OWINGS MILLS, Md. – Facing their biggest test in the last couple of months, the Messiah men's volleyball team swept the No. 9 Stevenson Mustangs on Wednesday night in a key conference tilt. The Falcons earned a 3-0 (27-25, 25-17, 25-17) thanks to big nights from a number of key contributors.
 
Mason Nissley led the Falcons with 21 kills and a stellar .500 hitting percentage while Matt Knab dished out a match-high 34 assists. Nate Bowman picked up nine kills on just 15 swings for a .600 hitting percentage.
 
The victory extends Messiah's winning streak to 13 matches and improves their overall record to 15-3. With the conference win, the Falcons move to 6-0 in the MAC and keeps them tied in the loss column with the Stevens Ducks (8-0 in the conference).
 
Messiah will be back in action this weekend when they take on a pair of conference foes in Eastern and Misericordia in St. Davids, Pa. on Saturday. The Falcons and Eastern Eagles will play at 11:00 a.m. before taking on Misericordia at 1:00 p.m.
 
How It Happened
The opening set of the heavyweight tilt was a back-and-forth battle between the Falcons and Mustangs. Neither team held a lead of over two points until the Falcons went up 19-16 late in the set. The Mustangs rallied back with a 4-1 run to tie things up at 20-20 before eventually taking a 25-24 lead and serving for the game. Messiah wiggled their way out of the jam by winning the next two points to take a 26-25 lead. Mason Nissley put the set away for the Falcons on an overpass, sending an emphatic kill to the floor for the 27-25 set victory.
 
In the opening set, Nissley had 10 kills while hitting .588. As a team the Falcons hit .487 in the set with 21 kills and just two errors.
 
 The thrilling opening set victory for the Falcons took a little wind out of the Mustangs' sails, as Messiah took the set 25-17. The Falcons took advantage of some Mustang errors early in the second set, eventually building a 17-10 lead. That lead was cut to as few as four at 17-13, but the Falcons continued to grow their cushion from there, winning the set by eight at 25-17. Jacob Hamm capped off the set with a kill while Nissley again paced the Falcons' offense in the set with six kills.
 
Leading 2-0, Messiah looked to close the match out in three and thanks to another strong offensive performance in the set, they did just that. Midway through the game, Messiah and Stevenson were deadlocked at 12-12, but the Falcons took control with three-straight points off a Stevenson error, a block, and a Jared Keul ace to take a 15-12 lead. A few points later, Mason Nissley connected on his 20th kill of the night to take a 17-14 lead. A pair of Zac Barbato service aces were sandwiched around a Stevenson hitting error, giving the Falcons a quick 4-0 run that gave the Falcons a 20-14 lead.
 
After the Mustangs halted the run, Nissley delivered a huge kill to get the Falcons back on track, from there they rolled to the 25-17 victory in the set. Down the stretch, Nissley picked up back-to-back aces and Nate Bowman earned two of his nine kills on the night to close out the set.
 
What's Up Next
The Falcons will be back in action this Saturday when they head to Eastern University to take on the Eagles and Misericordia Cougars in a pair of MAC matches. The Falcons and Eagles will play at 11:00 a.m. with their match against Misericordia following at 1:00 p.m.
 
A rematch with Stevenson looms next Tuesday on Jordan Court in Hitchcock Arena at 7:00 p.m.