HARRISONBURG, Va. – The No. 11 ranked Southern Virginia University Men's Volleyball team (6-2, 2-1 CVC) took on No. 7 Messiah University (13-2, 1-0 MAC) in a non-conference clash held at Eastern Mennonite University Friday night.

Southern Virginia took control of the first set early, throwing Messiah off its game plan. The Falcons, however, would battle back, setting up for a tight finish. The Knights looked to be in control towards the end of the set, taking a 20-17 lead, but the Falcons four of the next five points to square the game at 21. The teams would each grab two of the next four available points to make it a tie at 23. Messiah's Nate Bowman would give his team the lead and an opportunity to close out the set, but a service error by Matt Knab would again tie the game. The Falcons would get a second look at a set point, but back-to-back attacking errors by Mason Nissley awarded the Knights an opportunity to grab the first set. A third consecutive error, this time by Nate Bowman, would give Southern Virginia a 1-0 lead in the game.

Head Coach Tom Peterson couldn't have asked for a better start to the second set, scoring five unanswered points to force an early timeout from Messiah. The Knights looked like a well-oiled machine, playing scrappy on both sides of the ball to control the set. Kills by Christian Sheaffer and Jeremy Brown closed out the second set, with the Knights clinging to a 2-0 advantage in the contest.

Looking to end the match in three sets, Southern Virginia again came out firing on all cylinders in the third, tallying six of the set's first seven points. Messiah would not go down without a fight, scoring nine of the next 12 available points to take a 14-12 lead. The Knights would claw back, retaking the lead on a Christian Sheaffer service ace. After back-to-back points by Southern Virginia tied the set at 19, Messiah would grab the next two points to regain momentum. A Falcon service error returned the ball to the Knights, but Jayton Hall served the ball into the net to make the score 22-20. Messiah would take control of the set on the next play, going up three points after a stellar block by Adam Casper and Mason Nissley. Southern Virginia added three of the next four points to cut the deficit to just one. McKay Walker registered his first kill of the season on a set play, coming in for a crucial point. The senior, still nursing an injury, was greeted at the bench by high-fives and hugs from coaches and teammates. Curtis Stone made it interesting by registering a service ace on the following point, forcing a timeout. Following the break, Jacob Hamm secured the set for the Falcons, sending the match to a fourth set.

The Knights again came out hot to start the fourth set, going up 8-4 early. A 4-0 run by the Falcons would square the game at eight. The teams traded points over the next few minutes until four straight points gifted Southern Virginia a 16-13 advantage. After calling a timeout, Messiah scored six of seven points to take a 19-17 lead and force a Southern Virginia timeout. The Knights would get a point back following the break after a kill by Jimbo, but an error on the ensuing serve would renew the two-point Falcon advantage. Southern Virginia scored two of the next three points, with Jayton hall tallying two straight kills to cut the Messiah lead to one, 21-20. The Falcons would force a fifth set, scoring four consecutive points to reach 25.

The fifth and final set was all Falcons from the get-go, registering eight of the first 10 points. Holding all the momentum, Messiah would only give up three more points—two off service errors—to finish the match with a final set score of 15-5.

Reigning Continental Volleyball Conference and American Volleyball Coaches Association player of the week, Christian Sheaffer, led all players with 16 kills. Jeremy Brown followed closely behind, tallying 12 while leading the team along with Curtis Stone with two service aces. Jayton Hall was also impressive on both sides of the ball, registering 11 digs, eight kills and a service ace.

The two Southern Virginia captains were also impressive. Justin Madsen, who leads the CVC in digs per set, recorded 11 on the evening while also adding five assists. Tyler Sheaffer registered 40 assists—his third straight match with 40-plus assists—nine digs and four kills.

The Knights will now prepare for their third straight contest against a ranked opponent, taking on the Banana Slugs of UC Santa Cruz Friday, Mar. 3, in the first of three games next weekend.

For all the most up-to-date information regarding Southern Virginia University men's volleyball, visit knightathletics.com and follow @knightmvolleyball on Instagram.