Score: Nazareth College 3, Elmira College 1 [25-23, 2521-20-25, 25-23]
Records: Nazareth (12-10, 3-5 UVC), Elmira (11-15, 1-6 UVC)
Location: Speidel Gymnasium – Elmira, N.Y.
                     
ELMIRA, N.Y. -- A career-high 22-kill effort from Ryan McDonough '19 was not enough to see the Elmira College men's volleyball team to the finish line, as visiting Nazareth College escaped from Speidel Gymnasium with a hard-fought four-set win in United Volleyball Conference (UVC) action.
 
McDonough's 22 kills were a match-high for the reigning American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) National Player of the Week. The do-it-all senior swung at a 26.5-percent clip and finished with nine digs to go along with a trio of service aces.
 
Garrett Coleman '20 logged nine kills, as well as one dig and one block. Fellow big-man Landon Miller '20 added seven kills and three rejections, including one solo block.
 
Defensively, Ryan Branigan '19 registered 16 digs, marking the 10th time this season he has produced double digits. Matt Straney '20 added a trio of blocks, as well as four digs, two kills and a service ace.
 
Setting the table for Elmira was Jeremy Best '19, who logged 43 assists, four digs and a pair of blocks.
 
The first set was a back-and-forth affair, but the Golden Flyers eventually took a lead midway through the set and never relinquished it behind a 32.3 team attack percentage. Nazareth went on to win it, 25-23.
 
In the second set, Elmira was able to create some separation behind a 4-0 run, one that gave the Soaring Eagles a 14-9 lead. However, Nazareth responded with a 5-0 run to level the set at 14-14.
 
Fast-forward to 18-18 when Nazareth locked things down on the offensive end by winning four of the next five points behind a quartet of kills, from four different players, to take a 22-19 advantage. The Golden Flyers went on to close out the set by winning seven of the final 10 points overall, clinching the set at 25-21.
 
Elmira fell behind early in the third set, but a pair of 5-0 runs midway through the set gave the Soaring Eagles a comfortable 19-12 lead. During that span, Miller logged all three of his blocks, which sparked EC to a 25-20 win and cut the Nazareth lead to just 2-sets-to-1.
 
The fourth set was a seesaw affair, as the two conference rivals traded points and runs. The Golden Flyers found themselves up by three points, 20-17, before a Zachary Gillard service error and a pair of service aces from McDonough knotted the score at 20-20.
 
However, Nazareth went on to win the next two points, before the two teams traded point-for-point to end the set, which finished in favor of the Golden Flyers, 25-23.
 
News and Notes

• McDonough produced a career-high 22 kills.
• It marked McDonough's 19th match of the season with double-digit kills.
• McDonough has logged double-digit kills in nine consecutive matches.
• Branigan registered double-figures in digs for the 10th time this year, which ranks fifth in EC history.  
• Best has finished with 40-plus assists in 13 matches this season.
• Best's 943 assists rank eighth in EC single-season history.
• McDonough's 341 kills are tied for eighth in EC single-season history.
• McDonough's 49 services aces rank fourth in EC single-season history.
• Branigan's 235 digs are tied for sixth-most in EC single-season history.

 
Up Next
The Soaring Eagles are back in action on Friday, March 29, when they host the Brewers of Vassar College on UVC action. The opening serve is set for 8:00 p.m. inside Speidel Gymnasium.