BUFFALO, NY – The #1 Buffalo State men's volleyball team dominated the #4 Penn State Altoona Lions, 3-0, and secured a place in the AMCC Championship game for the second consecutive year.

GAME BASICS

FINAL SCORE: #1 Buffalo State – 3, #4 Penn State Altoona – 0
SET SCORES: (25-21, 25-20, 25-18)
LOCATION: Sports Arena – Buffalo, NY
RECORDS: Buffalo State: 27-4 (12-0 AMCC), Penn State Altoona: 9-17 (7-5 AMCC)

INSIDE THE BENGAL BOX SCORE

• Gavin Wilczewski (East Aurora, NY/East Aurora) led all players with 13 kills on the night, a season-high in three sets, with Kaden Strong (Buffalo, NY/West Seneca East) adding 12 kills in support.
• Drew Bowman (Orchard Park, NY/Orchard Park) posted a three-set season-high with 38 assists, leading all players.
• Defensively, D. Bowman and Wilczewski led the Bengals with seven digs each, with Strong adding five total blocks at the net for the Bengals.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• After closing the regular season with doubleheader wins over Mount Aloysius College and Nazareth University, the Bengals clinched the top seed in the AMCC Championship Tournament and hosted the Penn State Altoona Lions in the semifinals.
• The Bengals got off to a bumpy start as the Lions jumped out to an early lead. A five-point rally gave the Bengals their first lead, but the Lions tied it up. The teams traded points until back-to-back two-point rallies put the Bengals ahead. Another run sealed the set for the Bengals.
• In the second set, both sides would trade points throughout the early portion of the set. After a mini run by the Lions to bring themselves within one point, the Bengals responded with a five-point run, creating enough distance to gain the second set win, with a three-set sweep in play.
• In the third set, the Bengals would find themselves trailing early in play once again, as the Lions stormed out with a five-point run. A three-point rally from the Bengals would slim their deficit, as every point in the set mattered for both sides. This new wave of momentum would propel the Bengals to four straight points, reclaiming the lead and putting themselves in the driver's seat to close out this AMCC Championship Semifinal bout. A run of point trading would once again begin, with the Bengals coming out on top of the stretch, rallying three-straight points to close out the Lions at home, advancing to their second consecutive AMCC Championship game.

FOR THE FOES

• Lukas Weathersbee led the Lions with 11 kills, with Shawn Thomas leading with 14 assists.
• Defensively, Jack McKenna led the way with nine digs.

UP NEXT
As the top seed in the AMCC Championship Tournament, the Bengals will host the second-seeded Penn State Behrend Lions in the AMCC Championship game on Saturday, April 11th at 2:00 PM in the Sports Arena.