HARRISONBURG, Va.—The Marymount (Va.) University men's volleyball squad battled the Royals of Eastern Mennonite University and the Lions of Penn State University-Altoona on Saturday afternoon. In match one, the Saints took on the Royals and won in four sets (28-26, 19-25, 25-16, 25-22).  Later in the afternoon, the Saints swept the Lions in three sets (29-27, 28-26, 25-15).

Marymount vs. Eastern Mennonite

The Saints went to work early in set one to take the 3-1 lead after back-to-back kills from sophomore Tomasz Ksiazkiewicz. The momentum swung back and forth as both teams continued trading points and piecing together small runs. The set resulted in 10 ties between the teams before the Saints were able to capitalize in the end to win 28-26. The win was a result of a kill from sophomore Graham Clark followed by at attack error by the Royals and a block by Ksiazkiewicz.

Marymount trailed early in set two, falling behind 5-0 before sophomore TJ Wiechecki picked up a kill. Head Coach Hudson Bates took a timeout after trailing 10-4 early on. The squad came out of the timeout re-energized, putting together a 3-0 run. The Royals however, were able to maintain the lead and finished the set on top, 25-19. 

In set three, the Saints got off to a good start taking a 5-2 lead. The three-point advantage came after back-to-back kills from Ksiazkiewicz and sophomore Connor Choate. MU continued to dominate the set and put together several 3-0 runs to finish 25-16 over the Royals.

Set four proved to be a battle between the Saints and Royals. The Saints had a 22-18 advantage before the Royals were forced to take a timeout. Coming out of the timeout, EMU was able to get back within two before MU took its first timeout of the set. Sophomore Erich Bratke fed Ksiazkiewicz for the final point of the match, 25-22.

Wiecheki posted a match-high 18 kills to lead the Saints' offense, closely followed by Ksiazkiewicz who racked up 13. Sophomore Albert Johansson led the defense after tying for a match-high 11 digs.

Marymount vs. Penn State-Altoona 

Marymount started set one trailing 1-0 but quickly tied the set at 3-3. The battle began early as the momentum swayed back and forth reaching several ties throughout the set. The set went into extra points but the Saints pulled out the victory, 29-27, after back-to-back kills from Ksiazkiewicz and freshman Eric Wiles. 

The second set followed a similar pattern as both teams traded points with very few runs inbetween. The set came down to the wire, once again going into extra points. Clark gave the Saints the advantage, 27-26, and the Lions committed an error to end the set 28-26. 

The Saints cruised through the third set after taking a 3-0 lead. The Saints pieced together another 3-0 run later in the set to obtain a 10-point lead. Wiechecki and Caudell led the run with a kill each. Marymount ended the set and match with an ace from Wiechecki to win 25-15.

The Saints' offense was well rounded this match but Wiechecki and Ksiazkiewicz led with 13 kills apiece. Sophomore Jordan Pawlicki and Bratke split time in the setter position and racked up 20 and 21 assists, respectively. Johansson led the defense with nine digs. 

The men will continue on the road at Rutgers University-Newark on Friday, March 4. The match is set to begin at 7 p.m.