LATROBE, Pa. (Jan. 20)- The Saint Vincent men's volleyball team concluded the PAC Preview Tournament with a couple of tight losses to Hiram and Thiel.
 
In the Bearcats first match of the day, Hiram won by a final score of 3-1 in four tightly contested sets and in the final match of the tournament, the Bearcats were defeated 3-2 in five sets by Thiel.
 
Shawn McSwiggen was named to the All-Tournament for the Bearcats.
 
Match 1- Hiram 3, Saint Vincent 1
The Bearcats fell to the Terriers in four tightly contested sets, losing the first two sets by scores of 24-26 and 22-25, before coming back to win the third set, 25-20 and fell in the fourth set 23-25.
 
McSwiggen led the way for Saint Vincent in the opening match, recording 14 kills, while also picking up one service ace as well. Zach Wyant finished with 28 assists and 13 digs, while Matthew Klasnic totaled 14 digs to lead Saint Vincent.
 
Zebadiah Wyant added nine kills and Matthew Minkin recorded eight kills for SVC as well. Minkin also recorded 12 digs for the Bearcats.
 
It was a back-and-forth first set as the teams found themselves tied at 14-14. Saint Vincent scored the next three points on two kills from Minkin and a service ace from Zeb Wyant gave Saint Vincent a 17-14 lead.
 
Hiram responded with a 7-3 run as the Terriers took a 21-20 lead, but the Bearcats answered with a quick 3-0 run to take a 23-21 lead. Hiram scored the next two points to tie it and after a kill from Rocco Marino, the Terriers scored the next three points to win the opening set (26-24), taking a 1-0 lead.
 
In the second set it was much of the same story early on as the teams were tied 3-3. Hiram responded with a 4-0 run to take a 7-3 lead and the Terriers never lost the lead the rest of the set. Hiram increased their lead to seven at 23-16 but the Bearcats went on a 6-1 run to cut the lead to two at 24-22, before Hiram won the set (25-22) on a kill to take a 2-0 lead.
 
The third set belonged to Saint Vincent. The set was tied at 10-10 and then 14-14 before the Bearcats took control. SVC scored three in a row on three Hiram errors to take a 17-14 lead and still held a three-point lead at 23-20. The Bearcats scored the final two points to win the set (25-20) on a kill from Zeb Wyant and attack error by the Terriers, cutting the lead in the match to 2-1.
 
Once again both teams were trading points in the set as it was tied 11-11 and then at 23-23 after the Bearcats scored three straight to tie it once again. Hiram ended the match, scoring the next two points to win the set (25-23) and the match 3-1.
 
Saint Vincent recorded 56 digs, compared to 45 by Hiram. Hiram led the Bearcats in kills (45-41) and blocks (17-4).
 
Match 2- Thiel 3, Saint Vincent 2
The Bearcats won the first two sets 25-23, before falling in the next three sets 17-25, 21-25, and 9-15 as the Tomcats came away with the 3-2 victory.
 
McSwiggen once again led the Bearcats with a game-high, 21 kills. Minkin also finished in double figures with 10 kills as did Zeb Wyant. Minkin led the team with 12 digs as well and Klasnic totaled 10 digs.
 
Zach Wyant recorded 42 assists for Saint Vincent, while Zachary Mumpower recorded two blocks for the Bearcats.
 
Thiel took the first advantage of the opening set, opening up to a 10-5 lead and held a four-point lead at 16-12, before the Bearcats stormed back. Saint Vincent rattled off five straight points, three of which came on aces from Zach Wyant to give Saint Vincent a 17-16 lead.
 
The game remained tied at 22-22, before Thiel scored to take a 23-22 lead. Saint Vincent scored the next three points on a kill from McSwiggen, an ace from Zeb Wyant, and kill from Marino to give Saint Vincent the opening set win (25-23), taking a 1-0 lead.
 
In the second set, it was tied 14-14 and then at 20-20 as the set was still up for grabs. The set remained tied at 23-23 before Saint Vincent closed the set out with a kill and ace from McSwiggen to win the set (25-23), taking a commanding 2-0 lead in the match.
 
The Bearcats opened the third set with a 3-1 lead, but after a 5-0 run from the Tomcats, they never lost the lead the rest of the set. Thiel increased their lead to seven at 23-16 and closed the set out with two of the final three points to win the set (25-17), forcing a fourth set.
 
Thiel once again led for the majority of the fourth set. The set was tied at 10-10, but a 3-0 run put the Tomcats up 13-10 and they never looked back. Thiel never led by less than three the rest of the set, closing out the set with the 25-21 set win to force a fifth set.
 
The teams traded the first few points of the fifth set as it was tied 4-4. Thiel once again went on a 3-0 run and never looked back. The Bearcats cut it to 10-7 but Thiel closed the match out on a 5-2 run to win the set (15-9) and the match 3-2.
 
Thiel led Saint Vincent in the majority of statistical categories, but the Bearcats did compile 10 service aces in comparison to just two from the Tomcats.