SPRINGFIELD, Ohio – The Penn State Altoona men's volleyball team got its 2024 schedule underway on Saturday afternoon, when the Lions competed in a non-conference tri-match hosted by Wittenberg University at Pam Evans Smith Arena.

Penn State Altoona (0-2) was swept in both matches, losing 3-0 to St. John Fisher University in its first match of the day before falling 3-0 to host Wittenberg in the second.

Match One: St. John Fisher 3, Penn State Altoona 0

Penn State Altoona opened its season with a three-set loss to St. John Fisher (2-0), which handled the Lions by scores of 25-10, 25-19, and 25-16.

Avery Farabaugh (Ebensburg, PA/Cambria Heights) had a team-high eight points on eight kills for Penn State Altoona, and he added five digs. Connor Ebersole (Altoona, PA/Bishop Guilfoyle) contributed four points on a match-high two solo blocks with one kill and one service ace. Willem Del Priore (Seven Valleys, PA/Dallastown) and Owen Pratt (Pennsburg, PA/Upper Perkiomen) chipped in two kills apiece, and Landen Fisher (Altoona, PA/Altoona) recorded one kill.

Xavier Vang (Rogers, MN/Rogers) led the Lions with 10 assists, and Mason Grover (Penfield, NY/Penfield) had four assists.

Jared Kish (Columbus, OH/Hilliard Darby) finished with a team-best six digs.

In the first set, St. John Fisher jumped out to a 3-0 lead, before Penn State Altoona fought back to close the gap to one, 4-3. The Lions' first three points of the day came courtesy of kills from Del Priore and Pratt, along with an attack error by the Cardinals. But St. John Fisher steadily grew its lead over the remainder of the set, outscoring the Lions 21-7 to finish with a 15-point victory.

A St. John Fisher service error and an Ebersole kill helped Penn State Altoona get out to a 2-1 lead in the second set. The Cardinals scored the next four points, before a kill by Pratt ended the St. John Fisher run to bring the Lions back to within two, 5-3. St. John Fisher responded by boosting its lead to four points, but Penn State Altoona capitalized on Cardinal errors to make it a one-point set, 12-11. St. John Fisher grew its lead to five, 18-13, but Farabaugh scored back-to-back kills to bring Penn State Altoona back to within three, 18-15. However, the Cardinals went on a 5-1 run to increase their lead to 23-16, en route to a 25-19 win in the second set.

St. John Fisher scored five of the first six points in the third set to start off with a solid lead. Later, a Del Priore kill kept Penn State Altoona within four, 12-8, but the Cardinals widened the gap to eight points, 17-9. The Lions got four kills from Farabaugh over the rest of the set, but St. John Fisher won the third set by a nine-point margin, 25-16, to clinch the sweep.

Match Two: Wittenberg 3, Penn State Altoona 0

Penn State Altoona's first day of competition ended with a 3-0 loss to Wittenberg (1-1), as the hosts defeated the Lions by scores of 26-24, 25-19, and 25-18.

Farabaugh again led Penn State Altoona with nine points, posting team-highs with five kills, three service aces, and two block assists while adding five digs. Pratt totaled four points on four kills to go along with three digs. Ebersole and Fisher recorded 3.5 points each. Ebersole finished the match with two kills, two digs, one solo block, and one block assist, while Fisher had two kills, one ace, and one block assist.

Vang duplicated his assist total from the day's first match, finishing with 10 assists as well as a team-high nine digs and a pair of kills.

Kish totaled six digs and two block assists.

Penn State Altoona came up short in a tightly contested first set. Trailing 5-2 early, the Lions rallied to grab a 10-9 lead, including a 4-0 run that consisted of a Wittenberg service error, back-to-back Farabaugh aces, and an attack error by the Tigers that put Penn State Altoona in front. Wittenberg reestablished its advantage and led by four, 16-12, midway through the set. But the Lions continued to hang around, and a Vang kill narrowed Penn State Altoona's deficit to one, 20-19. After a Farabaugh kill kept the difference at one point, a Wittenberg error knotted the score at 22-22. Following a Wittenberg timeout, the teams traded points, with Ebersole's kill keeping the score even, 23-23. Penn State Altoona got to set point when Farabaugh and Ebersole combined for a block to give the Lions a 24-23 advantage. However, Wittenberg responded by scoring the next three points to come back and win the set by one, 26-24.

The two teams battled through another close second set, before Wittenberg pulled away at the end to win it. Down 14-7, a Pratt kill and Tiger attack error helped Penn State Altoona chip away at its deficit. Two Wittenberg service errors and a block from Fisher and Kish trimmed the Tigers' lead to four, 16-12, and a Kish kill two points later made it 17-14. After a timeout, Fisher's kill and ace got Penn State Altoona to within one, 17-16. Two Wittenberg points later, a Pratt kill and Farabaugh ace made it a one-point set again, 19-18. The Tigers scored the next point on a kill before committing a service error to put the difference back at one point, 20-19. But Wittenberg posted another late run, reeling off five straight points to win the set, 25-19.

Wittenberg got out to an early lead in the third set and increased it throughout the game, leading by as many as 10 points. Penn State Altoona scored four points in a row late in the set, including a block from Kish and Farabaugh and a kill by Farabaugh. But Wittenberg completed the sweep by finishing off the Lions and winning the third set 25-18.

Penn State Altoona men's volleyball returns to action next Saturday, January 20, when the Lions will compete in two more non-conference matches hosted by Lancaster Bible College. That day, Penn State Altoona will face Elizabethtown College at 1 p.m. before taking on host Lancaster Bible at 3 p.m.