LATROBE, Pa. (Feb. 21) – The Saint Vincent men's volleyball team picked up a strong Presidents' Athletic Conference victory Saturday afternoon at the Robert S. Carey Center, topping Grove City College 3-1 (25-22, 25-16, 19-25, 25-22) in front of a packed crowd.
With the win, the Bearcats improved to 7-2 overall and 3-0 in PAC play, while the Wolverines dropped to 7-8 and 0-2 in conference action.
Saturday's match was highlighted by several major program milestones as Saint Vincent continued its balanced offensive attack and gritty defensive play. In the first set,
Shawn McSwiggen recorded the 1,000th kill of his career, becoming one of the few Bearcats in program history to reach the mark and setting the tone for a complete team effort.
The four-set tilt also saw
Jackson Genicola set a Bearcat four-set match record with 24 digs, anchoring the back row and fueling Saint Vincent's transition defense all afternoon.
Additionally,
Jack Ryan tied the four-set program record for assists with 44 helpers, running the offense with precision and keeping the Bearcats in system throughout the match.
Saint Vincent jumped out quickly in set one, using a balanced frontline attack and disciplined serve-receive to secure a 25-22 opening frame.
The Bearcats then dominated set two, combining efficient hitting with aggressive serving to claim a 25-16 win and take control of the early momentum. Grove City battled back in set three behind a strong defensive effort, forcing errors and using scrappy net play to take the set 25-19 and extend the match.
In the decisive fourth set, Saint Vincent answered Grove City's challenge by staying poised in key rotations and making plays on both sides of the net. The Bearcats used timely kills and tough serving runs to pull ahead late, closing out the 25-22 scoreline and sealing the four-set victory.
Offensively, Saint Vincent finished with 53 kills to Grove City's 47 and tallied eight aces to the Wolverines' zero, while posting a 10-7 advantage in team blocks. The Bearcats also collected 60 digs, paced by Genicola's record performance and solid back-row play across all rotations.
The balanced scoring attack saw McSwiggen lead Saint Vincent with 19 kills, followed by
Zebadiah Wyant's 15 and
Rocco Marino's six. Wyant also contributed four service aces, while Marino added four blocks as part of an aggressive net presence.
Setter Ryan's 44 assists highlighted Saint Vincent's ability to stay in system and distribute evenly to multiple attackers throughout the match.
With its eight combined aces and stout defensive play, Saint Vincent dictated tempo and kept Grove City off balance at key junctures, allowing the Bearcats to close out the non-conference victory and maintain momentum heading deeper into Presidents' Athletic Conference competition.
Saint Vincent returns to action on Wednesday, February 25 with a road PAC matchup at Hiram. The match is scheduled to begin at 7 p.m. on Wednesday night.
