Knights Hold Off Eagles in Five Set Thriller in CVC Championship Game

By Kenny Varner Jr.
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Updated: April 11, 2021

BUENA Vista, VA.- The Juniata men’s volleyball team couldn’t quite dig out of the two sets to none hole they found themselves in as they lost 3-2 (20-25, 23-25, 25-18, 26-24, 8-15) in the Continental Volleyball Conference Championship Game, Saturday evening at Parry McCluer High School Arena.

The Eagles jumped out to a 7-3 to start the match, but the Knights rattled off six straight points, including three aces, to make it 7-9. The Eagles were right on their heels for a while as the teams traded points, with Will Phelan (Saegertown, Pa. / Saegertown H.S.)’s kill making it 17-18 as JC got within one again. But the Knights scored the next three points, and the Eagles couldn’t get going as the hosts took game one, 20-25.

The second set saw the Blue and Gold trailing midway, 13-15, and call timeout. Two Knight attack errors, a kill by Reese Ganter (Reading, Pa. / Exeter Township HS), and an ace by Drew Hunker (Pittsburgh, Pa. / North Allegheny) made it 17-15 and forced Southern Virginia to call timeout. They got a kill coming out of the break before a block by Tyler Goldsborough (Reading, Pa. / Exeter Township HS) and Luke Hoffman (Reading, Pa. / Exeter Township HS), another Knight attack error, and a setting error put JC back up by four. Southern Virginia mounted another run, this one a 6-1 run to make it 21-22. Following an Eagle timeout, Phelan put down a kill which Southern Virginia followed with one of their own. A ball-handling error by SVU knotted things at 23 apiece, but a kill and an ace ended the set 23-25 in favor of the Knights.

Backs against the wall, Juniata opened the third by taking the first seven points of the match as Goldsborough and Hoffman combined for three blocks and a kill apiece during the run. Southern Virginia clawed their way back into the game, pulling within one at 12-11. A kill from Hoffman, a Knight attack error, and another block by Hoffman and Goldsborough made it 15-11. Two SVU kills got them back within two, but the Eagles used two errors by the Knights and a Goldsborough ace to go back up five. They cruised the rest of the way to make it 25-18.

The fourth set was much more a grind, with the Eagles trailing 13-18. A 6-2 run took care of that deficit, with a Kevin Duffy (Carlisle, Pa. / Carlisle HS) kill making it 19-20. SVU took a timeout and followed with a kill, but Goldsborough notched a kill, and Hunker served up an ace to make it 21-21. The Knights took the next two points, but Goldsborough struck again; Robert Bowling (Columbus, Ohio / Hilliard Darby) combined with Hoffman for a block, and an SVU attack error gave JC set point. Another SVU timeout was proceeded by an Eagle ballhandling error. But SVU returned the favor with an error, and Phelan’s kill sent the match into a fifth set, 26-24.

Juniata led 2-1 to start the fifth, but an SVU kill and three JC attack errors made it 2-5. Duffy’s kill made it 3-5, and the teams went back and forth to get to 5-7. SVU turned it up from there, taking the next five points to get it 5-12, and the Eagles never recovered as Southern Virginia took set five 8-15 to capture the CVC Championship.

Phelan led the way with 13 kills, five digs, a solo block, and a block assist. Bowling had 10 kills, five digs, and a block assist, while Goldsborough added eight kills, an ace, three digs, and six block assists. Duffy had seven kills (.583%) to go with a block assist, while Hoffman had five kills, a dig, and eight block assists.

Juniata is now 13-3.