LANCASTER, Pa. – After last weekend's weather-related cancellations, the Penn State Altoona men's volleyball team finally opened its 2019 schedule on Saturday afternoon with a pair of matches hosted at Lancaster Bible College's Horst Athletic Center. The Lions suffered 3-0 losses to Lancaster Bible and Marymount University.

Opening day for the Lions (0-2) provided the chance to match up with a pair of tough non-conference opponents, as Lancaster Bible and Marymount both received votes in the most recent edition of the American Volleyball Coaches Association NCAA Division III Top 15 Poll.

In its first match, Penn State Altoona (0-2) felt 25-19, 25-18, 25-18 to Lancaster Bible (3-2).

Brian Sheddy (Shrewsbury, PA/Susquehannock) led the way for the Lions, posting team-highs with 11 kills and two solo blocks while tying for the team lead in digs with four. Dan Downs (Douglassville, PA/Daniel Boone) totaled six kills and one solo block, and Ben Beaver (Hummelstown, PA/Lower Dauphin) finished with four kills, one solo block, and one block assist.

Danny Dry (Douglassville, PA/Daniel Boone) and Kyle Whiteman (Northampton, PA/Northampton) split the setter duties, with Dry posting 11 assists to go along with four digs and Whiteman tallying 10 assists while chipping in two digs. Tyler Chan (Framingham, MA/Framingham) tied Sheddy and Dry for the team lead in digs, recording four.

The Lions followed that with a 25-14, 25-17, 25-19 sweep at the hands of Marymount (2-3).

Sheddy and Beaver tied for the team-high in kills and service aces, finishing with five kills and two aces each. Sheddy also had three digs and one solo block, and Beaver added a block assist. Downs recorded four kills, three digs, two block assists, and one solo block. Nathaniel Reinert (State College, PA/State College) added two block assists.

Dry put up a team-high 10 assists, and Whiteman finished with five assists and two digs.

Next, the Penn State Altoona men's volleyball team will host its first home matches of the season on Saturday, February 2 with a tri-match. The Lions' first match that day will be its Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference opener, as Penn State Altoona will take on Geneva College at 1:00 p.m. After Geneva and Keuka College face off, the Lions will play Keuka at 5:00 p.m. to wrap up the day.