Harrisonburg, VA - The Southern Virginia University men's volleyball team continued their torrid start to the season after collecting a pair of wins to conclude competition at the EMU Royals Tournament. In the first match of a back-to-back, the Knights took down an old rival of the CVC, Randolph-Macon, 3-0, before dismantling the tournament hosts, Eastern Mennonite, in straight sets.
Match One
After trading points in the opening stages in their match with Randolph-Macon, the Knights were faced with a bit of adversity after their opponents scored four consecutive points to open a 9-5 advantage. However, Kyler Evans had a response for Southern Virginia before they rattled off the next seven to reclaim the lead. Eventually, the Knights used a late surge and kill from Gehrig Tolman to secure the first set, 25-18.
The rest of the match turned into the Samuel Candland show, single handedly vaulting his team into the lead after another early deficit in the second frame. He recorded five kills and a solo block in the set to lead the Southern Virginia attack, mirroring his performance against the same team last season. Jeremy Brown delivered a couple of key aces down the stretch to build his team a comfy enough lead to claim the second set.
Kristo Biachin and Kyler Evans didn't let Candland have all the fun, as the two turned in stellar performances of their own. They combined for five kills in the Knights' first eight points to keep the team level. After finding themselves in a 10-8 deficit, the Knights claimed ten of the next eleven points to put Randolph-Macon away, their fourth consecutive win over the Yellow Jackets.
Match Two
Samuel Candland continued to dominate as the Knights second match of the day got rolling in a matchup with another former conference opponent, Eastern Mennonite. A balanced Southern Virginia attack proved too much for the Royals in the first set as they cruised to a 25-15 victory. Candland led the way with six kills while collectively the team posted a .625 hitting percentage compared to their opponents' .143 mark.
Christian Sheaffer began to find his rhythm in the second after a tough go, for his standards, through the first four sets of the day. Gehirg Tolman continued to feed his high-flying teammates to the tune of 33 assists, marking his fourth game with at least 30 assists. A couple of big swings from Jayton Hall put the finishing touches on the 2-0 set advantage for the Knights, putting them on the verge of another sweep.
Hall continued his onslaught into the potential final third set. Ultimately, Christian Sheaffer had the final say with two kills to clinch the match. He, along with Jayton Hall and Samuel Candland, finished with double-digits in kills. Jason Wang contributed three blocks to lead a dominant defensive performance at the net for the undefeated Knights. The two wins improve their record to 13-0 and will help them remain amongst the top teams in the AVCA national standings. They haven't found themselves outside the top two since late in the 2024 season.
Looking ahead, the Knights will return to competition on Saturday, March 1st, with a pair of matches in Pennsylvania against Eastern and Lancaster Bible. For the most up-to-date information and details on the team, visit knightathletics.com and follow @knightmvolleyball on Instagram.
