgardo Goas (San Juan, Puerto Rico) and senior Dennis Del Valle (Toa Alta, Puerto Rico) picked up Second Team AVCA All-America laurels.
Del Valle is making his fourth appearance on the All-America list as a Second Team honoree. It is the first All-America honor for Sunder and the second for Goas. The three awards brings Penn State’s total number of All-Americans to 78 since 1971.
Sunder, a 2011 First Team All-EIVA honoree, was the Uvaldo Acosta Memorial EIVA Player of the Year. The team leader with 412 kills, Sunder’s 4.63 kills per set ranks third in the nation and his .377 attack percentage is eighth. A four-time EIVA Player of the Week this season, Sunder has a team-best 29 aces and his 0.33 aces per set ranks in the top 25 nationally. Sunder is third on the team with 105 digs, averaging 1.18 digs per set.
Earning the second honor of his career after also earning Second Team laurels in 2009, Goas is Penn State’s primary setter. A three-time First Team All-EIVA honoree, Goas has guided Penn State to a .319 attack percentage so far this season, which ranks eighth in the nation. A two-time EIVA Player of the Week in 2011, his 11.08 assists per set ranks seventh in the nation and four of his primary hitters have a .254 attack percentage or better. Goas is second on the team with 118 digs (1.18 digs per set) and third on the team in blocks with 59 (0.59 blocks per set), including 12 solo.
A four-time First Team All-EIVA selection, Del Valle earned his fourth All-America honor. Del Valle leads the Nittany Lions with 265 digs and his 2.60 digs per set leads the EIVA and is third in the nation. Del Valle owns the top two single season digs records at PSU and is also the Penn State career digs leader with 1,225 digs to date.
