#11 Eagles Split with #5 Scarlet Raiders in Two Five-Set Thrillers

HUNTINGDON Pa.- The #11 Juniata men's volleyball team battled all afternoon with visiting #5 Rutgers-Newark, as they dropped match one 2-3 (15-25, 26-24, 28-26, 23-25, 13-15) before taking the second match 3-2 (24-26, 25-17, 25-16, 23-25, 15-13), Sunday afternoon inside Memorial Gymnasium. 

The first set was one to forget for the Eagles as they fell behind early, hit -.200 for the set, and wound up dropping the opener 15-25.  

Set two opened with a kill from Luke Hoffman (Reading, Pa. / Exeter Township HS) and an attack error by the Scarlet Raiders. It was much tighter throughout, with JC trailed 12-14 before kills from Will Phelan (Saegertown, Pa. / Saegertown H.S.) and Robert Bowling (Columbus, Ohio / Hilliard Darby) mixed with a Rutgers-Newark attack error made it 15-14. The teams went back and forth, with the Eagles going up 21-20 before the Scarlet Raiders surged ahead via a 3-1 spurt to lead 24-22 and reach set point. A Kevin Duffy (Carlisle, Pa. / Carlisle HS) kill and another Scarlet Raider attack error tied things at 24. A Grant Crytzer (Freeport, Pa. / Freeport) float serve gave JC set point, and a block by Tyler Goldsborough (Reading, Pa. / Exeter Township HS) and Hoffman ended the set 26-24. 

Set three saw Juniata lead most of the way. With the score at 6-4, Duffy and Reese Ganter (Reading, Pa. / Exeter Township. HS) combined for a block, Phelan served back-to-back aces and forced a Rutgers-Newark timeout, but a slick Ganter dump pushed the lead to 10-4. The Scarlet Raiders wouldn't go away and pulled even at 20-20 after a 4-0 run. With the score at 22-23, Phelan and Duffy's kills pushed JC to set point, but the Scarlet Raiders managed to tie the score. Kills from Duffy twice got JC to set point, but each time the visitors had an answer. With the score at 26-26, the Scarlet Raiders committed an error, and Bowling smash down the right side ended the set-in favor of JC 28-26.  

Set four was more of the same as neither team led by more than three at any point. The Scarlet Raiders got the three-point advantage late, with a solo block putting them at set point, 21-24. Juniata called timeout. Bowling tooled the block to get a point back for JC, and a Rutgers-Newark attack error brought them within one, but an Eagle service error made it 23-25 and meant a fifth set.  

The deciding set followed the same script as the previous three, with neither team giving an inch. With the score at 9-7, kills from Goldsborough and Phelan made it 11-7 as JC was in a good position, but three of the next four points went the way of the visitors to make it 12-10. Rutgers-Newark committed a service error to make it 13-10, but Juniata did not score again as the Scarlet Raiders closed the match on a 5-0 run to win the match, 13-15. 

Hoffman had an efficient first match for the Eagles as he tallied nine kills (.500) with two solo blocks and a block assist. 

Game one highlights-

The second match's opening set saw Juniata jump out to a 7-3 lead following a Goldsborough kill. An 8-2 rally from Rutgers-Newark put an end to that as they went up 9-11. They slowly increased their lead, leading by as many as five at 15-20. An attack error, a solo block by Hoffman, and a block by him and Bowling made it 18-20 as the Scarlet Raiders called timeout. An Eagle service error gave Rutgers-Newark the point, and the teams traded points until the visitors reached set point, 22-24. A Duffy kill and an attack error from the visitors tied things at 24-24, but a JC service error and a kill from Rutgers-Newark ended the set, 24-26. 

The second and third sets saw Juniata cruise to a pair of relatively easy wins, 25-17 and 25-16, respectively. Juniata hit .379 in the second and .474 in the third while holding Rutgers-Newark to -.087 and .000. 

Juniata had their chances to end the match in the fourth, as a block by Max Cooley (Bethel Park, Pa. / Bethel Park H.S.) and Duffy followed by a Cooley kill made it 20-17. But Rutgers-Newark closed on a 7-3 spurt to send the match to a fifth set. 

The teams traded points as Juniata led 5-4 early before kills from Goldsborough and Bowling, followed by a Scarlet Raider attack error that made it 8-4, and Rutgers-Newark called timeout. The visitors rallied following the pause, rattling off four points of their own to make it 8-8. The Eagles called timeout, Goldsborough walloped a ball off the block, and Rutgers-Newark committed an attack error to put JC back up by two. The Scarlet Raids took the next two points, pulling even on an ace. Each team scored a point before two straight Cooley kills to put JC ahead, 13-11. Juniata's error was followed by another timely Ganter kill that caught the Scarlet Raider defense off guard and gave the Eagles match point, 14-12. Juniata committed a service error and called timeout. Following the break, Goldsborough ended things with his 10^th kill of the match, 15-13.  

Three players had double-doubles for the Eagles as Goldsborough had 10 kills and 10 digs, Bowling had 17 kills and 11 digs, and Cooley had 11 kills and 12 digs.  

Game two highlights-

Juniata will travel to Elizabethtown for a pair of matches next Saturday. The first match begins at 2:00.