Box Score OWINGS MILLS, Md. -- The ninth-ranked Stevenson men's volleyball team (17-8, 7-2 MAC) dropped just its second Middle Atlantic Conference matchup this season to Messiah (15-3, 7-0 MAC) 3-0. Set scores were 25-27, 17-25 and 17-25.
In the first set, Messiah carved out a 9-11 lead before the Mustangs could respond with a three-point rally to take a 12-11 lead with a kill from Aleks Melbardis and two from Tim Flanagan. The two sides traded points to the 16-16 mark before Messiah tacked on three consecutive points to garner a 16-19 advantage.
Stevenson would not go away quietly, battling back to a 21-21 tie with two more kills from Flanagan before Tanner Stauffer gave them the slight advantage at 22-21. Messiah ripped right back to a 23-22 lead before Stevenson was forced to take a timeout to stall the Falcon momentum. The sides battled to a 25-25 tie before the Falcons could rattle off the final two points to take the first set 27-25.
The second set was tightly contested at the start with neither side stringing together more than two points, however Messiah was still able to garner a 9-5 lead. The Falcons went on a 5-2 run to nourish their lead to 7-14.
The Falcons would carry their lead to 10-17 before Tim Flanagan could send home a kill followed by an Aleks Melbardis ace and Messiah attack error. Messiah continued to apply pressure to the Mustangs, taking a 13-21 lead on a four-point rally, the longest rally of the set. Messiah took the frame 17-25 to command a 2-0 lead.
In the third set the Falcons jumped to a 7-4 lead on a block assist before the Mustangs could battle back to a 10-10 tie. The Mustangs continued to battle, knotting the frame at 12 a-piece with a kill from Tim Flanagan and block from Doug Hines and Aidan O'Brien.
The Falcons would leverage a 14-20 advantage on an 8-2 run. Tanner Stauffer notched a kill to halt the momentum at 16-21. The Falcons finished the set on a 4-1 run to take the third frame 17-25.
Numbers and Notes
What's Next
- Stevenson travels to Arcadia for a lone conference match on Saturday, March 26 at 4pm.
