Union, NJ -- The Elmira College men's volleyball team (2-1) picked up a pair of wins in the second day of the Kean Classic, defeating both Endicott College (1-1) and Hunter College (1-2) by identical 3-0 scores.

Match One Recap
Elmira 3, Endicott 0 – 25-23, 25-18, 25-12
Both teams traded points early in the first set and found themselves deadlocked at 4-4. The EC men then went on a 5-1 run to take an early 10-5 lead. Endicott slowly chipped away at the Purple and Gold's lead, finally evening the score at 23-23. The Soaring Eagles, however, won the next two points to close out the first set. The second set proved to be close until the Purple and Gold, who were leading 13-10, went on a 6-1 run to take a 19-11 lead. The Gulls battled back, but Elmira wound up winning 25-18 to take a 2-0 set lead. EC's run continued in the third set as their momentum carried the Soaring Eagles to a 16-3 lead, forcing Endicott to call a timeout. After the break, the Gulls regrouped and got a few points back, but the deficit proved to be too much to overcome as the EC men rolled in the third set, 25-12. Erik Griffin '16 led the Soaring Eagles offensively with 11 kills, while also adding five digs, two block assists, and an ace. Carlos Faccio '16 set up the attack with 30 assists and also led the team in digs with seven. Dylan Kuhn '16 led the EC men in blocks with four while newcomer Ryan Lamparter '17 tallied seven kills, two digs, and two block assists in the win.

Match Two Recap
Elmira 3, Hunter 0 – 25-13, 25-18, 25-22
The Purple and Gold picked up where they left the Endicott match, opening with an 8-1 run against Hunter in their final match of the Classic. EC's run continued throughout the first set as they closed it out 25-13, taking a 1-0 set lead. The Soaring Eagles scored four of the first five points of the second set, and then, after a small run by Hunter later on in the set, found themselves leading 14-12. The Purple and Gold used another impressive run to cap off the second set, outscoring Hunter 11-6 to move one set away from victory. Elmira started the third set with yet another 4-1 lead, but Hunter would not go away as easy this time, scoring the next four points to even the set at 5-5. EC used a 12-8 run to make it 17-13, but three straight points from the Hawks made it just a one-point game. The Soaring Eagles again put their closing ability on display as they finished the set on an 8-6 run to seal the 3-0 win. Felix Garcia Ramos '16 led the Purple and Gold offensively with a career-high 14 kills and also chipped in with four digs, four aces, and a block assist while Faccio again set up the offense with 31 assists and added five digs, four kills, four aces, and a block assist in the win. Rob Shade '15 led EC's defense with six digs while Tyler Smith '15 posted eight kills and a block assist in the second game of the day.

The EC men will compete next in the Juniata Invitational on January 23rd and 24th. The Purple and Gold will square off against host Juniata College on the first day and then finish with Baruch College and Thiel College on the second day of the tournament.