Score: Elmira College 3, Johnson & Wales University 2 [22-25, 25-22, 25-20, 19-25, 15-11]
Score: Medaille College 3, Elmira College 1 [25-20, 25-23, 20-25, 25-23]
Records: Elmira (6-2), Johnson & Wales (2-6), Medaille (2-2)
Location: Kidera Gymnasium – Rochester, NY
 
Rochester, NY -- Ninth-ranked Elmira College men's volleyball split its two matches on the opening day of the Purple & Gold Invitational, hosted by Nazareth College. The Soaring Eagles opened action at Kidera Gymnasium with a five-set win over Johnson & Wales University, before falling in four sets to Medaille College.

Elmira led 2-set-to-1 in the opening match, but a stingy Johnson & Wales squad would not go away without a fight, as the Wildcats forced a fifth set to decide today's match. EC used a 4-0 run in the early stages of the fifth to take control of the set. During EC's 4-0 run, the Wildcats produced two hitting errors, while Elmira's Dylan Kuhn '16 and Mike Ellison '16 each put away one kill apiece.
 
However, Johnson & Wales evened the set at 11-all, as the Wildcats steadily chipped away at the EC lead. The pressure of the match eventually got to the Wildcats, as three Johnson & Wales hitting errors, along with a service error, handed EC the set and the match.
 
Against the Mavericks, Elmira struggled to piece together consecutive points, resulting in Medaille taking a 2-sets-to-1 lead. Medaille pulled away from the Soaring Eagles midway through the set, going up by as many as four points at 19-15. However, EC rallied and won six of the next eight points to tie things up at 21-21. Unfortunately, that was as close as it would get, as Medaille held on for a 25-23 set score and a four-set victory.   

Inside the Box Score (Johnson & Wales)

• Elmira's hitting got better with each passing set, as EC finished with a .254 attack percentage (58k-27e-122ta).
• The Wildcats produced a .207 attack percentage (51k-26e-121ta).
• Elmira logged 39 digs, while Johnson & Wales finished with 27.
• Johnson & Wales also had more blocks, finishing with 10, while EC produced eight.
• Three Elmira players finished with double-digit kills.
• Ellison led the way with match-highs in kills (20) and service aces (4).
• McDonough produced 13 kills, while Kawecki logged 11.
• Faccio set up the EC attack with a season-high 50 assists.  

 
Inside the Box Score (Medaille)

• The two teams were nearly identical in attack percentage, as EC converted on .308 of its attempts, while Medaille made good on .306 of its tries.
• EC held a slim lead in digs at 32-to-31.
• The battle at the net was won by Medaille, who produced eight blocks compared to Elmira's seven.
• Ellison once again led the charge on offense with a match-high 17 kills.
• Kawecki continued his superb play in EC's second match with a 15-kill total.
• McDonough chipped in with 12 kills.
• Dake finished with a match-high 14 digs.
• Faccio led all players with a match-high 47 assists.

 
News and Notes

• Elmira is unbeaten in five-set matches this season (3-0).
• The Soaring Eagles are 1-1 this season against Medaille.
• As a team, Elmira produced 50 kills in back-to-back matches for the first time this year.
• EC has four matches this season with 50 or more kills.
• Faccio's 50 assists against the Wildcats is a season high and mark the eighth time in his EC career he has produced 50 or more.
• Ellison's 20 kills are a season high, while his 17 kills against Medaille is his second-highest total of the year.
• Dake's 14 digs sets an early-season career-high for the rookie talent.
• Kawecki's 15 kills against Medaille ties his career-best performance.

 
Up Next
Elmira returns to action tomorrow afternoon, as the Soaring Eagles complete play at the Purple & Gold Invitational. EC will face Hilbert College and D'Youville College at 11:00 a.m. and 1:00 p.m., respectively.