ASTON, Pa. – The Neumann University Men's Volleyball team dropped a 3-0 match on Thursday night against Eastern University in their first home test.
 
The two teams started off even at two apiece before Eastern went on a 9-2 run for an 11-4 lead. The Eagles continued to control things in the first set as they pulled away for a 25-10 set win.
 
The Knights took off on a 4-1 lead to start the second but Eastern answered with six of the next seven points to take a 7-5 lead. After trading kills, a 4-1 run made it 13-8 in favor of the visitors. Neumann settled back down to tie the match at 14 before the Eagles scoring four in a row on their way to a 9-4 run, getting the within two of clinching the set. With the score at 24-20, Neumann fought off four straight set points, eventually taking a 25-24 lead. Each team had set point chances but eventually it was Eastern who prevailed, 29-27.
 
In the third, Eastern led 5-4 when they took off on a 5-1 run. Later on, Neumann trailed 17-13, but the Eagles clinched the match with four in a row on their way to a 25-16 win.
 
Trey Edmonds led the offense with eight kills, adding seven digs. Isaiah Thomas picked up seven kills and John Soeffing had five. Noah Banaag led with 18 assists with Christian DeMarco picking up a team high eight digs.
 
Neumann (1-1) will take to the road for their only tri-match of the season as they'll head to Owings Mills, Md. on Saturday. Their first match will pit them against Eastern Mennonite University at 2:00 PM, following by a match against the hosts, Stevenson University at 4:00 PM.