Four in a Row For Men's Volleyball

AURORA, NY - Eric Theiss (Plum, PA/Plum) had double-digit kills in two matches to finish with 23 kills, nine digs and five blocks to lead Penn State Behrend past SUNYIT (3-0) and Wells (3-1) in non-conference men's volleyball action on Saturday night.

The Lions (4-1) have won four straight matches after defeating SUNYIT 25-15, 25-22, 25-19 and then Wells 25-20, 21-25, 25-20 and 25-22. Josh Oertly (Cochranton, PA/Cochranton) added 18 kills on the day while Mitch Farabaugh (North Huntingdon, PA/Norwin) handed out 39 assists.

Early in the first set against SUNYIT, Oertly tallied three kills to get Behrend in front, 10-5. The Lions kept the lead the rest of the game and got three of their final four points on kills, including one from Oertly along with an ace followed by a kill from Trenton Munk (Baden, PA/Ambridge) for the win.

With an 11-7 lead in the second set, SUNYIT went on a small 4-1 spurt to make it 12-11 after two kills from Bobby Nilsen. A quick 6-1 run by Behrend pushed the lead to 18-12 and the Lions went ahead 2-0 in the match with two kills from Munk and another from Oertly.

Behrend rallied from a 17-16 deficit late in the third set to win 25-20 thanks to five errors from SUNYIT.

In game two against Wells, Ty Sheehan (Cochranton, PA/Cochranton) led the Lions with a team-high 18 digs. Theiss had 11 kills, six digs and two blocks, while Farabaugh posted the double-double with 23 assists and 10 digs.

In a closer second match of the day, the two teams exchanged sets before Behrend won the final two to earn a pair of wins. In the third set, Sheehan served the Lions out of a one-point game to make it 22-17. Two errors by Wells and a kill by Oerlty made it a 25-20 Behrend victory and a 2-1 lead.

Down early in the fourth set, the Lions soared to a 10-point lead at 22-12. Wells managed to get within four thanks to an 8-2 run to make it 24-20, but Behrend won match point on a bad set for a 3-1 win.

Munk added seven kills and six blocks against Wells.

The Lions return to action tomorrow at Keuka. Match begins at 12:30 p.m.