ELIZABETHTOWN, Pa. – Elizabethtown men's volleyball pushed its winning streaking to four matches with victories over Eastern (3-0) and a thrilling comeback over Penn State Behrend (3-2) Saturday afternoon in non-conference action.
 
With the two wins, the Blue Jays improve to 4-1 on the year while Penn State Behrend and Eastern open the year 1-1 and 0-2 respectively.
 
Freshman Steve Swain combined to hit .319 with 20 kills between the two matches. Senior Nick Baxter racked up 30 kills on the day and freshman Blake Hildebrand hit .231 with 17 kills and 13 digs. Freshman Tony Camillo compiled 10 blocks and freshman Dan Barckholtz dished out 40 assists

ELIZABETHTOWN 3, EASTERN 0 (25-20, 25-22, 25-20)

• SET ONE: After Elizabethtown held a 3-1 lead early in the first, Eastern went on a 5-1 run to move ahead by two (6-4) and force an Elizabethtown timeout. The Eagles continued to hold a slight advantage over the Blue Jays, until Hildebrand fired home a kill to tie the opening stanza at 15. Eastern made one last surge to take an 18-16 lead, but Elizabethtown had the answer, closing out the first with a 9-2 rally and take the 1-0 lead, 25-20.
• SET TWO: Similar to the first, Eastern fell behind early (10-6), but charged back with three quick points to force another Blue Jays' timeout. Elizabethtown hit the reset button and pushed its advantage to six (18-12) after junior Joey Nelson find Swain for the kill. Eastern continued to linger and cut the Blue Jays' lead to one at 23-22, but a service error and a bad set by the visitors gave Elizabethtown the set two victory, 25-22, and the 2-0 lead.
• SET THREE: The Blue Jays squirted out to an early 10-5 lead in the third after a kill by Swain. The home team continued to hold a comfortable advantage until the Eagles rattled off three straight points to move within two (17-15). Eastern continued to nip at the Blue Jays heels, but could not overtake Elizabethtown as they closed out its third straight, straight set victory, 3-0, 25-20.

 
ELIZABETHTOWN 3, PENN STATE BEHREND 2 (25-23, 26-24, 25-19, 25-19, 15-4)

• SET ONE: The opening set started out as a battle as the visitors squeaked ahead by three (13-10) after a kill by senior John Cageao. The Lions continued to hold onto that three point advantage, until they moved ahead by five (19-15) and forcing a timeout by the Blue Jays. Elizabethtown did not go away quietly though, tying the set up at 23 after a ball handling error by sophomore Diego Ortiz. Penn State Behrend, however, scored the final two points and took the opening stanza, 25-23.
• SET TWO: After falling behind early, Baxter rose up for a big block to tie the match at 11. The Blue Jays then moved ahead by two (14-12) after a kill from Hildebrand. Elizabethtown continued to press and pushed its lead to 20-16 after consecutive aces by Baxter. The Lions, however, used an 8-3 run and grab a 24-23 lead, forcing a Blue Jays timeout. Swain came out of the time out and hammered home a kill, but the visitors moved ahead 2-0, securing the final two points and winning the second set, 26-24.
• SET THREE: The 2-0 deficit did not waver Elizabethtown as they came out firing in the third set, running out to the 11-6 lead and forcing a Penn State Behrend timeout. The Blue Jays continued to push using back-to-back kills by Baxter and Swain to move ahead, 18-10. The visitors would only manage to close within four through the third, as Elizabethtown took the set, 25-19.
• SET FOUR: After falling behind by two (13-11), the Blue Jays snatched back the advantage going on a 10-0 run highlighted by three block assists from Camillo, two from Baxter and one from Hildebrand. The Lions were unable to recover from in the fourth, as Baxter fired home the winner and tying thing at two, 25-19.
• SET FIVE: The Blue Jays left no doubt in the fifth racing out to an 11-2 lead, including an ace by junior Steve Schreffler and four kills from Baxter. There was not stopping Elizabethtown as the wrapped up the comeback win in a big way, taking the final set 15-4.

 

• NEXT MATCH
  Next up, Elizabethtown hosts Messiah on Tuesday, Jan. 28 in non-conference action. Opening serve is set for 8 p.m.