News & Events

The 2006 Morgan Classic A Success

The 19th Annual PeoplesBank Morgan Classic took place this past weekend and once again was a tremendous success. Hundreds of eager volleyball players came to improve their skills and learn from the best while also enjoying high-level competition.

On Friday, the eighth-ranked Ohio State (10-2) men’s volleyball team dropped a 3-1 decision to 11th-ranked Penn State (6-4) while in the nightcap host Springfield College (5-5) lost a grueling five game match to Stanford, who improved to 4-10. On Saturday, host Springfield College was beat by Ohio State 3-1 while Stanford struggled to handle a balanced Penn St. team and was defeated in three games.

As a result of the Morgan Classic, Penn St. moved up two spots in the national rankings, from 11th to 9th, bumping Ohio St. into 10th. Stanford just missed making the Top 15. Springfield College did not see a shift in the rankings despite two tough losses. They are still ranked #6 in the recent Coaches Poll.

Awards were also presented to standout players. Members of the All-Tournament Team were Nate Meerstein (Penn St.), Brett Versen (Ohio St.), Conor Martin (Ohio St.), Ryan Fredrickson (SC), Eric Palumbo (SC), and Ben Reddy of Stanford. Dan O’Dell of Penn St. was named Most Outstanding Player and Javier Rosario of Springfield College was awarded with the Sportsmanship award. The Morgan Classic included skill contests among the players, and Eric Palombo of Springfield came away with the spiking contest award and Nick Manov of Stanford won the serving contest.

The Morgan Classic Player’s and Coaches Clinics were also a great success. Volleyball players of all ages came to participate, and were not disappointed. The clinics were run by the head coaches of Ohio State, Penn State, Stanford, and Springfield College head coach Charlie Sullivan conducted the Morgan Classic Coaches Clinic.

The Classic is sponsored in part by: PeoplesBank, The Massachusetts Sports & Entertainment Commission, Holyoke Gas & Electric, Holyoke Medical Center, USA Volleyball, the C A Parent Group, the City of Holyoke, MassLive, Clear Channel Radio, CBS/TV3, and the Holyoke Holiday Inn.