By: Jennifer Jones
Director of Sports Information
jonesj@juniata.edu • juniatasports.net
HUNTINGDON, Pa. – There are only two matches left in the regular season for No. 1 Juniata College men's volleyball. The Eagles will host Continental Volleyball Conference (CVC) rivals No. 15 Stevenson University on Friday, April 4 at 7:30 p.m. and Cairn University on Saturday, April 5 at 3 p.m. Juniata (23-3) is undefeated in conference, 8-0, heading into this weekend and is closing out its home season in style. Friday is a Whiteout Night and Saturday is senior day.
As a team, Juniata is ranked top 10 nationally in six of the seven categories and lead the CVC in four: aces per set, blocks per set, kills per set, and win-loss percentage. The Eagles are on an eight match win streak and are 6-1 at home this season.
They will be looking to senior Alex McColgin (Buffalo, N.Y./Hamburg) to help lead the front line. McColgin is ranked nationally in four different categories including kills and points per set. He and middle Joe Bortak (Jeannette, Pa./Penn Trafford) have maintained a constant presence. Bortak is ranked No. 2 nationally in hitting percentage and leads the league with his .432 average.
Eagle fans are encouraged to attend Friday's match against Stevenson wearing white. Juniata went five against the Mustangs when they met back on March 7 in Owings Mills, Md. They had big showings from McColgin who earned a match-high 18 kills, and Bortak who as the most accurate on the day of all hitters with over 20 swings with a .522 average. Stevenson (18-7) has won six of its last seven matches since then and are 7-1 in conference play.
Saturday is senior day for the Eagles. They will honor McColgin along with Ross Madden (Richmond, Va./Deep Run) and Ben Krouse (Holland, Pa./Council Rock South) before taking on Cairn. Juniata swept the Highlanders 3-0 when they met in early March. This will be the last match of the season for Cairn (10-14, 1-7 CVC), who has lost five of its last six matches.
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