Bronxville, NY (Mar. 4, 2017) – The Purchase men's volleyball team returned to action on Saturday afternoon, opening Skyline Conference play with a tri-match hosted by Sarah Lawrence College.  The Panthers picked up a 3-0 (25-16, 25-17, 25-18) loss to the College of Mount Saint Vincent to start the day but bounced back in their second match, defeating the host Gryphons by a score of 3-0 (25-10, 25-11, 25-3).

In Saturday's opener, Purchase suffered its first league loss of the season after hitting -.093 as a team.  The Mount's offense was led by Tyler Cucullu, who tallied 12 kills and six service aces. Sean O'Connor and Jordan Steiger chipped in with another six kills apiece.

Cucullu also dominated at the net with a match-high four total blocks.

Purchase rebounded in the second match of the day, hitting .321 as a team against the host Gryphons.

The Panthers tallied 12 kills and committed only three errors for an impressive .409 attacking percentage in the first set and kept the momentum rolling throughout the match.

A collection of Panther talent paced the winning effort, including eight kills (.278) from senior outside hitter Kevin Carges (Brockport, NY), seven kills (.364) from sophomore outside hitter Luke Kubisch, 13 assists and an impressive nine service aces from senior setter Riley Damerell (Rochester, NY) and a team-best nine digs by junior middle hitter Chris Williams (Valley Stream, NY).
 
Senior setter and tri-captain Andrew Schwab rounded out the match highlights with four kills (.667) and 11 assists and four digs.  Schwab came into the match needing only seven assists to reach 1000 career assists and got the job done early in the second set.   

Overall, Purchase held a 27-6 advantage in kills and a 21-0 edge in aces.

With Saturday's split, Purchase moves to 6-3 overall and 1-1 in league action.  Up next for the Panthers is a non-conference home match against John Jay College.  Match is slated for 7 p.m.