While it has been a rollercoaster ride throughout the season for the Hiram Terriers men’s volleyball team, they are rounding into form as they begin the stretch run. The Terriers ended a seven-match homestand by sweeping Penn State Behrend 25-20, 25-19, 25-18 last Thursday evening at Hiram College’s Price Gymnasium.
“We are a little banged up right now hoping to find a way to get it done after two tough losses; because the other team does not care if you are hurt, I was very happy with how we responded from Wednesday night,” said Coach Tyler North. “We all agreed we did not put our best effort forward so responding with a win was a very good way for this homestand to end.”
Despite no longer being Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference rivals, Hiram (12-8, 5-3) has started to build momentum against the Lions, having now won three straight matches since last year, including sweeping the season series.
“They are one of the top teams still in that league,” said the first-year coach. “Every time you can sweep somebody, we will take it but that was a good one to take care.”
In the first set, the Terriers were re fueled by a 7-2 run to take control, but Penn State Behrend chipped away at the lead as Hiram experienced poor ball control and unforced errors. The Lions staged a 17-12 run, tying the score at 19-19 but Hiram responded with a 3-0 run, propelling it to win the first set 25-20.
Penn State Behrend played better defense in the second set, overcoming an early 3-0 deficit to even the score at 9-9.
“They played really well,” noted senior outside hitter Kyle Martini. “They picked balls up that we thought we were going to hit the floor and for us, it was a matter of staying focused on our offensive game and just executing and toward the end of the set we got better.”
The teams traded points, as there were six lead changes in the set but Martini fueled a 6-0 run, pushing Hiram ahead 19-13, recording three aces and one kill to enable the Terriers to assume control and win the second set 25-19.
“I just try to do my job,” he said. “I know everybody else tries to do their job so I just control the things I can control, go from there, try and go by example.”
Martini finished the match by recording 14 kills, six digs and three aces.
“He carried us through well,” noted North. “We tried our best to let them back in it but we did a good job of finding a way to finish that one and were pretty dominant in the third.”
The Lions once again stayed close at the beginning of the third set with the score tied at 6-6. The Terriers then went on a 12-7 run to take an 18-13 advantage and sailed to a 25-19 victory to complete the sweep, ending their seven-match homestand with a 4-3 record.
Whenever the Terriers needed a big run to take over, they found it, which according to Martini, was a very positive sign.
“I think it shows that we are trending in the right direction to be honest,” he added. “We had a rough stretch there of a couple of games, but it is good to get this one and we are now back on the right track.”
Despite enjoying a seven-match homestand, the Terriers hit a rough patch, losing two consecutive matches prior to the one against Penn State Behrend. Although it may not have been the dominant homestand that Hiram imagined having, ending it with a win and securing a winning record was significant.
“I think it was needed at this time of the season,” North said. “We started on the road a bunch and having that middle stretch of games at home helped us.”
According to North, although the Terriers received a favorable preseason ranking in the Presidents’ Athletic Conference by being picked to finish first, that acknowledgement had the opposite effect on the team.
“I think we may have drunk the kool-aid a little bit at the beginning of the year when we saw that we were picked first,” he said. “I think losing a couple of games was not the worst thing for us because it woke us up a little bit. If we played anywhere close to how we played on Thursday night the rest of the way, we are going to be a tough out for everybody.”
After a road game against PAC foe Geneva College on Wednesday evening, Hiram will take on conference rival Saint Vincent College at the Robert S. Carey Center in Latrobe, PA on Saturday afternoon at 1 p.m.
