Jan. 28, 2007

Box Score

Erie, Pa. - Dave Newman had 22 kills and a .647 attack percentage but the Mercyhurst men's volleyball team was unable to ride his performance to a victory over NCAA Division III No. 1 Juniata. The Lakers avoided a sweep with a solid performance in game three but lost to the Eagles 30-19, 30-26, 29-31, 30-26.

After an opening game in which Juniata hit .467 to cruise to victory, Mercyhurst began to find its rhythm midway through game two. The Eagles jumped out to a 17-9 lead in that game and looked well on their way to an easy 2-0 lead, but the Lakers slowly fought back.

Mercyhurst outscored Juniata 15-8 to get within one point at 25-24 and the Lakers still stood within striking range at 27-26. But a Matt Fritz kill followed by one of his three aces on the day gave the Eagles the breathing room they needed to put game two away.

Game three teetered back and forth with neither team gaining much momentum, but Juniata put itself in position to finish the sweep and held a 27-25 lead late. The Lakers, who hit .519 as a team in that game, began to go to work with a Mike Palaschak kill and three service points by Palaschak. Leading 30-29, the Lakers picked up one of its 9.5 blocks during the match to get the win.

In game four, Juniata again jumped out quickly and held a commanding 20-11 lead but the Lakers would not go away. Mercyhurst fought back to within four points on a handful of occasions and eventually got to within three at 29-26 but the deficit was too much to overcome.

Newman's 22 kills on the match came without an attack error in 34 attempts and he added five blocks and three digs. Tim Wagner finished with 10 kills, five blocks and four digs, while David Hatten had 47 assists. The Lakers were hurt by nine Juniata aces and the Eagles' .314 attack percentage for the match.

Mercyhurst, now 0-6 on the year, will be back in action Friday, February 9 at 7:00 p.m. when the Lakers host MIVA opponent Lewis.