by Christina Roukas

GREENVILLE, Pa. – The Penn State Altoona men's volleyball team recorded its eighth and ninth Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference victories of the season on Saturday afternoon, defeating Thiel College and Medaille College at the Beeghly Gymnasium.

Penn State Altoona (12-7, 9-2 AMCC) triumphed 3-2 over Thiel in the day's first match, then topped Medaille 3-1 in the Lions' second and final match of the day.

Match One: Penn State Altoona 3, Thiel 2

In the AMCC Match of the Week, Penn State Altoona men's volleyball won 3-2 against Thiel (6-13, 5-4 AMCC). The Lions won the first set 25-20, gave the second and third set to Thiel College by 25-23 scores, but made a comeback to win the fourth 25-13 and fifth set 15-7. 

Altoona started the first set with the lead. Connor Ebersole (Altoona, PA/Bishop Guilfoyle) blocked a Thiel hit to make it 6-3, and he scored an ace, putting Altoona up by five, 12-7. The Lions held the lead, but Thiel kept the deficit low. Ebersole scored another block and a spike to help make it 19-13.  Philip Silva (Brazil/Richard Montgomery) scored a kill, increasing the lead by six points, 20-14. Jared Bodisch (Red Lion, PA/Red Lion) blocked a Thiel spike, closing a tight set at 25-20.

The second set started close between the Lions and Thiel. Altoona took the lead, but Thiel fought back, tying the game at 10-10. Trey Sadler (Grantville, PA/Lower Dauphin) broke the tie with a kill to make it 11-10. Thiel claimed the lead, but Sadler's kill kept Altoona within one, 19-18. Thiel held on to the lead, but Altoona continued to trail right behind them. The Lions kept up the hustle, and Bodisch scored a kill to keep Altoona within one, 24-23. But Thiel ultimately took the second set by two points, 25-23. 

Thiel started the third set with a two-point lead, 5-3. The Lions came back to tie the match 5-5, but Thiel reclaimed the lead. Ebersole scored a kill later in the set, lowering the Lions' deficit to 22-21, and Silva scored a kill to keep the Lions close, 23-22. The Lions came back to tie the match 23-23, but Thiel took the set 25-23.

The Lions started the fourth set strong with a three point run, and Ebersole hits through Thiel's block, increasing Altoona's advantage to 7-3. Jared Kish (Columbus, OH/Hilliard Darby) scored a kill to make it 13-5, and Connor Baker (Red Lion, PA/Red Lion) and Kish put up a duo block to put Altoona in a healthy ten-point lead, 15-5. Silva hit off a block, putting the Lions in a 12-point lead, 19-7, and a back row scored by Bodisch made it 23-10. The Lions won the set 25-13.

In the fifth set, Bodisch scored an early ace, putting Altoona up by three, 5-2. Sadler scored a kill, followed by a duo block by Baker and Kish that extended the Lions' lead to 13-7. Penn State Altoona won the set 15-7 to claim victory in the match.

Silvia led the Lions with 17.5, 14 digs, and 16 kills. Sadler contributed 15 points, six digs, and 14 kills. Bodisch also had 13 points, eight digs, one solo block, and 11 kills.

Baker finished with 49 assists, the fourth-most assists in a single match in Penn State Altoona men's volleyball history. He also recorded three block assists and nine digs.

Micah Brinker (Lock Haven, PA/PA Cyber) had 10 digs. Ebersole recorded three solo blocks and one block assist, and Kish had three block assists and one solo block, with both players also finishing with six kills.

Match Two: Penn State Altoona 3, Medaille 1

The Lions' second match was against AMCC opponent Medaille (6-13, 3-6 AMCC). The Lions won the first set 25-14, Medaille won the second set 27-25, and Altoona won the third and fourth sets 25-20.

Bodisch scored a kill, starting the first set strong for the Lions, 2-0. A back row hit by Silva put Altoona up 5-0, and another Bodisch kill capped a set-opening six-point run. Ebersole scored a kill, putting Altoona in a seven-point lead, 11-4.  Ryan Martin (Pittsburgh, PA/North Hills) scored an ace, putting Altoona in a ten-point lead, 18-8. Ebersole's kill made it 23-13, and the Lions took the first set 25-14.

In the second set, Silva scored a kill, tying the set 2-2. Altoona took a four-point lead, 7-3, and Martin scored another ace to make it 14-10. Kish had a solo block to increase Altoona's advantage to 15-11. Medaille tied the match 18-18 and took the lead, but Altoona hustled to tie the match 25-25. But Medaille got a kill and an ace to take the second set 27-25.

Medaille started the third set with the lead, 4-1. Bodisch scored an ace, lowering the deficit to 4-3, and Silva's kill kept the difference at one, 5-4. Altoona took the lead for the first time in the set at 6-5. Later, Silva had a back row hit to give the Lions a 17-10 lead. Ebersole went up over the net for a score, giving Altoona a 23-17 advantage. Sadler notched a kill to close the set 25-20.

Medaille took a 5-3 lead in the fourth set, but the Lions scored two straight points after that to tie the score. Sadler scored on a hit, putting Altoona in the lead by one, 8-7. Baker and Ebersole combined on a block to increase the lead to 13-7, and Kish had a kill to make it 19-11. A Sadler kill put the Lions up 23-18, and Bodisch ended the match with a hit through a block, giving Altoona the set by a final score of 25-20.

Sadler led with 11.5 points, 12 digs, and 10 kills. Bodisch contributed ten points, four digs, and nine kills. Kish also had 7.5 points, two blocks, one dig, and six kills.

Baker totaled 33 assists and 10 digs, and Brinker also had 10 digs.

Next up, Penn State Altoona men's volleyball will compete in another AMCC tri-match on the road next Saturday, March 26 in Hamburg, N.Y. That day, the Lions will take on host Hilbert College at 12:00 p.m. before facing Hiram College at 2:30 p.m.