HUNTINGDON, Pa. — The No. 11 Carthage College men's volleyball team fell to No. 12 Juniata 3-1 to begin the three-game stint in Pennsylvania.
- Final score: Juniata 3 - Carthage 1
- Location: Huntingdon, Pennsylvania - Memorial Gymnasium
- Records: No. 12 Juniata 4-3, No. 11 Carthage 3-3
- In the first set, Carthage secured a one-point advantage at 9-8 courtesy of a kill and block from Ben Heise.
- A combined block from Ryan Cholewinski and Owen Otto, along with an attack error and an ace from Ryan Morey, extended the margin to 16-11.
- Despite Juniata tying it at 17, the Firebirds embarked on an 8-2 run, ultimately winning the first set 25-19.
- Moving on to the second set, Carthage took an 11-8 lead, highlighted by aces from Gene McNulty.
- A solo block from Grant Veldman and a Drew Jansen kill later extended the lead to 17-12. However, the Eagles responded with a 10-2 run, flipping the score to 22-19.
- Carthage countered with a 5-1 run, culminating in an Otto kill, making it 26-25.
- Unfortunately, Juniata scored the final three points, securing a 28-26 set win.
- Entering the third set with momentum, the Eagles took an early 9-5 lead.
- Mitch Geiger contributed a kill and a solo block, enabling the Firebirds to tie the score at 10.
- Carthage later leveled it at 20 with a service error.
- Both teams fiercely contested control until the Eagles claimed the final three points, winning the set 30-28.
- In the fourth set, a kill from Keegan Brummitt narrowed Carthage's deficit to two.
- The duo of Cholewinski and Brummitt later reduced the gap to one.
- Kills from Otto and Geiger brought the match to a tie at 22, but Juniata managed to secure two consecutive points, ultimately winning the match 25-23.
"I'm really proud of this group and how we compete collectively. We got down by a bunch of points in sets three and four. But we didn't waiver. We trusted our abilities and our teammates, and we went to battle for each other. That is the Carthage I know we are. We don't give up; we fight and battle for every point.
Unfortunately, we came up just short in the big moments tonight. If we keep putting ourselves in competitive matches, we will turn that corner and find ways to win. The trust, belief, and battle are there; we will find the execution.
I was incredibly proud of
Ty Martin today in his first start of his career. He found a way to have a big impact with his offense. Keegan Brumitt was also electric off the bench in the 4th set. He did a great job of making some big blocking moves to give us energy.
Mitch Geiger was great off the bench as well. His offense gave us a big lift in set 3 to bring us back to have an opportunity to win the set.
I'm proud of this group. We compete as a unit and believe in each other. Those big swings in big moments will pay off down the stretch. We will learn from this and come back stronger."
- Day two of the FrogJump Invite begins Friday, February 2 as the Firebirds face No. 2 Stevens at 5 p.m. EST.
