Eagles Declaw Leopards, Advance to NCAA Quarterfinals
HOBOKEN, N.J. – The No. 5 Juniata men's volleyball team put together an efficient and balanced performance on Friday night, sweeping Wentworth 3-0 (25-20, 25-23, 25-23) at Canavan Arena in the second round of the NCAA Division III Men's Volleyball Championship.
The Eagles (30-4) hit a blistering .412 as a team and never trailed by more than three points in any set, advancing to the NCAA Quarterfinals with their 24th sweep of the season.
Juan Armando led the attack with 12 kills and added six digs while hitting .286. Chris Mellor was perfect on the night with seven kills on seven attempts for a 1.000 hitting percentage, and Tyler Phillips added seven more kills while swinging at a .455 clip.
The Eagles were sharp at the net, totaling 12 blocks. Luke Hoffman paced the effort with one solo and four block assists, while Grant Lorelli and Tyler Phillips each contributed two block assists. Lorelli also dished out 11 assists.
Will Sierer directed the offense with 21 assists, and the Eagles' serve receive held strong despite 22 Wentworth service attempts. Defensively, Tyler Goldsborough picked up a team-high eight digs and added five kills and two aces.
Juniata controlled the opening set with a dominant .579 hitting percentage, committing just two attack errors. Wentworth pushed back in the final two frames, but the Eagles closed out each set with timely blocks and crisp execution.
The Leopards (26-7) were led by Mason Andrade's nine kills, but Juniata's defense held them to a .257 attack percentage overall.
Juniata will face Nichols on Saturday at 6:00 PM in Hoboken with a trip to the national semifinals on the line.
Post Game Interview: https://d3erbgikz6mtmj.cloudfront.net/video/70/55/29/4/7055294.mp4