Men’s Volleyball Defeats Penn State-Altoona, 3-0

ALTOONA, PA- The Juniata men's volleyball team traveled to nearby Altoona to face the Nittany Lions on Wednesday night. The Eagles had no trouble as they cruised to a 3-0 win (25-17, 25-13, 25-20.

Jim Keuper (Brookfield, WI/Brookfield Central) led the offense with nine kills. Chad Albert (Cranberry Township, PA/Seneca Valley) and Mark Feiler (Mountville, PA/Hempfield) both added six kills each.  Keuper and Albert also picked up four block assists. Matt Elias (Lansdale, PA/North Penn) totaled 20 assists while Ryan Shelton (Baldwinsville, NY/C.W. Baker) chipped in 12. Tommy Keisling (Sewickley, PA/North Allegheny) led the defense with seven digs.

Juniata led 18-16 in the first set but outscored the Nittany Lions 7-1 to easily take it. The Eagles led 10-4 in the second frame but PSU-Altoona was able to close the gap to 10-7. Eight straight points from JC pushed its advantage out to 18-7. After the Nittany Lions got to within 22-13, the Eagles slammed the door with kills from Albert and Matthew Kinnebrew (Lansdowne, VA/Stonebridge) and an attack error on the Nittany Lions to take the frame and lead 2-0.

The Eagle lead was 19-11 in the third frame. The Nittany Lions cut it close to 21-16 and then 23-19 but Juniata edged out their opponent with the final two points it needed to take the set and the match.

Juniata next travels to John Jay College in New York City on Saturday. The Eagles will first play York (NY) at 11 a.m. followed by the host Bloodhounds at 1 p.m.