Three Penn State alumni helped lead the U.S. men’s volleyball team to an Olympic bronze medal on Friday.
Matt Anderson, Max Holt and Aaron Russell each earned their second career Olympic medals as the United States swept Italy 25-23, 30-28, 26-24 at the Paris Games. Each previously won bronze with the U.S. at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio.
All three were starters throughout the tournament and key contributors in the bronze medal match. Russell, a 2015 Penn State grad, led the U.S. with 15 points on 11 kills, three blocks and an ace against Italy. Holt, a 2009 grad, racked up six kills, four blocks and one ace, and Anderson, a 2008 grad, had eight kills.
They contributed seven of Team USA’s final 10 points in the opening set. In the second-set thriller, Anderson and Russell had kills to give the U.S. the lead when it went to extra points, and Holt denied Italy’s only chance at a set point.
The former Nittany Lions accounted for four of the team’s final seven points, including an Anderson kill that tied it at 22-22 and another that set up match point.
Russell led the U.S. in points over the course of the six Olympic matches, averaging 13 kills, 1.17 blocks and 0.83 aces per match. Anderson averaged 13.33 kills, 0.83 blocks and 0.67 aces. Holt averaged 7.33 kills, 1.83 blocks and 1.33 aces.
Anderson was playing in his fourth consecutive Olympics. He and Holt, who appeared in his third consecutive Olympics, were both All-Americans at Penn State who led the Nittany Lions to a national championship in 2008, when Anderson was national player of the year.
Russell was a two-time All-American during his Penn State career from 2011-15 and helped lead the Nittany Lions to four consecutive national semifinals. He played in the 2016 Olympics but missed the 2020 Tokyo Games while recovering from injury.
The trio are among a dozen Penn State-affiliated athletes who have medaled at the 2024 Summer Olympics. Former Nittany Lion women’s volleyball star Haleigh Washington will look to add to that total when she and her U.S. teammates face Italy in the gold medal match at 7 a.m. EDT. It will air live on NBC and stream on Peacock and NBCOlympics.com.
