Men’s Volleyball Splits Matches in Pennsylvania

HUNTINGDON, PA. – Wittenberg's men's volleyball team split two matches on the road on Saturday, Feb. 22, in Pennsylvania.

First up, the Tigers had an early match against Arcadia at Juniata College as part of the Eagles Invite Tournament at Memorial Gymnasium. 

Recovering nicely and getting back in the win column, the Tigers defeated Arcadia, 3-0, in scores of 25-20, 25-13, then 29-27. Wittenberg outhit the Knights .392 to .148 in the win. 

There were eight ties in the first set before the Tigers pulled away from a 14-all stalemate behind a powerful attack led by Michael Yurk  (Indianapolis, IN / Bishop Chatard) to go up 20-14 and never look back. Things were back and forth in set two and tied at 7-all when the Tigers went on an 18-6 run to easily capture the victory. But Arcadia was determined to battle it out in set three and after 15 ties, Witt finally got the upper hand to count the 'W.'

Then Witt hit the road traveling 45 minutes to Penn State Altoona to take on the Lions at Adler Arena. Wittenberg put up a hard-fought battle but fell in three straight sets in scores of 25-22, 25-19, and 25-23.

With the split, the Tigers go to 13-8 on the season.

Team Leaders vs. Arcadia 

• Eli Halverson  (Hamilton, OH / Badin) paced the Tigers in kills with 12 on 22 total attacks for 15 points. He also added seven digs and three service aces.
• Michael Yurk  (Indianapolis, IN / Bishop Chatard) tallied nine kills on 18 total attacks for 11 points. He also had two service aces and four digs. For his efforts on Friday and Saturday, Yurk was named to the All-Tournament team.
• Carson Hill (Liberty Township, OH / Lakota East) led the team in assists with 28 and added three kills, six digs, and a block assist.
• Jake Downs (Cincinnati, OH / Milford) had a team-high nine digs.

Team Comparison vs. Arcadia

• Wittenberg led in most categories with a hitting percentage of .392, 40 kills on 74 total attacks, 34 assists, seven service aces, and 34 digs.
• Arcadia tallied 30 kills on 88 total attacks for a hitting percentage of .148, and had 28 assists, five service aces, and 23 digs.

Team Leaders vs. Penn State Altoona

• Trajan Kress (Cincinnati, OH / Sycamore) registered nine kills on 26 total attacks for 11.5 points. He also had two service aces, three digs, and one block assist.
• Zach Newton (Morgantown, WV / Franklin Community) also tallied nine kills on 20 total attacks for nine points. 
• Patterson Reed (Louisville, KY / St. Xavier) added seven kills on 16 total attacks for eight points. He also had two block assists. 
• Sam Richardson (Akron, OH / Walsh Jesuit) turned in 27 assists, a service ace, six digs, and two block assists.
• Riley Mingus (Georgetown, IN / Floyd Central) and Gavin Hagerty (Fishers, IN / Fishers) led the team in digs with nine and seven, respectively.

Team Comparison vs. Penn State Altoona

• Wittenberg had 31 kills on 97 total attacks. They tallied 29 assists, four service aces, 33 digs, and six block assists. 
• Penn State Altoona had 36 kills on 88 total attacks, 36 assists, six service aces, 37 digs, and six block assists.

Up Next

Wittenberg will come back home to host Wabash on Thursday, Feb. 27 at 7 p.m. at Pam Evans Smith Arena, part of the Health, Wellness & Athletics Complex.