Match 1: Elmira College 3, Ramapo College 2 (28-26, 22-25, 25-16, 25-27, 15-6)
Match 2: Arcadia University 3, Elmira College 2 (25-21, 21-25, 14-25, 25-23, 8-15)
Records: Elmira (1-3), Arcadia (6-3), Ramapo (1-4)
Location: Glenside, Pa. – Alumni Gymnasium
GLENSIDE, PA. -- The Elmira College men's volleyball team split a pair of five-set matches on Saturday afternoon at the Arcadia University Invitational. Elmira picked up a hard-fought win over Ramapo College, but fell to the No.12-ranked Knights of Arcadia to close the first day of the tournament.
Match 1
The Soaring Eagles traded sets with Ramapo in their first match of the day, winning the first, third and the clinching fifth set against the Roadrunners. EC's offense was explosive against Ramapo, as a trio of Soaring Eagles,
Jose Malave '21,
Ryan McDonough '19 and
Garrett Coleman '20 all finished with double digit kills. Malave registered a match-high 16 kills, while McDonough and Coleman finished with 15 and 10 kills, respectively.
The opening set the tone for the match, as both teams traded blows for the entirety of the frame. The score was knotted on 16 occasions in the set as neither team gained momentum over the other. Coleman pushed EC ahead late in the set with a kill to go up 23-22. The edge was short-lived however, as two straight points from the Roadrunners put the pressure back on the Purple and Gold. With the score knotted at 26-26, Elmira turned to
Matt Straney '20 who floored a kill and then registered a block, with the help of
Jeremy Best '19, to give Elmira the set.
After dropping the second set, EC responded in the third. Trailing 13-12, the Soaring Eagles rattled off four straight points to force Ramapo into a timeout. Elmira held its lead from there, ending the set on a 6-0 run highlighted by a pair of aces from Malave.
Ramapo bounced back to steal the fourth set, but it was all-Elmira in the final set of the match. With the score knotted at 4-4, the Purple and Gold's attack came alive with an 8-0 run that featured two kills from McDonough. Coleman brought the match to a close with a kill to give EC its first win of the season.
Match 2
The second match of the evening saw the Soaring Eagles match-up against the tournament host, No. 12 Arcadia. Despite pushing the match to a fifth set, EC couldn't come up with the upset victory over the Knights.
Malave featured heavily for Elmira once again, as the sophomore tallied a match-high 16 kills.
Landon Miller '20 and Coleman added nine kills apiece, while Best posted 40 assists. EC struggled to hit around Arcadia's blockers, as the Knights tallied 14 blocks to slow the Soaring Eagles' attack.
The Purple and Gold struck first, taking the first set, 25-21. Miller floored a kill before teaming up with Coleman for a block that gave EC a 14-8 lead. That was all the edge the Soaring Eagles needed, as Elmira maintained its lead until Coleman combined with Best to seal the opening set.
Arcadia recovered from Elmira's initial barrage, taking the second set 25-21, and the third, 25-14. However, the Soaring Eagles regained their footing in the fourth set. The two sides traded blows throughout the penultimate frame as neither side gave an inch. Miller pushed Elmira ahead at 20-19, but Arcadia answered immediately. Miller had the final say in the set however, as the junior tallied the final kill to force the fifth set.
Arcadia jumped ahead early in the fifth with a 3-0 run. Best halted the barrage with one of his three kills, but EC never regained the momentum as the Knights marched on to take the final set, 15-8.
News and Notes
- EC played in its first five-set match of the season against the Roadrunners.
- Elmira held the edge in digs against Ramapo (49-33) and Arcadia (28-27).
- Malave has tallied double-digit kills in three of EC's four matches this season.
- Malave finished with a season-high 13 digs in the win over Ramapo.
- Best tallied 77 assists across both matches.
- Coleman's 10 kills against Ramapo were a season-best.
- Miller's nine-kill-performance against Arcadia was a season-high.
Up Next
The Purple and Gold wrap up the Arcadia Invitational with a pair of matches on Sunday afternoon. Elmira challenges John Jay College at 11:00 a.m. before closing the tournament with a 1:00 p.m. bout against Eastern Mennonite University.
