GENEVA, N.Y.—The 16th-ranked Hobart volleyball team split nonconference action this afternoon in Bristol Gymnasium. The Statesmen fell 3-0 to No. 3 Southern Virginia University before sweeping Buffalo State 3-0 in the second match. Hobart moves to 12-7 on the season, while the Knights remain undefeated at 16-0, and the Bengals fall to 9-9 overall.

Graduate student Andrew Kim led the Statesmen with 24 kills (.345) through two matches. He added 13 digs, four service aces, one assist and one block through six sets. First-year Daniel Sappia chipped in 21 kills (.157) on the day. He added 12 digs, two aces and one assist. First-year setter Zack Farren ran Hobart's offense, tallying 44 assists through two matches. He also recorded 10 digs, and one kill (.250).

Southern Virginia's Jeremy Brown led the Knights with 12 kills (.400) and nine digs in the first match of the day. Kaden Strong led Buffalo State with seven kills (.462) and four blocks in the second nonconference matchup of the day.

MATCH MOMENTS:
 
Match 1 (Southern Virginia):

• The Knights grabbed an early lead in the opening set and never looked back. The Statesmen fought back putting down a match-high 10 kills (.219) as a team thanks to Sappia's six (.455). Southern Virginia cruised to a 25-20 win in set one.
• Southern Virginia put on a dominant performance in the second set, putting down 13 kills (.667) as a team compared to Hobart's four (-.160). The Knights produced a 100% side out efficiency in the second set to grab an impressive 25-10 win to double their lead.
• The Statesmen fought back in the third, putting down nine kills (.118) as a team but were matched with an efficient Knight performance of 14 kills (.243). A late surge by Hobart and a service ace by Kim brought the Statesmen back within three but it wasn't enough as Southern Virginia closed out the sweep with a 25-21 win in the final set.

Match stats:

• Sappia led the Statesmen with 11 kills (.028), while Kim chipped in nine (.348). First-year Grayson Getz had three kills (.375) out of the middle.
• Farren tallied 16 assists and three digs while first-year Noah DeLong chipped in five assists.
• First-year libero Gavin Meador led Hobart's defense with eight digs. Kim added seven while Sappia chipped in six.

Match 2 (Buffalo State):

• Sappia (.714) and Kim (.250) tallied six kills each in the opening set as Hobart combined for 14 (.333) as a team. The Statesmen jumped out to an early lead and maintained that lead for the entire set to grab a 25-20 win in set one.
• Hobart continued its momentum into the second set, holding the Bengals to five kills (.000) compared to its nine (.190). Kim recorded five kills (.333) and three service aces to lead the Statesmen to a dominating 25-14 win in set two.
• The Statesmen produced its most efficient set of the match in the third, putting down 15 kills (.667) on only one error. Hobart found balanced scoring from its hitters with Kim tallying four kills (.571), DeLong (.750) and Getz (1.000) recording three and Sappia putting down two (.667). The Statesmen completed the sweep with a 25-17 win in set three.

Match stats:

• Kim led the Statesmen with 15 kills (.344), while Sappia chipped in 10 (.467). Getz added five kills (.667) out of the middle while DeLong tallied three (.750).
• Farren recorded a match-high 28 assists through three sets. He added seven digs and one kill (.500) in the win.
• Hobart's defensive efforts were led by Farren with seven digs. Kim, Meador and Sappia added six each in the sweep.
• The Statesmen showed strong from the service line, combining for six aces as a team. Kim led the team with three, while Sappia added two and senior Dima Piskun chipped in one.

COACHES CORNER:
 
"I am excited to see the growth of this program every day," said Head Coach Steve England. "After playing SVU today, I truly think they are the best team in the country. They executed all phases of the game at a high level. It was a great opportunity for our young team to see what it's like to play against the best. I am so proud of the way we responded in the match against Buff State. We played up to our potential and we are excited for our next match against Nazareth next week."

UP NEXT:
 
Hobart will be back in action Wednesday, March 6, when it welcomes Nazareth to Bristol Gymnasium for a UVC matchup. First serve between the Statesmen and the Golden Flyers is set for 7 p.m.