Lexington, VA - In a matchup of the two best teams in the Continental Volleyball Conference, it became another banner afternoon for the Southern Virginia University men's volleyball team. The Knights defeated Juniata College, 3-0, to cap off another remarkable season of conference play as CVC Tournament Champions.
An energized Southern Virginia squad got off to a hot start in front of the home crowd. They built themselves an early five point lead and never looked back en route to a decisive opening set win. Christian Sheaffer was lethal from the beginning, but it was a dominant defensive display which gave the team the early jump.
Samuel Candland ignited the crowd even more in the second with a series of powerful serves that Juniata found difficult to handle. Gehrig Tolman was also having an excellent day, sending down a couple of kills to go with 19 assists through the opening two sets. After trailing 9-7, Southern Virginia rattled off 10 of the next 11 points to help claim another set.
On the verge of its second consecutive CVC Title, Southern Virginia shut the door at the net. Kyler Evans, Gehrig Tolman, Kyler Evans, and Jason Wang helped the Knights record three quick blocks in the third to keep the momentum.
Juniata gave the Knights a late push, but a thrilling ending with two late points from Samuel Candland gave the Knights their fifth championship all-time. With the win, the Knights clinch an automatic-bid into the NCAA Tournament to be held next week. The selection show will air on Monday, April 14th, at 10:00 AM on ncaa.com.
Christian Sheaffer was named tournament MOP for the second time and was joined on the all-tournament team by Jeremy Brown and Gehrig Tolman. Led by a strong core of experienced seniors, the Knights, who have been ranked in the top three nationally all season, have their eyes set on clinching Southern Virginia University's first NCAA Championship.
For the most up-to-date information and details on the team, visit knightathletics.com and follow @knightmvolleyball on Instagram.
