ELMIRA, N.Y. - The Elmira College men's volleyball team hosted Hilbert College for a rematch of their January 28 contest, where the Soaring Eagles came out on top. EC was victorious again after sweeping the Hawks in three sets.
PLAY-BY-PLAY
The Soaring Eagles jumped out to a 7–2 lead early in the first set after several service errors by the Hawks, forcing Hilbert to take an early timeout. A 5–2 run by Hilbert narrowed the deficit, but the Soaring Eagles answered with a 5–0 run of their own, highlighted by a pair of service aces from Gabriel Staron, to take a 15–7 lead. After some back-and-forth action, a Luke Jata service ace extended the Soaring Eagles' advantage to 20–10. Elmira finished the set strong, getting kills from Dylan Vargas, Drake Connors, and Staron to secure the first set, 25–14.
Hilbert College opened the scoring in the second set before a kill by Vargas quickly evened things up. The teams traded points and were tied at nine before EC began to find its rhythm. Kills from Ethan Davenport, Connors, and Staron sparked a 9–0 run for the Soaring Eagles, and Hilbert finally stopped the surge with a timeout. Elmira maintained the pressure coming out of the break, as kills by Jata and Vargas, combined with Hilbert errors, sealed the second set, 25–14.
A block by Vargas gave the Soaring Eagles the first point of the third set, and a pair of service aces from Jata put Elmira ahead, 5–3, early. EC kept the momentum going, as pairs of kills from Staron and Jata helped extend the lead to 15–9. A trio of kills by Hilbert gave the Hawks hope for a spark, but Elmira answered, using kills and a service ace from Connors to build a 22–12 advantage. Hilbert searched for a way back in, but the Soaring Eagles stayed in control, and a kill from Jata sealed the sweep with a 25–16 set win.
LEADERS
Luke Jata led the way for EC with 15 kills and 4 service aces, while Gabriel Staron contributed 12 kills.
UP NEXT
The Soaring Eagles will be back inside Speidel Gymnasium on Friday, February 20 at 5:00 PM as they take on SUNY Potsdam in a non-conference match.
