LANGHORNE, PA (January 23, 2023) -- The Monarchs returned to the road on Monday night and were faced with a difficult opponent in the host Cairn University. In the three-set thriller, the King's College men's volleyball team defeated the host Cairn, 3-0, behind a strong team defensive effort. The Monarchs begin their third consecutive season 5-0 with the win, while the Highlanders drop to 0-3.
 
Cairn (0-3) used their home court advantage and a quick start to rattle off the first four points of the game. Trailing 13-6, King's (5-0) use a kill from first year Owen McFadden to fuel a 7-0 run to tie the match at 13 apiece. After the teams traded errors, the Monarchs would edge out the Highlanders 11-5 down the stretch to take set one, 25-20.
 
Set two saw a different start from King's as they led 8-4 early. Cairn would close within one, 10-9, but the Monarchs would post the next five points to fuel their closing rally and defeat Cairn, 25-13, in the second set to take a 2-0 lead in the match.
 
The hosts would not go away quietly as Cairn held a 15-11 advantage midway through the third. King's would get a big block from senior Sam Capwell and junior Jared Piontkowski followed by a kill from Capwell to close within two. The Highlanders would tack on two more to pull ahead, 17-13, but it was King's who would finish strong and out score Cairn 12-3 in the final possessions to win set three, 25-20, and the match, 3-0.
 
Piontkowski led King's with 12 kills on 25 attempts to hit .320 for the match, adding eight digs and three blocks. Senior Joe Herman posted nine kills on 20 attacks to go along with eight digs and four blocks, while first year Ben Maskiell handed out 17 helpers. Senior Aziz Atiyeh led the Monarchs with nine digs, while McFadden recorded an impressive seven blocks to go along with four kills. Additionally, Capwell added four kills and four blocks for King's in the win.
 
Will Nase paced Cairn with eight kills, while Josh Moyer led all players with 14 digs. Shea Scott tallied a match-high 24 assists as well for the Highlanders.
 
King's recorded 32 kills on 76 attempts for a .276 hitting percentage in the match, and the Monarchs made up for a tough offensive night by holding Cairn to a .020 hitting percentage with 25 attack errors. The Monarchs also edged out the Highlanders in kills (32-27), blocks (12-2), assists (29-24), and digs (39-32). Additionally, the team's 22 block assists is a new program record for block assists in a three-set match, while the 12 total blocks ties the record for total blocks in a three-set match set against Wilkes in 2022.
 
The Monarchs will be off for the remainder of the week before returning to their home court in McGrane Gymnasium on Sunday afternoon. King's will play host to St. Joseph's University Brooklyn and Bryn Athyn for a non-conference tri-match starting at 2:00 p.m. in Wilkes-Barre, Pa.