ALTOONA, PA. — The Southern Virginia University men's volleyball team advanced to 2-0 on the season Saturday morning, taking down No. 6 Messiah in four sets 3-1. 

Notable Stats

Nahuel Recabarren: team-high 17 kills | eight digs | two blocks

Kyler Evans: 12 kills | three digs | two blocks

Game Notes

• The first set saw both teams evenly matched, with both teams staying within two points of each other, with Nahuel Recabarren and Kyler Evans leading the way with two kills each
• Late in the first, the Knights began to pull away, using a 5-1 scoring run to extend their lead to five points 18-13
• Southern Virginia retained their lead until the end, using a scoring run of three consecutive points highlighted by back-to-back blocks from Steve Rasmussen and Nahuel Recabarren to take the first set 25-20
• Messiah managed to squeeze out a hard-fought second set victory 25-23 to even the match score 1-1
• The Knights wasted no time regaining the lead in the match, going up big early in the third set 16-4, led by four kills from Kyler Evans
• Southern Virginia closed out the third set, outscoring Messiah 9-8 and winning the set 25-12 to go ahead 2-1 in the match
• The Knights carried the momentum into the final set of the match, using two kills from Paul Candland to go up 13-4
• Messiah answered with a 9-5 scoring run of their own to come within four points 14-18, but Southern Virginia smelled their victory nearby
• The Knights locked in the 3-1 win over the No. 6 team in the nation with two more kills from their offensive workhorses Nahuel Recabarren and Kyler Evans to win the fourth set 25-22

Southern Virginia debuts in their home opener in Knight Arena Thursday, January 27, to take on Liberty University. Game time is slated for 7 pm. 

Follow @knightmvolleyball on Instagram for more updates and details on the team.