ALTOONA, Pa. – The Geneva College men's volleyball team extended its winning streak to six matches with two victories on Saturday at a tri-match hosted by Penn State Altoona. The Golden Tornadoes swept Mount Aloysius 28-26, 25-18, 25-15 in the opening match, and then Geneva defeated Altoona in four sets 25-15, 20-25, 25-19, 25-23. The victories kept Geneva's record perfect in conference play, 8-0, while improving its overall record to 12-11.
In the first match of the day, Geneva led for almost the entire first set against Mount Aloysius before the Mounties rallied late. The Golden Tornadoes led 20-14 after kills from senior Devin Goodgasell and junior Carter Milroy, but Mount Aloysius responded with a 10-3 run to get to set point, 24-23. Geneva battled back, though, fighting off two set points to win 28-26.
The second set was tight early before a 6-1 Geneva run allowed the Golden Tornadoes to pull ahead 16-10. Senior Jake Williams had an ace and a kill in the stretch. Mount Aloysius never got closer than five points of the rest of the set as Geneva won 25-18.
The Golden Tornadoes broke open the third set with nine straight points behind the serving of Williams to give Geneva a 19-9 edge. Two kills from senior Byron Spear helped the Golden Tornadoes finish off the match, 25-15.
Junior Emerson Spear led the team with eight kills, Byron Spear had seven kills and Williams six kills to pace the offense. Geneva hit .150 as a team. Graduate student Curtis Thomas had a team-high 19 assists, while sophomore Joshua Sangrey led the team with eight digs. Emerson Spear added four blocks.
In the second match of the day against Altoona, Geneva used a five-point run early in the first set to take an 11-7 edge. Milroy had two kills and an ace in the run. A few minutes later, the Golden Tornadoes used a 6-1 run to take a 20-12 lead, and Geneva easily took the set 25-15.
Altoona had the better of the play in the second set, jumping out to a 13-7 lead after six straight points. Geneva used a four-point run later in the set to pull within 20-19, but Altoona finished off the set with a 5-1 run to win 25-20.
Two kills from Byron Spear and a kill from Williams helped Geneva grab an 8-2 advantage early in set three. An ace from Williams later in the set stretched the Geneva lead to 19-9, and a kill from Spear finished off the set, 25-19.
The fourth set was the tightest one of the match. Altoona held a brief early lead of 6-3, but the Golden Tornadoes battled back to even the set at 10-10 on a block from Williams and Emerson Spear. Altoona managed to regain its three-point lead later in the set, 20-17, but three straight points on kills from Williams and Byron Spear, and another ace from Williams, pulled Geneva level again. Altoona scored the next two points, but Geneva closed the match on a 5-1 run to win 25-23.
Byron Spear had a career-high 22 kills in the match, on a .364 hitting percentage. Williams added eight kills and three aces. As a team Geneva hit .178, compared to .051 for Altoona. Thomas led the team with 23 assists, Sangrey 14 digs and Milroy four blocks.
The men will now have a long break with Spring Break scheduled for next week. The Golden Tornadoes will return to action in two weeks when Geneva travels to Mount Union for a tri-match on March 18.
Through purposeful learning in a community reflecting the full spectrum of God's kingdom, a Geneva College experience inspires students to discover a faith-life calling in service to God and neighbor. Offering 195+ traditional undergraduate majors and programs, fully online Adult Degree Programs and high-demand graduate degrees, Geneva's programs are recognized for their high quality and affordability. Geneva was founded and is governed by the Reformed Presbyterian Church of North America (RPCNA) and is a founding member of both the Council for Christian Colleges and Universities (CCCU) and the International Association for Christian Education (IACE).
