Riverview grad Cal Fisher plays key role for Penn State men's volleyball

As a freshman last season, Cal Fisher saw a lot of action with the Penn State men’s volleyball team.

That was partially out of necessity, as the Nittany Lions endured a spate of injuries.

Fisher, a Riverview grad, is getting plenty of meaningful minutes again this spring. This time, however, it has been the result of production.

In early February, with the Nittany Lions coming off three consecutive losses in which they won a total of one set, coach Mark Pavlik made a couple of lineup changes. One was to start the 6-foot-3 Fisher at right-side hitter in place of 6-11 senior Cal Mende against then-No. 3 UC Santa Barbara.

Penn State lost the match 3-2 but won its next seven — all in conference — before dropping a 3-1 nonconference road decision to Ohio State on Sunday.

Over the nine matches since he entered the starting lineup, Fisher has 97 kills — exceeding his total from 2019 — and averaged 3.46 per set. Included was a personal-best 23 kills in a win over Sacred Heart.

The lefty reached double digits in kills in five of the nine matches and hit at least .423 in four of the past six.

“Strength has really played a big role in his development like it does for most guys going from their freshman to sophomore year,” Pavlik said. “The arm gets a little quicker. The ball explodes off the hand a little bit more.

“And the gifts he brought to the table … he’s really using his God-given gifts to his advantage.”

Added Fisher: “There is definitely a comfort level and a combination of everything working out right now. The way everyone is playing very fluid together, we have been very consistent with our performance.”

Fisher, who played his high school volleyball at Penn Hills, has expanded his skills beyond hitting.

Among his experiences last season, he, at times, slotted in at libero, so he worked to become a more consistent passer. His improved serve-receive, Pavlik said, has enabled the coaching staff to keep him in the lineup if they need a fourth passer against a good-serving team.

Pavlik used the phrase “more dynamic” when describing the evolution of Fisher’s blocking, and he has produced at least one block in each of the past nine matches. At the service line, Fisher has 25 aces, third most on the team, including a pair of five-ace matches since he became a starter.

“Much like pitchers, when they get that arm slot and know where their release point is, they can start to do things more subtly in terms of putting on some spin,” Pavlik said. “Now, Fish can start to (serve) a little differently.”

But it primarily has been his offense that has kept him on the court. Part of that, Fisher said, was developing a rapport with sophomore setter Cole Bogner.

“It takes some of the pressure off just knowing that me and Cole’s connection is pretty good, and everything is working for us,” Fisher said. “We run a very fast tempo, and it throws the other teams’ block off.”

Pavlik said: “Fish has learned how to adapt to balls that aren’t perfect in his window of opportunity. He has widened that window.”

The No. 8 Nittany Lions (11-7, 7-0) next head to California to face No. 6 UC San Diego and No. 7 UC Irvine. Those matches, Fisher said, could go a long way to determining where the team stands as it pursues another Eastern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association title — which it won every year between 1999 and 2015 but just once in the past four years (2017) — and a spot in the NCAA Tournament.

Fisher is confident he can play a big part in reaching those goals.

“There’s definitely a lot more I can improve on,” he said, “but I have definitely seen some changes in my play since last year that have made a difference.”