MILTON, MA – The Elmira College men's volleyball team traveled to Milton, MA for a tri-match with the Badgers of Vermont State University Johnson and the Colonels of Curry College on Saturday afternoon. The Soaring Eagles claimed victory in both matches in straight sets.

MATCH 1 | vs. Vermont State University Johnson, 3-0, (25-17, 25-21, 25-21)
The Bobcats captured the first rally of the game to take the early advantage. EC responded with three consecutive points, including kills by Luke Jata and Nick Rohman. The Soaring Eagles went on another three-point scoring run a bit later, with a kill by Drake Connors and capped off by a service ace from Jata. Another three-point scoring run for EC featured a kill by Dylan Vargas and a service ace by Ethan Davenport to put EC ahead 11-5. Another kill from Jata a bit later gave Elmira a 14-8 advantage in set one. Jata picked up another kill and Gabriel Staron got one a bit later as the Soaring Eagles kept momentum in their favor. A service ace from Staron and a kill from Vargas gave Elmira another three consecutive points. Kills from Jata and Staron finished off the first set, EC winning it 25-17.

A service ace from Staron gave Elmira the advantage early in set two. Davenport and Jata notched kills to put the Soaring Eagles ahead 4-2. Kills from Staron and Connors kept Elmira in from by two points as the set continued. Another service ace from Staron, part of a huge second set for him, kept momentum in favor of EC. A little while later, Elmira went on a five-point scoring run, featuring a kill from Jata and a service ace from Vargas. Jata and Davenport tallied another kill each as the Soaring Eagles held a 18-13 advantage in set two. A three-point scoring run, capped off by a service ace from Connors, put EC in front by eight points. The Bobcats answered with a five-point scoring run to cut the deficit. A kill from Jeremiah Mathew finished off the set for EC, winning 25-21, and going up 2-0 in sets. EC opened the third set on a four-point scoring run, where Davenport and Jata both picked up another kill. Connors added another kill to his total a bit later, giving Elmira a 7-4 advantage. Another four consecutive points for Elmira featured a kill from Staron and Connors, as EC went up 11-5. Davenport notched another kill to his total as the Soaring Eagles held onto the momentum. Another four-point run for the Soaring Eagles was led by two more service aces by Jata. Caden Sims notched a kill to bring the Soaring Eagles within two points of victory 23-14. The Bobcats scored seven of the next eight points before a kill by George Flores Jr. finished the set and the match. The Soaring Eagles won the third set 25-21 and the match 3-0.

LEADERS
Offensively, Jata led the way with 11 kills, while tallying four digs and three service aces. Staron totaled ten kills, a team-leading five digs, and three service aces. Davenport notched eight kills while Rohman led the way with 26 assists.

MATCH 2 | vs. Curry, 3-0, (25-21, 25-20, 25-21)
The match started with three consecutive kills by Jata, all assisted by Rohman, as the Soaring Eagles took the early advantage in set one. Elmira went on another three-point scoring run a bit later, capped off by a kill from Jata, as EC held a 6-1 advantage. The Colonels answered with a four-point run that cut the deficit to one point. EC got kills from Davenport and Vargas as the first set continued to go back and forth. Jata picked up two more kills, part of a seven kill first set for him, as Elmira moved ahead 13-11 in the opening set. A pair of kills from Davenport and another pair of kills from Staron kept the Soaring Eagles in front 18-15. Jata notched two more kills and another from Davenport kept the Soaring Eagles in front by three points as the set started to wind down. Kills from Connors and Vargas finished off the first set, the Soaring Eagles claiming it 25-21. The Colonels opened the second set winning the first rally. Another kill from Jata put EC back in front early 2-1. Curry College captured four of the next five points to take momentum. A kill from Connors and a service ace from Davenport evened up the set at six points. Jata tallied another pair of kills a bit later as the Soaring Eagles took momentum and the advantage 12-10. Jata grabbed two more consecutive kills as EC stayed just in front, now 15-11. Staron got two kills of his own as the three-point advantage stayed intact. Jata got another kill that kept Elmira just ahead of Curry, the score being 20-18 in the second set. The Soaring Eagles scored five of the next six points, capped off by a kill by Vargas, claiming the second set 25-20, and a 2-0 lead in sets.

Another kill from Jata opened up the third set and gave EC the momentum early. Elmira went on a four-point scoring run that included two kills from Davenport and a pair of services aces from Jata. Connors and Staron picked up kills as the Soaring Eagles went ahead 8-5. EC scored five out of six points to pull ahead 12-6 in the third set. The Colonels scored four out of five points to retake the momentum back and cut the deficit to three points. Davenport and Connors tallied kills as the Soaring Eagles moved in front 17-11. Another kill by Connors and a kill by Rohman kept momentum in Elmira's favor as they held a 20-14 advantage. The Colonels scored three consecutive points to bring the deficit down to 21-18. Elmira took some momentum back on a kill by Jata that made the score 23-20. The Soaring Eagles closed out the set, winning 25-21, and claiming the match 3-0.
 
LEADERS
Offensively, Jata led the way with 19 kills and eight digs, while also tallying a pair of service aces. Davenport notched nine kills, a dig, and a service ace. Rohman led the Soaring Eagles in assists with 22.

UP NEXT
The Soaring Eagles return to Speidel Gymnasium for a conference matchup with the Golden Flyers of Nazareth University on Wednesday March 11. The match is set to start at 7:00 PM.