GRANTHAM, Pa. - The Messiah College men's volleyball team hosted No. 6 Stevenson University on Wednesday evening in a Middle Atlantic Conference battle. The Falcons fell to the Mustangs 3-0 (25-16, 25-16, 25-17) and dropped to 16-8 overall and 7-3 in the MAC. Messiah had strong starts to both the first and second sets, however Stevenson's aggressive attack and disciplined block allowed them to claim the match 3-0.

Offensively, Matt Knab led the way with nine kills, while Noah Shreiner added seven. Brad Nase controlled the tempo with 20 assists and collected two blocks. Caleb Weaver also contributed six digs on the back line. Middles Kyle Bosko and Nate Reynolds led the way for the Mustangs with 10 and nine kills, respectively.

Overall, Messiah tallied a .077 hitting percentage with only 24 kills in the match. Stevenson was efficient on the attack, clipping a .342 in the match including a game high of .478 in the third set.

How It Happened
After trailing 4-2 early in the set Messiah pieced together a 6-to-1 run to take the lead and pull ahead 8-5. During this scoring spree, the Falcons picked up three blocks at the net and a kill from Ian Parzyszek. The Mustangs began to chip away at Messiah's lead and eventually regained the lead (13-11) after scoring four-straight points. Matt Knab collected two kills for Messiah and the Falcons came within one-point of the lead (14-13), but once again Stevenson took off and closed out the set on a 11-to-3 run (25-16) to take a 1-0 advantage in the match.
 
Messiah had a strong start to game two and held an early 4-1 lead. Matt Knab got things started with a kill off of Brad Nase's set, while Knab and Marshall Nixon collected a block to put their team up three points. The Falcons and Mustangs began to battle back-and-forth, however a triple block from Noah Shreiner, Ian Parzyszek, and Brad Nase gave Messiah a 9-6 lead. Stevenson answered with two-consecutive points, but the Falcons once again pulled ahead after a kill and block from Knab (11-9). Side out play continued for both squads, but midway through the set the Mustangs scored five-straight points to take a 16-13 lead. Noah Shreiner ended the Mustangs' run with a kill in the middle, however Stevenson stepped on the gas and closed out the set on a 9-to-2 run to move ahead 2-0 in the match.
 
The Falcons were trailing 4-2 in the third set but went on a 5-to-2 run to take the lead (7-6), including back-to-back kills from Ian Parzyszek and Will Webb. However, Stevenson responded on a three-point run of their own to regain the lead (9-7). The two teams continued to exchange points back-and-forth and a kill from Matt Knab brought the Falcons within two points of the lead (13-11). The Mustangs then generated some momentum and collected five-straight points, three of which were kills, to take a seven point advantage (18-11) over the Falcons. Messiah came within five points of the lead after back-to-back errors from the Mustangs, however it wouldn't be enough. Stevenson claimed the third set 25-17 to pick up their 13th straight victory. Messiah improved their hitting percentage in game three (.200) after connecting on nine swings and only tallying five errors.
 
Up Next
Messiah will look to bounce back this Saturday when they travel to Alvernia University. The Falcons will take on the Golden Wolves at 10:00 a.m. and Eastern University at noon.