by Casey Burinskas

CRESSON, Pa. – Penn State Altoona men's volleyball took on nearby Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference rival Mount Aloysius College on Wednesday night, and the Lions pulled out a 3-0 win over the Mounties at the ACW Center.

Penn State Altoona (13-11, 4-4 AMCC) secured its fourth conference win of the season with a three-set victory over Mount Aloysius (8-15, 1-8 AMCC), posting set scores of 28-26, 25-21, and 25-18.

Avery Farabaugh (Ebensburg, PA/Cambria Heights) scored a match-high 11 points on seven kills, two service aces, two block assists, and one solo block while also leading the Lions in digs with six. Connor Ebersole (Altoona, PA/Bishop Guilfoyle) totaled eight points on seven kills and a pair of block assists.

Jared Kish (Columbus, OH/Hilliard Darby) and Owen Pratt (Pennsburg, PA/Upper Perkiomen) finished with 7.5 points each. Kish contributed five kills, two aces, and a block assist, while Pratt recorded six kills, one solo block, and one block assist.

Willem Del Priore (Seven Valleys, PA/Dallastown) tallied seven points on six kills and a solo block, and Landen Fisher (Altoona, PA/Altoona) chipped in three points on two kills and two block assists.

Mason Grover (Penfield, NY/Penfield) tied for the match lead in assists, totaling 30, to go along with four digs and a solo block.

Xavier Vang (Rogers, MN/Rogers) contributed five digs.

In the opening set, the Lions were first to put points on the board, as a block from Grover followed by two service aces from Kish helped the Lions start off on a strong note with a score of 3-0. A kill from Ebersole fell in, and a kill from Del Priore also added to the score, giving Altoona a 5-3 lead. With Mount Aloysius starting to add a few points on to their total, kills from Pratt and Farabaugh helped the Lions respond and hold onto their lead. Kills from Kish and Ebersole landed the Lions two more points, but Mount Aloysius started to pull ahead, now holding a three-point lead over Altoona, 14-11. Farabaugh helped respond by scoring a kill, followed by another kill from Ebersole to keep Altoona behind by just one, 16-15. With the score still close later, a block from Ebersole and Fisher gave the Lions the tie at 20-20. The score remained close to the end of the set, and with a tie score of 26-26, two errors from Mount Aloysius were able to give the Lions the win, 28-26.

Starting the second set, the Lions were quick to strike first again. A kill from Ebersole and two Mountie errors put the Lions once again in front quickly. A kill from Del Priore, received from Grover, put Altoona ahead, 5-4, followed by kills from Pratt and Farabaugh. Shortly thereafter, the Lions went on a three-point run, helped by three errors presented from Mount, one of which resulted in a Del Priore block. A kill from Ebersole landed Altoona at a score 15-12. With the set getting close again later, the Lions were able to end it with a run of four points. Knotted at 21-21, a kill from Farabaugh started it off, followed by three more Mount Aloysius errors, capped by a block from Ebersole and Pratt to clinch the win in the second set, 25-21.

In the final set, a kill from Pratt and four Mountie errors helped the Lions start off to a 5-2 lead. Mount Aloysius scored the next four points to go up by one, but Altoona pulled ahead with kills from Fisher and Pratt, along with Kish and Farabaugh's block. Two Farabaugh service aces expanded the Lions' lead to 11-7, and kills from Pratt, Del Priore, Fisher, and Kish kept Altoona's lead going into the final stages of the set. Two kills from Kish added to Altoona's score, followed by an attack error from Mount Aloysius that put the Lions only two points away from victory, 23-17. To finalize the set, two more attack errors by the Mounties helped hand the Lions a sweep, as Altoona won the set 25-18 to pull out another match victory by a score of 3-0.

Next up, Penn State Altoona men's volleyball will finish its regular season at home this Saturday, April 6, when the Lions will host a tri-match with AMCC opponent Penn State Behrend and non-conference foe Bethany College. The Lions will face Behrend at 11 a.m. before ending the day against Bethany at 3 p.m.

Behrend and Bethany will play each other in the middle match, which will start at approximately 1 p.m.