LATROBE, Pennsylvania - January 19, 2024 - It was a sweeping start to the PAC Preview for the Hiram men's volleyball team on Friday, as the Terriers beat Geneva (3-1) and Bethany (3-0) to improve to 2-1 on the season.

The PAC Preview is a two-day invitational held on the campus of Saint Vincent College; Geneva, Bethany, Saint Vincent and Chatham are all set to join the PAC in 2024-25. Hiram is joining the conference as an affiliate member.

Hiram Beats Geneva: 25-21, 25-11, 20-25, 26-24

After losing all 6 sets it played to Geneva last season, Hiram put its full potential on display to pick up its first win of the 2024 campaign in convincing fashion.

Kyle Martini (13 kills, 12 digs) and Jackson Deubner (10 kills, 15 digs) paced the Terriers offense and defense in the first match of the day. Matthew Albano did most of the setting (31 assists) and Garrett Scheidegger was also a force in many ways (6 kills, 4 blocks).

Hiram never trailed by more than 1 point in the first set, eventually scoring 8 of the last 11 points to take a 1-0 lead. That momentum transitioned well into the second set, when the team had as many as 8 consecutive points enroute to a 25-11 win in the set and 2-0 lead in the match.

Geneva responded with a 6-0 run of its own late in the third set, a scoring burst that was enough to prevent the straight set result. Carter Milroy led the Golden Tornadoes throughout the match with 15 kills.

The Terriers would regain their form in what would turn out to be the decisive fourth set, roaring back from a 21-17 deficit and finishing the tournament opener with a 5-0 run. Scheidegger cemented the match with a pair of kills on the final two points.

Hiram Beats Bethany: 25-9, 25-16, 25-16

Hiram cruised in the later match, setting the tone immediately by scoring the first 9 points in the first set. Shortly thereafter, the team pieced together an even better rally, going on a 10-0 run to take a 19-3 lead.

That dominance in the first set would be more than enough to carry over to the second and third sets, as the Terriers never trailed by more than 1 point for the entire match. Nine different student-athletes recorded at least 1 kill, including Deubner (7), Scheidegger (4) and Connor Tilton (4).

What's Next

Hiram will wrap up its time in Latrobe with another two matches on Saturday against Saint Vincent (11 a.m.) and Chatham (1 p.m.) inside the Robert S. Carey Center.