BEAVER FALLS, Pa.- The #15 Juniata men's volleyball team opened their season with a 3-0 (25-17, 25-20, 25-19) win on the road at Geneva, Saturday afternoon inside Metheny Fieldhouse.
Tyler Goldsborough (Reading, Pa. / Exeter Township HS) scored the first point of the season for the Eagles off an assist from Daniel Voronov (Northbrook, Ill. / Glenbrook North HS). The teams traded points before a quick flurry from the Eagles that featured a block from Max Cooley (Bethel Park, Pa. / Bethel Park H.S.) and Kevin Duffy (Carlisle, Pa. / Carlisle HS), a Golden Tornado attack error, and a Cooley kill to make it 5-2 Juniata. The Golden Tornadoes notched a kill of their own before the Eagles rattled off seven straight points to go up 12-3. Robert Bowling(Columbus, Ohio / Hilliard Darby) had two aces during the run, while Reese Ganter (Reading, Pa. / Exeter Twp. HS) partnered with Duffy Cooley for a block. The Eagles cruised through the set, and at set point, Goldsborough lasered a ball into the back-right corner to end set one, 25-17.
The second set saw the Juniata build an early 8-4 lead, but the Golden Tornadoes didn't shy away and put up a 7-0 run of their own, which saw them go up 9-12. The Eagles kept it close, with a Geneva service error and a kill from Luke Hoffman (Reading, Pa. / Exeter Township HS) pushed JC back ahead 16-15. The Golden Tornadoes tried to stem the changing tide with a timeout, but it was to no avail. The Golden Tornadoes stayed close at 20-18, before an error by the hosts, a kill from Duffy, a solo block from Ganter before they combined for a block to push the Eagles to set point at 24-18. Geneva held off the end of the set twice before a Cooley kills iced set two, 25-20.
With the score at 7-7 in the third set, the Eagles used another 7-0 run to surge ahead, with kills from Hoffman, Duffy, and Cooley, two blocks from Duffy and Bowling, and an ace from Will Hafen (Las Vegas, Nev. / Bishop Gorman). Errors from the Blue and Gold allowed the Golden Tornadoes back within three, 17-14, but an error from Geneva and a Goldsborough kill stretched the lead back to five. JC reached match point, 24-17, on a Golden Tornado error, and two points later, Cooley closed the match with his match-high 12th kill.
Juniata will host Alderson Broaddus next Saturday at 2:00.