ALTOONA, Pa. – Penn State Altoona men's volleyball concluded its regular-season schedule at home on Saturday, hosting Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference opponent Penn State Behrend and non-conference foe Bethany College for a tri-match in the Adler Arena.

Penn State Altoona (15-11, 5-4 AMCC) earned a big 3-0 victory over Penn State Behrend in the day's first match, clinching a home playoff match next week. The Lions finished the day with another sweep, defeating Bethany 3-0.

In the middle match, Behrend swept Bethany 3-0, winning by scores of 25-10, 25-16, and 25-15.

Penn State Altoona's win over Behrend ensured that the Lions would have a home match in the first round of the AMCC Tournament. Altoona earned the fourth seed in the field and will host fifth-seeded Behrend on Tuesday, April 9, at 7 p.m. in Adler.

Match One: Penn State Altoona 3, Penn State Behrend 0

In its most important match of the day, Penn State Altoona pulled out the win with a sweep over AMCC opponent Penn State Behrend (11-15). The Lions won the first two sets by identical scores of 25-21, then prevailed 25-23 in the third.

Avery Farabaugh (Ebensburg, PA/Cambria Heights) totaled a match-high 16.5 points for the Lions on 14 kills, one service ace, one solo block, and one block assist, and he also led all players in the match in digs with 15. Owen Pratt (Pennsburg, PA/Upper Perkiomen) scored 8.5 points on eight kills and a block assist.

Willem Del Priore (Seven Valleys, PA/Dallastown) finished with eight points on eight kills, and Jared Kish (Columbus, OH/Hilliard Darby) tallied 7.5 points on six kills, a solo block, and a block assist. Connor Ebersole (Altoona, PA/Bishop Guilfoyle) had 5.5 points on three kills, two solo blocks, and a block assist.

Mason Grover (Penfield, NY/Penfield) recorded a match-best 32 assists to go along with six digs and a pair of kills.

Xavier Vang (Rogers, MN/Rogers) contributed four digs while chipping in a pair of assists.

Behrend had a slow start to the opening set, and Penn State Altoona took advantage by getting out to a six-point lead. Two Farabaugh kills and two Ebersole solo blocks helped the home team go up 5-1, and kills from Farabaugh, Pratt, and Kish extended the Lions' lead to 9-3. A pair of attack errors by Behrend midway through the set helped Penn State Altoona to a seven-point lead, 14-7, and Ebersole and Pratt teamed up on a block several points later to keep the difference at seven, 17-10. The Lions maintained a solid lead through the rest of the set, with a Del Priore kill getting Penn State Altoona to set point, 24-20, before a Behrend service error ended the set at 25-21.

Penn State Altoona got off to a sluggish start in the second set, while Behrend worked its way out to a 10-7 lead. But the Lions used four consecutive kills from Del Priore, Farabaugh, Ebersole, and Grover to jump ahead, 11-10. The teams exchanged the lead several times, until Penn State Altoona went ahead for good on back-to-back Kish kills that made it 20-19. Three Behrend errors helped increase the Lions' advantage to 23-20, and a Del Priore kill got the home team to set point, 24-21. A Behrend attack error on the next play concluded the set at 25-21, and Penn State Altoona secured a 2-0 lead in the match.

The Lions battled Behrend through another tightly contested set during the third, but Penn State Altoona pulled away enough at the end to come out with a two-point win. Neither team led by more than three points during the set, with the Lions taking their largest lead, 17-14, following a pair of Pratt kills. Behrend worked its way back to tie the score at 20-20, but the Lions scored the next three points on a pair of Behrend hitting errors and another kill by Pratt. The visitors narrowed their deficit to one, 23-22, but a Farabaugh kill put the score at set point on the next play. A service error by the Lions on the next point temporarily kept Behrend alive, but the visiting team served up an error of its own to end the set at 25-23, sealing a sweep for Penn State Altoona.

Match Two: Penn State Altoona 3, Bethany 0

Penn State Altoona finished the day strong, taking care of Bethany (0-25) in three sets by scores of 25-13, 25-17, and 25-17.

Grover served up a season-high seven aces for Penn State Altoona, tying the Lions' single-match aces record. As a team, the Lions totaled 16 aces, tying for the second-most in a match in program history.

Grover led all players in the match in assists with 23 while adding four digs and two kills.

Zach Gahagan (Martinsburg, PA/Central) finished with a match-high 10 points on seven kills and three aces. Ebersole added nine points on seven kills, one ace, and one solo block.

Farabaugh and Landen Fisher (Altoona, PA/Altoona) chipped in five points apiece. Farabaugh had four kills and an ace, while Fisher totaled two kills, two aces, and a solo block. Vang added three points on three kills.

Matt Yadush (Whitehall, PA/Whitehall) finished with a team-high five digs, while Justin Fleck (Altoona, PA/Altoona) had four digs.

Penn State Altoona scored the first four points of the opening set, getting a kill by Ebersole ahead of three consecutive service aces from Grover. Two points later, Gahagan's ace made it 6-1. Bethany came back to grab a 10-9 lead, and the teams found themselves tied 11-11 three points later. But Penn State Altoona finished the set in commanding fashion, going on a pair of 6-0 runs and outscoring the Bison 14-2 overall the rest of the way. Two Gahagan kills and one kill from Grover helped the Lions boost their lead to 17-11, while another Grover ace and an Ebersole block helped make it 23-12. Vang's kill provided the set-winning point for Penn State Altoona, which finished with a 25-13 win in the first.

The Lions never trailed during the second set, pulling away during the latter stages to win it. Four early aces – two from Gahagan and one apiece from Fisher and Grover – helped Penn State Altoona to a 7-2 advantage. Leading 11-9 later, aces from Fisher and Grover, along with a Gahagan kill, helped get Penn State Altoona's lead to 15-10. A kill from Vang made it 19-12, and a Fisher solo block and another Vang kill later put the score at 23-14. Back-to-back kills from Fisher and Gahagan finished off Bethany in the set, giving the Lions a 25-17 victory.

Down 3-1 early, Penn State Altoona scored the next four points to go ahead, including Ebersole's kill that gave the Lions a 5-3 advantage. Two more Ebersole kills helped Penn State Altoona make it 8-4, and two Farabaugh kills assisted the Lions in getting their lead to six, 12-6. Kills from Grover and Kish, along with a Farabaugh ace, increased the Lions' advantage to 16-8. Later, three Ebersole kills helped grow Penn State Altoona's lead to 22-12, and a Farabaugh kill eventually provided the clinching point. The Lions ended the set with a 25-17 victory to record the sweep of Bethany.

Next up, Penn State Altoona will prepare for a rematch with Penn State Behrend in Tuesday night's home AMCC Tournament match.