BEREA, Ohio – The Elmira College men's volleyball program found its way back into the win column on Sunday as the Purple & Gold defeated Thiel College 3-1 inside Ursprung Gymnasium on the campus of Baldwin Wallace University.
 
JUST THE BASICS:
SCORE: Elmira 3, Thiel 1
LOCATION: Berea, Ohio | Ursprung Gymnasium
RECORDS: Elmira (7-2, 0-0 UVC), Thiel (1-1, 0-0 AMCC)
 
HOW IT HAPPENED:
The Soaring Eagles would trail early in the opening set against the Tomcats before a 3-0 rally vaulted EC ahead 4-3. Later in the set, it would be another 3-0 run that allowed Elmira to take a 12-9 advantage following a service ace from Alberto Mauricio '25. Leading 22-18 following a service error by Thiel, the Purple & Gold increased the lead to 23-18 and would eventually close the set with a 2-0 rally on kills from Ryan Mattes '23 and Eric Jackson '23.

Thiel jumped out to a quick lead in the second set and held a 7-4 advantage before Elmira mounted a rally. Consecutive kills from Mauricio helped the knot the score 7-7 before the Tomcats regained the lead. With the score tied 8-8, an ace from Edwin Sosa '25 gave the Purple & Gold a lead that would eventually hold until the end. A 5-0 rally would increase the EC advantage to 16-9 in the set as Jordan Peiser '24 added a pair of service aces. Elmira closed the set with a kill from Mauricio to secure the 25-17 victory.

The Soaring Eagles gained momentum early in the third set with a 5-0 rally that vaulted the Purple & Gold ahead of the Tomcats 6-2. Sosa and Jackson highlighted the run as both delivered a pair of kills. Thiel started its rally in the set trailing 14-11 and would eventually knot the score 18-18. Elmira tied the score late in the set following a kill from Mauricio before Thiel tallied back-to-back points to take the set 25-22.

In the fourth set, the Soaring Eagles used an 8-0 run to turn a 14-11 edge into a 22-11 lead. Mattes would serve the ball seven times during the run for the Soaring Eagles as Mauricio, Peiser, and Jackson each added kills for EC. Thiel rallied to trim the score to 24-15 after both sides traded service errors before an attack error by the Tomcats secured the 25-15 victory for the Soaring Eagles.

Jackson finished with a match-high 13 kills for Elmira, while Mauricio and Sosa each tallied 11 kills. Neiram Galan-Canales '23 paced EC with 28 assists in the match, while Max Cohen '25 added 15 assists. The Soaring Eagles served up 10 aces in the match with Peiser adding three for EC.

UP NEXT:
The Purple & Gold will return to the court for a road matchup against Nazareth on Wednesday in Rochester beginning at 7:00 p.m.