AURORA, N.Y. – The Geneva College men's volleyball team opened Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference (AMCC) play on Saturday in a tri-match at Wells College. The men began the day by sweeping Wells 25-15, 25-22, 25-16 in their first conference match of the season. The Golden Tornadoes wrapped up the tri-match with a non-conference match against SUNY Potsdam, and the Bears defeated Geneva in four set 25-27, 25-23, 25-20, 25-22. Geneva's record is now 11-9 overall.
In the first match of the day against AMCC foe Wells, Geneva took control early with seven straight points behind the serving of freshman Owen Kelley. Freshman Peter Samuelsen started the run off with a kill, and he added a block later in the run. Senior Carter Milroy, junior Decker Milroy, Kelley and junior Matthew Thoman also contributed a kill in the stretch. That spurt gave the Golden Tornadoes an 11-4 advantage, and the men steadily increased their lead to 19-9 behind another kill from Carter Milroy. Sophomore Evan Puhl finished off the set with a kill, 25-15.
An ace from Carter Milroy early in set two helped give the Golden Tornadoes a quick 5-2 edge. Geneva stretched its lead to 12-7 on an ace from Decker Milroy before Wells rallied. The Express scored five straight points later in the set to take their first lead, 20-18. The Golden Tornadoes were able to rally back, though, pulling even at 21-21 on an ace from Thoman, and after a Wells point, Geneva scored the final four points. Carter Milroy, Samuelsen and Puhl all had kills to get to set point, and Milroy finished off the set, 25-22, with an ace.
Wells scored the first three points of the third set, forcing the Golden Tornadoes to play from behind early on. The Express still led, 10-7, before Geneva regained momentum. The men put together a 6-1 run to take their first lead of the set, 13-11, with Carter Milroy contributing back-to-back kills and Thoman finishing off the stretch with back-to-back aces. Wells could never recover from there. Geneva steadily stretched its lead out, with Milroy contributing three more kills down the stretch to finish off the match, 25-16.
Carter Milroy led the offense with 14 kills on a .480 hitting percentage, while Kelley added 11 kills on a .364 hitting percentage. Samuelsen and Puhl each added six kills as Geneva hit .319 as a team. Decker Milroy led the team with 34 assists, while adding eight digs, and junior Joshua Sangrey finished with a team-high 10 digs.
The second match of the day against SUNY Potsdam was tight throughout. Geneva jumped ahead in the first set 4-1 behind a kill and a block from Puhl and an ace from freshman Alex Smith. Potsdam scored the next four points as part of a 10-3 run that gave the Bears an 11-7 edge. A couple minutes later, Geneva pulled even with four straight points behind kills from Puhl, Kelley and Milroy and a block from Samuelsen. After a Potsdam point, four more Geneva points gave the Golden Tornadoes a 17-14 advantage. The Bears battled back to tie the score at 19-19 and eventually got to set point, 24-23, before Geneva closed the set on a 4-1 run, the last two points coming on a kill from Thoman and a double block from Thoman and Milroy, 27-25.
Potsdam had the better of the play early in set two, jumping ahead 12-6. The Bears grew their lead to 20-13 before Geneva tried to rally late. The Golden Tornadoes scored the next seven points to pull even at 20-20, but Potsdam held on for a 25-23 victory.
The third set was a back-and-forth affair for almost the whole set until, with Geneva leading 19-18, Potsdam scored four straight points as a part of a 7-1 run to close the set, 25-20.
Potsdam used a run midway through the fourth set to grab a 13-8 lead. The Bears extended their edge to 19-13, and a late Geneva rally fell short, 25-22.
Samuelsen led the offense with 11 kills on a .600 hitting percentage, while Milroy and Puhl each added 10 kills as Geneva hit .231. Decker Milroy finished with 40 assists, while Kelley led the team with 13 digs.
Geneva will be back in action on Wednesday with a home game against Mount Aloysius at 7:00 p.m.
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).
