BRIDGEWATER, Va. - Bridgewater College men's volleyball battled hard in a home tri-match against Lynchburg and No. 3 nationally ranked Juniata falling short to Lynchburg in three sets and going to four sets with Juniata on a hard-fought afternoon Saturday.
The Basics
Match 1 score: Lynchburg Hornets (UL) 3, Bridgewater College Eagles (BC) 0
Match 2 score: No. 3 Juniata College Eagles (JC) 3, Bridgewater College Eagles (BC) 1
Records: BC (3-13 OVR, 1-3 ODAC); UL (3-5 OVR, 2-1 ODAC), JC (16-1)
How It Happened
Match 1
-
Each set came down to the wire between the Hornets and the Eagles. Momentum swings pushed from side-to-side. BC got the momentum started first with an early surge. However, the Hornets continued to come back stronger after the deficit. A pair of consecutive scoring runs from both sides put the first set at a close margin. Lead changes ensued throughout the set. Jeffrey Prevost and Seth Williams worked on the attacking side to challenge the Hornets late in the set, but the first set went to Lynchburg for a 25-23 opening set.
-
The Hornets used a five-point scoring surge to set the stage for the second set. Attacking sequences were beginning to get cut off for BC, and UL found a small opening to breakaway. However, the same pattern from the first set occurred in the second, with a back-and-forth scoring rally. The Eagles fired away a massive nine-point scoring run after the scoring surge that began the set with the Hornets and tied the set at 16 apiece. The Hornets managed to settle their attacking errors late in the set to take the second set at 25-20.
-
Although another early run to begin the third set, the Eagles were never fully out of reach. However, the Hornets forced the Eagles into attacking errors, leaving space to take command of the lead. BC continued climbing from behind and strung together a three-point run including a strong attacking game by Aiden Weaver to bring the deficit down to three after a six-point deficit, but the Hornets broke away and took the final set, 25-21.
Match 2
-
The Bridgewater Eagles exhibited a tough fight against the No. 3 nationally ranked Juniata squad. BC hustled to every ball and made the other Eagles squad work for their points. In the opening set, BC got off to an early 3-0 start. JC got in rhythm and set the tone after the early deficit. JC bounced back effectively and executed on BC's attacking errors. The Eagles stayed close and pushed ahead to drop the deficit to one point, but JC rolled away with a 25-17 opening set.
-
In the second set, BC came ready to challenge the JC Eagles even more, with action-packed offensive connections. Aiden Weaver ignited a six-point run with a striking blow, and JC was left searching for the momentum. BC had control for the set and never lost the lead. JC exerted an effort to take the lead with a seven-point run, but BC held strong as the set went to BC, 25-23.
-
JC settled back in as the action flowed in the third set, but more momentum swings took place. BC reclaimed the lead after dropping the lead at 10-8. Weaver and Jeffrey Prevost paired up to land powerful strikes and kept within reach of the momentum. However, a late six-point run for JC pushed the Eagles away enough to drop the third set in a tough back-and-forth sequence, at 25-19.
-
In the fourth set, the momentum fully shifted to the nationally ranked squad. With an early 3-0 run, BC struggled to gain traction in the set. A four-point run in the middle of the set to sustain a six-point lead put the JC Eagles at a comfortable spot to hold offensive pressure. Later in the set, JC used another four-point run to command a 17-8 lead. JC pushed ahead and closed out the match in four sets with a 25-13 final set score.
Match Notes
Match 1
Match 2
Up Next
The Eagles are back in action on Wednesday, Feb. 25 to face EMU on the road beginning at 7 p.m.
