HIRAM, Ohio - April 2, 2025 - Hiram celebrated Senior Day in victorious fashion on Wednesday evening at Price Gymnasium, rallying back from a 2-1 deficit to earn a second five-set victory over Mount Vernon Nazarene (NAIA): 25-21, 18-25, 20-25, 25-15, 15-8.
Prior to the non-conference victory in the final home match of the regular season, the Terriers honored seniors Jackson Deubner, Jarod Leynes, Connor Tilton, Kyle Martini, Mitchell Ledbetter, Garrett Scheidegger and Matthew Albano for a combined 26 seasons with the program. The group collectively has taken the program to new heights, with each member being a part of the 2024 team that won the AMCC Tournament and punched the second ticket to the NCAA Tournament in program history.
That group also represented Hiram's starting lineup on Wednesday, an opportunity for the group to make one of its final appearances at Price Gymnasium against an opponent that had pushed them to five sets earlier this season already.
Once again, the matchup was tightly contested, with Hiram taking the first set before the Cougars rallied back and took each of the next two sets. The Terriers had 29 kills over that span, which was more than their opponent, including an impressive level of production from Martini, Deubner and Derek Chiang.
The hitting became even more efficient over the final two sets, with Hiram posting a .241 attack percentage in the fourth set (11 kills, four attack errors) and a stunning .625 attack percentage in the fifth set (11 kills, one attack error). Martini finished with 17 kills, while Deubner totaled a season-high 16 kills – lifting Deubner to 200+ kills for the second straight season.
It was a match that saw Hiram find the dominant form that made it the 2024 AMCC Champion and eventual No. 1 team in the 2025 PAC Preseason Poll. With all seven seniors still on the roster and multiple other student-athletes making their presence felt, the Terriers figure to have another late-season run in their arsenal.
Hiram will look to extend its winning streak to four games on Friday, when it travels to Greenville, PA for a PAC matchup with the No. 1 team in the conference, Thiel. A win would guarantee the Terriers the No. 2 seed in the PAC Tournament and a semifinal berth at Price Gymnasium next Thursday, April 10.
