ELMIRA, N.Y. -- The No. 15 Elmira College men's volleyball team wraps up United Volleyball Conference (UVC) play this weekend with a pair of home matches against No. 10 Vassar College and Massachusetts Institute of Technology at Speidel Gymnasium. The Soaring Eagles will take on the nationally-ranked Brewers at 5:00 p.m. on Friday, March 30, before battling the Engineers the following afternoon at 2:30 p.m.
SENIOR DAY
Elmira will celebrate Class of 2018 Recognition Day on Saturday prior to its match against MIT. The lone senior on this year's roster is
Matthew Buffum '18, a middle blocker from Chesterfield, Missouri. The 6-foot-7-inch Buffum is amidst one of his best collegiate seasons coming off a year in which he was named a UVC All-Conference Honorable Mention in 2017.
LAST TIME OUT
The Soaring Eagles rallied from a two-sets-to-none deficit to defeat rival Nazareth College in five on Sunday, March 25, at St. John Fisher College's Manning & Napier Varsity Gym. After posting negative attack percentages in the first two sets, the Purple and Gold responded by swinging at a .304 clip in a 27-25 fourth-set win and .565 in a 19-17 fifth-set triumph.
Jose Malave '21 floored a team-high 16 kills, followed by
Matthew Buffum '18 with 14.
Jeremy Best '19 assisted on 49 of EC's kills to go along with eight digs and a trio of total blocks.
SCOUTING VASSAR
At 16-6 overall and 6-1 against UVC competition, the Brewers will be competing with Elmira to secure a first-round bye in the upcoming conference tournament as a top-two seed. Since dropping a 3-1 decision to Elms College on February 27, No. 10-ranked Vassar has won seven in a row, including a 3-1 victory over then-No. 14 MIT and a narrow five-set win over No. 5 SUNY New Paltz. Middle hitter Matthew Knigge, the reigning UVC Player of the Year and a two-time All-America selection, is at it again as a senior. He leads the country in blocks per set (1.42) and ranks second in kills per set (4.36). Knigge has double-digit kills in all but two matches this season, and even posted a double-double with 23 kills and 12 total blocks in the conference win over MIT.
SCOUTING MIT
The Engineers have dropped three in a row and four of their last five matches, reducing their overall record to 13-6. MIT isn't out of the hunt for a UVC Tournament berth, but with a 2-5 league record it will be a challenge to climb back into contention. In the month of March, the Engineers have struggled offensively, having produced a hitting percentage over .200 just once in seven tries. As a team, their offense ranks seventh in hitting percentage (.235); however, opponents are attacking at a rate of just .154 percent. Libero Thomas Nelson leads the UVC and is sixth nationally in digs per set (3.34), which has helped MIT limit opposing hitters to such a low attack percentage.
SERIES HISTORY
Elmira trails both Vassar and MIT in the all-time series with a 3-4 mark against the Brewers and a 3-5 record versus the Engineers. The Soaring Eagles have dropped two in a row to both teams, having last beaten them during the 2015 campaign.
LOOKING AHEAD
Elmira's 2018 home finale will take place on Friday, April 6, when the Soaring Eagles host St. John Fisher in a non-conference match at 6:00 p.m. As part of Autism Awareness Month, EC has dedicated the contest as an Autism Awareness Match. The team will be wearing special blue socks and fans are encouraged to wear blue to help support the cause.
