Score: Elmira College 3, Medaille College 2 [21-25, 25-15, 24-26, 25-16, 15-12]
Records: Elmira (18-7), Medaille (18-8)
Location: Rochester, NY - Kidera Gymnasium

Rochester, NY -- The ninth-ranked Elmira College men's volleyball team needed five sets to defeat Medaille College to open the Purple and Gold Invitational at Nazareth College on Friday night.

Down two-sets-to-one after watching a third set lead vanish into a 25-26 loss, the Soaring Eagles responded by hitting .417 and .615 in the fourth and fifth sets, respectively. Erik Griffin '16 registered seven of EC's 12 kills in the fourth, while he and fellow senior Mike Ellison '16 each recorded four in the decisive fifth set to pace the offense.

The Soaring Eagles led by as much as six points in the final set, but the Mavericks rallied to come within one. Medaille's Brad Schneider served the Mavs from an 11-5 deficit to make it a one-point difference at 11-10. Griffin made a pair of kills, followed by a Carlos Faccio '16 ace to extend the lead back to three before a Medaille service error ended the match.

With his third kill of the night in the second set, Ellison became just the third player in program history to record 1,000 career kills, joining current teammate Griffin and Ryan Gelenitis '14. He finished with match with 13 kills, bringing his career total to 1,010.

In Their Own Words...
Head Coach Stephen England on his team's performance in the comeback victory...
"We were a little inconsistent today. We had moments of greatness and other times we fell flat. (Assistant Coach Kyle Mars) and I reminded them to stay in the process and execute the task at hand. It seemed to help in the fourth and fifth sets."

Coach England on the changes made to improve the offense in the last two sets...
"We passed better and Carlos was locating his sets with tempo. It kept Medaille's middles from closing to the pins. I am proud of the team's resilience."

Coach England reflects on Mike Ellison's career at Elmira after achieving 1,000 career kills...
"Mike has been our rock for four years. He has been a huge reason for this program's success. I am happy for him to reach such a significant milestone in his lustrous career. He has been an outstanding player and an even better person. I have been honored to coach such a great young man." 

Turning Point
The Soaring Eagles held leads in both the first and third sets before giving way the Mavericks, as the Purple and Gold fell behind 2-1. EC's offense responded by recording match highs in attack percentage in the next two sets, committing only four errors combined in the fourth and fifth sets. It was a significant turnaround from the match's opening set, where Elmira committed seven attack errors and hit at a mere .080 clip.

Inside the Box

• Elmira hit .299 overall in the match, while Medaille recorded a .214 attack percentage.
• The Soaring Eagles concluded the win with a match-high .615 attack percentage.
• EC had an 11-to-6 advantage in aces and a 12-to-7 advantage in total blocks.
• Griffin finished with a match-high 25 kills, followed by Ellison with 13.
• Faccio earned 45 assists and six aces, both match highs.
• Ellison recorded a double-double with a team-high 10 digs.
• Pete McKelvey led the Mavs with 11 kills.
• Medaille's Joe Hacherl led all players with 12 digs.

News and Notes

• Elmira won the season series with Medaille, 2-1.
• Griffin's 25 kills are the third-most he's recorded in a match this season.
• Griffin has recorded double-digit kills in 12 straight matches.
• With 13 kills, Ellison became the third player in program history to surpass the 1,000-kill plateau, and now has 1,010 in his career.
• Ellison has earned double-digit kills in three straight matches.
• His double-double was his fourth of the year.

Up Next
The No. 9 Soaring Eagles will conclude the Purple and Gold Invitational with a 3:00 p.m. match against California Lutheran University.