Lions Drop Home Match to Wilson
by Casey Burinskas
ALTOONA, Pa. – Penn State Altoona men's volleyball kicked off its eight-match homestand on Tuesday night in Adler Arena, where the Lions were dealt a 3-1 loss by non-conference opponent Wilson College.
Wilson (1-5) established an early lead in the match by winning the first two sets by scores of 25-20 and 25-18. Penn State Altoona (3-2) got on the board with a 25-19 triumph in the third set, but the Phoenix bounced back to take the fourth set, 25-19.
Penn State Altoona got a match-high 16.5 points from Caleb Fries (Altoona, PA/Altoona) on 15 kills, one service ace, and one block assist. Jack McKenna (Manahawkin, NJ/Southern Regional) scored 12 points on eight kills, one solo block, and a match-best three service aces.
Lucas Petrones (Oxford, PA/Avon Grove Charter) contributed seven points on six kills and an ace, and he also led all players in the match with 15 digs. Owen Pratt (Pennsburg, PA/Upper Perkiomen) had five points on five kills.
Mason Grover (Penfield, NY/Penfield) totaled 37 assists to go along with eight digs.
In the first set, Altoona started strong with kills from Fries, Pratt, and Petrones, all assisted by Grover. Jacob Sandowski (Orland Park, IL/Carl Sandbug) was next to put up points for the Lions on a kill, and a service error from Wilson tied up the score, 6-6, early in the set. With Wilson pulling ahead later in the set, Altoona responded with two kills from Pratt to lower the Phoenix lead to two, 19-17. The Lions picked up two final points on Wilson errors, but the visitors still prevailed and took the first set by a final score of 25-20.
Wilson started off strong in the second set by scoring the first six points. Kills from Sandowski, Fries, and Michael Hansen (Palatine, IL/William Fremd) cut the Lions' deficit to four, 10-6, but the Phoenix were able to increase their lead to eight points, 17-9. Altoona got kills from Pratt, Hansen, and Petrones after that, and the Lions picked up points on three late service errors coming from the Wilson side. But Altoona struggled to come back, and Wilson took the second set by a score of 25-18.
In the third set, Altoona was quick to fall behind Wilson once again, with the Phoenix beginning the set with a 5-2 lead. With a kill from McKenna, the Lions narrowed their deficit to one, 7-6, and two more kills by McKenna and one from Petrones helped Altoona tie the score at 11-11. Fries scored a kill to keep the set tied, 14-14, and his service ace helped Altoona begin to pull away, going up 16-14. A kill from McKenna made it 20-18, and after a Wilson point, the Lions closed out the third set by scoring five straight points on two Fries kills, two McKenna aces, and a Petrones kill that gave the Lions a victory, 25-19.
Entering into the fourth set, Altoona got an early kill from McKenna but was quick to fall behind Wilson once again. A kill from Grover and two from Fries kept them in the set, down 12-10. But Wilson went on a run to expand its lead to seven, and despite late kills from McKenna, Fries, and Petrones, Altoona fell short to Wilson in the fourth set, 25-19.
Next up, Penn State Altoona men's volleyball continues its homestand this Saturday, February 1, when the Lions will host a tri-match with non-conference opponents Wilkes University and Saint Vincent College. Penn State Altoona will face Wilkes at 12 p.m. and take on St. Vincent at 4 p.m., with the Colonels and Bearcats facing off in the middle match at 2 p.m.
