TRAFFORD, Pa. (pacathletics.org) - The first-ever Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) Men's Volleyball Tournament began Tuesday with quarterfinal action, as third-seeded Hiram College won in four sets on their home floor, while fifth-seeded Saint Vincent College went on the road to post a sweep. Both teams advance to Thursday's semifinal round with the wins.
Hiram (16-10) was tied with No. 6 Chatham University at a set apiece before the Terriers bounced back to win the final two and move on with a 3-1 victory. Meanwhile, Saint Vincent (11-12) avenged two regular season losses to No. 4 Geneva College with a convincing 3-0 sweep in Beaver Falls, Pa.
The two teams who win in Thursday's semifinals will meet in the PAC Tournament Championship game Saturday at the highest remaining seed.
Tuesday, April 8 (Quarterfinal Round - Hiram, Ohio)
No. 3 Hiram 3, No. 6 Chatham 1
Hiram and Chatham exchanged mini-runs throughout the first set Tuesday, with the Terriers' last surge providing the difference. The Cougars had two 4-0 runs, the first erasing a 7-3 deficit early in the set and the second turning a 17-14 Hiram lead into an 18-17 Chatham advantage. After the teams swapped points, the Terriers rallied with seven of the final nine points. With the score tied at 21, Hiram's Kyle Martini had back-to-back kills and a pair of Chatham attack errors allowed the Terriers to claim a 25-21 win in the opening set.
After hitting negative in the first, Chatham's attack picked up in the second. Hiram led by a 13-7 count early, but the Cougars climbed back into the set with an 8-2 run to tie the score at 15. The score was tied 23-23 when Chatham got to set point with a kill from Benjamin Shelestak. A service error thwarted one opportunity to close it out, but then consecutive kills from Shelestak and Logan Pack drew the Cougars even at 1-1 with a 26-24 win. Pack had seven kills in the set for Chatham, who recovered from the first set to hit .242 in the second.
The third set belonged to Hiram, as the Terriers scored the first three points and maintained the lead the rest of the way. The Cougars managed to move within a point at 18-17, but that was immediately answered by Hiram with five consecutive points, which started with a kill by Derek Chiang. A second kill from Chiang, followed by one from Martini, helped the Terriers complete a 25-18 set win and take a 2-1 lead.
The best offensive set came in the fourth for the Terriers to close out the win. They took control early in the set, as kills from Garrett Scheidegger and Chiang started a 4-0 run that broke a 4-4 tie and put the Terriers in front for good. Chiang was the spark in the fourth, putting away six kills, as Hiram hit .321 in the final set. The final point came on a kill from Jackson Deubner for a 25-21 fourth-set win to advance Hiram into the semifinal round.
Two Terriers finished the night recording double-digit kills, including Chiang with 14 and Martini, who just missed a double-double with 11 kills and nine digs along with a team-high four assisted blocks. Setter Matthew Albano did post a double-double with 37 assists and 10 digs.
For Chatham, Pack (17 kills, 10 digs) and Shelestak (15 kills, 17 digs) both posted double-doubles, but the Cougar efforts were hurt by hitting just .109.
With the win, Hiram earns a semifinal match at second-seeded Grove City College Thursday at 7 pm. The teams split their two meetings during the regular season, with the Terriers winning 3-1 in Grove City Feb. 26th and the Wolverines winning the rematch with a 3-0 sweep on Hiram's floor March 19th.
Tuesday, April 8 (Quarterfinal Round - Beaver Falls, Pa.)
No. 5 Saint Vincent 3, No. 4, Geneva 0
The lead in the opening set between the Bearcats and Golden Tornadoes swung back and forth throughout until a final run by the Bearcats. Neither team led by more than two, as there were six lead changes and nine ties in the opening set, with Geneva holding a 20-19 lead following a kill by Andrew Ubinger. That was the final point for the GTs in the set, as Saint Vincent tied the score at 20-20 with a kill from Nick Sikorski that ignited a 6-0 run to close out the set. The Bearcats' Shawn McSwiggen delivered two of his five kills during the deciding run, which ended on a Geneva hitting error to seal a 25-20 SVC win. The Bearcats topped the GTs on the offensive attack, hitting .391 in the set.
The Bearcats' strong attack continued in the second set. Geneva held an early 2-1 lead, but Saint Vincent quickly responded with a quick 4-0 run off kills from Tyler Nelson and McSwiggen and continued their lead through the remainder of the set. The Bearcats hit .492 in the second set with 15 kills, including four from Zebadiah Wyant and seven more from McSwiggen, whose final put away was on set point for another 25-20 SVC win, leaving them one away from advancing.
In the third set, Geneva errors made the difference. Trailing 13-9, the Golden Tornadoes scored three straight to get within 13-12. The mini-surge ended with a service error, followed by a Geneva hitting error and a Wyant kill to prop the Bearcats back out to a 16-12 advantage. The Bearcats maintained at least a three-point cushion for the remainder of the third set. Although the GTs tallied 13 kills in the third set, they also committed 13 attack errors and five service errors, including one on match point to close out the Bearcats' 25-20 win and the 3-0 sweep.
McSwiggen paced the Bearcats' attack, hitting .423 with 14 kills, while Wyant posted 10 kills and a pair of aces. Triggering the offense was first-year setter Jackson Genicola, who recorded a double-double with 27 assists and 10 digs. Saint Vincent's defensive work at the net contributed to Geneva's low hitting percentage, as the Bearcats totaled eight blocks in the win, led by Rocco Marino with one solo and four assists.
For Geneva, Owen Kelley had a team-leading nine kills, while Evan Puhl posted eight. Passing out 16 assists was Colton Alfaro, while Ubinger sent out 11 assists and chipped in six kills.
Up next for Saint Vincent is a road trip to top-seeded Thiel College Thursday. The Bearcats will again have a chance to avenge a regular season sweep, as the Tomcats, who were a perfect 12-0 in the conference this year, scored 3-1 wins over SVC on March 7th at home and April 2nd on the road. Thursday's semifinal will begin at 7 pm in Greenville.
2025 PAC Men's Volleyball Championship Tournament
Quarterfinals - Tuesday, April 8, 2025
No. 3 Hiram 3, No. 6 Chatham 1 (25-21, 24-26, 25-18, 25-21) - Box Score
No. 5 Saint Vincent 3, No. 4 Geneva (25-20, 25-20, 25-20) - Box Score
Semifinals - Thursday, April 10, 2025
No. 3 Hiram (16-10, 7-5 PAC) at #2 Grove City (13-14, 8-4 PAC) - 7 pm
No. 5 Saint Vincent (11-12, 5-7 PAC) at #1 Thiel (20-6, 12-0 PAC) - 7 pm
Championship - Saturday, April 12, 2025
at highest remaining seed - time TBA