DALLAS, Pa. – The Elmira College men's volleyball team closed day two of the 8^th Annual Cougar Kick-Off Classic, hosted by Misericordia, with a pair of matches against Thiel College and Mesiah University. EC was seen dropping the match to Thiel 3-0 (25-22, 26-24, 25-21) and put up a fight against Messiah, but fell short 3-0 (25-16, 25-27, 25-22).

Gabriel Staron was named to the Cougar Kick-Off Classic All-Tournament Team for his individual performance this past weekend. 

MATCH 1 | vs. Thiel, 3-0 (25-22, 26-24, 25-21)
In set one, the Soaring Eagles saw Luke Jata with a kill before the Tomcats went on a 5-0 run to separate themselves. EC recaptured the lead with four consecutive points behind kills from Nick Rohman and Staron. The Tomcats quickly responded with a 4-0 run of their own followed by three consecutive points to stay out in front. A pair of kills saw the Tomcats close the set and leave EC to fall, 25-22. 
In set two, Elmira opened strong with a kill from Drake Connors to take the 2-0 advantage over Thiel. Four consecutive points for the Soaring Eagles featured a kill from Jata and Staron to grow the deficit. EC took a five-point lead courtesy of kills from Staron and Jata before a pesky Tomcats team started to chip at the deficit before evening the match at 22 all. A trio of points from Thiel left EC behind, 26-24. In the third set, both teams were trading points back-and-forth the entire set. Both teams stayed with three points the entire set, seeing Dylan Vargas and Staron recording kills while Staron also recorded a service ace. A trio of points for Thiel saw them capitalize on the set and secure the victory over the Soaring Eagles.

LEADERS
Staron led the way offensively with 15 kills in the match followed by Jata with ten of his own. Nick Rohman tallied 26 assists while Barton marked seven digs.

MATCH 2 | vs. Messiah, 3-0 (25-16, 25-17, 25-22)
In set one, the Falcons ran away early with a five-point rally before EC hit the board with a kill from George Flores Jr. The Falcons continued to pair together a trio of consecutive points before Elmira started trading points back-and-forth. Three consecutive kills from Jata looked to put EC back in the fight, but Messiah closed the set (25-16). 
In set two, Elmira took an early 3-1 lead courtesy of a pair of kills from Jata followed by a service ace from Rohman. The Falcons quickly responded with a three-point rally of their own before kills from Davenport and a service ace from Jata kept Elmira out in front. Both teams competed in a tight-knit back-and-forth set before the Falcons tallied five consecutive points to leave EC behind, 25-17. In the third set, the Falcons were the first to hit the board with a two-point rally before both teams traded points back-and-forth. A trio of points from the Falcons followed by a pair of kills quickly separated the two teams. Elmira looked to cut the deficit with consecutive kills from Jeremiah Matthew and Staron, but a late three-point rally saw Elmira fall 25-22.

LEADERS
Staron and Jata led the way offensively with nine kills apiece followed by Davenport with seven of his own. Rohman tallied 27 assists while five players recorded three digs apiece.

UP NEXT
The Soaring Eagles will return to action on Wednesday, January 28 with a road trip to Hilbert College in Hamburg, NY. The match is set to begin at 6:00 PM.