ST. DAVIDS– Eastern University Men's Volleyball opened the home portion of its schedule with a solid three-set win over the visiting Cairn University Highlanders (0-1). The Eagles pounded out 13 aces on the way to a 2-0 start in the program's first year.
Nick Hulbert recorded a pair of aces in a five point run to flip the score after Cairn built a 10-8 lead in the opening set. The Eagles were able to earn a quick side-out and score three more points with
Anthony Smith at the service line to build a 17-11 lead.
Cameron Parsons finished the set with a nifty dump on a pass from
Darren Lopez. Eastern won the opener 25-18.
Parsons led the Eagles with four kills and four assists and Hulbert had three aces. The Eagles only allowed the Highlanders to score one point on serve in the final half of the set.
The Highlanders jumped to a quick 4-0 lead in the second, but the Eagles answered with an 11-to-1 run to claim control.
Noah Westbrook had three kills and a block in the burst. Lopez had two kills and a block in the run.
After the teams traded side-outs, Eastern put together a 7-to-1 run to open up a 20-11 lead. The teams traded side-outs to close out the set with Eastern winning 25-17. The Eagles hit .304 in the second set.
The Eastern offense scuffled a little in the third set, but the serving came through with some big points. The Eagles hit only .062 in the third, but Hulbert, Westbrook, and Tony Smith each had aces adn Lopez and Parsons put pressure on the Cairn attack with big jump serves.
Christian Knaub had three of his team-high six digs in the third set to help the Eagles to a 25-19 win.
Lopez had a team-high eight kills, but Westbrook led the Eagles with a .556 hitting percentage. He had six kills on nine attempts. Knaub put away five balls on eight attacks. Parsons finished with 18 assists.
Anton Deleon led Cairn with five kills on nine attacks.
Coach Syracuse Says:
"It was a great win for our new team against an established program. Our guys did a good job picking up for each other when we had some hitting errors. That is a good sign going forward. "
"Noah had an outstanding offensive match. We had solid passing which enabled Cam to put him in position to be successful. The two have been working on their timing, and it showed tonight."
"I was pleased with our ability to scramble for points and win some of the longer rallies when the match broke down. That will be a key for us as we work to get results."
"We continue improve in our blocking and it is good for us to get game action in where we can see where we need to improve. I am pleased with our start."
Up Next:
The Eagles have a ten day period to work before they play again. They will host Immaculata University and Lehman College in a tri-match on Feb. 2.
