GRANTHAM, Pa. – The Messiah men's volleyball earned a pair of victories over the Randolph-Macon Yellow Jackets 3-1 (23-25, 25-22, 25-22, 25-18) and the Widener Pride 3-0 (25-22, 25-9, 25-19) on Saturday afternoon in a tri-match at home.  Three Falcons finished with double-digit kills in the first match of the day, Will Webb led the way with 17 kills. In the second match, Messiah spread the offense around with six different players earning multiple kills in a sweep of the Pride.
 
Including the pair of victories on Saturday, Messiah went a perfect, 4-0 on the week and improves to 14-7 overall and 6-2 in the MAC on the season. The Falcons are next in action on Saturday, Mar. 23 when they host matches against Vassar (1:00 p.m.) and Mount Union (4:00 p.m.).
 
Messiah defeats Randolph-Macon 3-1 (23-25, 25-22, 25-22, 25-18)
The Falcons fell into an early hole in the opening set after the Randolph-Macon Yellow Jackets won the first eight points of the afternoon. Messiah spent the next stretch of the set working their way back and eventually tied the set at 15-15, following consecutive kills from Will Webb and Noah Wilson. A four-point run for the Yellow Jackets with Lee Olenyik serving gave them control at 19-15. Despite Messiah outscoring Randolph-Macon 8-6 down the stretch, the Yellow Jackets were able to hold on and claimed the first set 25-23.
 
In the second set, Messiah was the team that opened up a comfortable lead from the outset with a Web kill give the Falcons an 11-4 lead after 15 points in the set. Following the run, is was once again Olenyik serving for the Yellow Jackets. The junior's serve was difficult to handle and Randolph-Macon ripped off eight-straight points to take a 12-11 lead. The set remained extremely close late in the set with the two sides tied 20-20. A service error from Randolph-Macon gave Messiah a 21-20 lead and started a 5-2 run for the Falcons that closed out the set at 25-22 and leveled the match at 1-1.
 
Much like the second set, Messiah and Randolph-Macon traded scoring runs in the third. Messiah used a 9-2 run to take a 12-5 lead, but the Yellow Jackets came back with a 10-4 streak to pull within one at 20-19. Kills from Brad Nase and Noah Shreiner allowed Messiah to finish off the set with a strong final push and the Falcons took the set by a 25-22 final.
 
After a closely contested start to the fourth set, Messiah took their lead from one point to five with a 6-2 run. The streak was fueled by three kills from Will Webb and Messiah held a 13-8 lead at the end of the stretch. The Falcons steadily increased their lead throughout the remainder of the set, eventually claiming the game 25-18 and finishing off the match by a 3-1 score.
 
As a team, Messiah hit .248 in the match while holding the Yellow Jackets to a .190 hitting percentage. Will Web led all players with 17 kills in the match, while Jared Keul collected his second double-double of the week with 13 kills and 14 digs.
 
Messiah defeats Widener 3-0 (25-22, 25-9, 25-19)
In their second match of the day, the Falcons hosted conference foe Widener University. The Pride held the upper hand at the midpoint of the opening set, leading 15-13, but Messiah collected seven-straight points with Marshall Nixon serving to take the lead at 20-15. After a four-point run for Widener made it a 20-19 Messiah lead, the Falcons finished off the set by winning five of the final eight points to take the set 25-22. Nixon capped off the set with a kill off a pass from Brad Nase.
 
The second set was one of the more interesting sets that the Falcons have played all year. Messiah trailed three times in the early portion of the set at 4-3, 5-4 and 6-5. The score was eventually even at 9-9 before a kill from Eric Weaver started a massive, 16-0 run for the Falcons. After Weaver's kill made it a 10-9 Messiah lead, he stepped back to the service line and helped the Falcons claim the next 15 points for the 25-9 victory in the set. Five different Falcons collected kills on the run and Messiah took a 2-0 lead in the match after winning the set.
 
Messiah would go on to claim the third set by a 25-19 final to lock of their second 3-0 sweep of the Pride this season. After Widener held a 10-9 lead early in the set, Messiah won nine of the next 11 points to take an 18-12 lead. Widener closed the gap to two on three occasions down the stretch, but that was as close as they would get. Noah Wilson served out the final three points of the set and ended match with an ace to give Messiah the 3-0 (25-22, 25-9, 25-19) victory.
 
With the pair of victories, Messiah moves to 14-7 on the season and will next take the floor on Saturday, March 23 when they host Vassar (1:00 p.m.) and Mount Union (4:00 p.m.) on Jordan Court in Hitchcock Arena.