EMU's volleyball men hit the road for the first time in 2019, opening play at the Arcadia Classic Saturday in Glenside, Pa.

The Royals dropped a close three-setter to John Joy on day one, leaving the men still sniffing for their first win of the year when they get Elmira and No. 12 Arcadia on Sunday. The opener against Elmira is at 1:00pm.

The Bloodhounds blew open a 20-12 lead in the first, using a 10-3 run. EMU got back within 23-22 on a block from R.J. Ocampo (Virginia Beach, Va./First Colonial) and Josh White (Chesapeake, Va./Bishop Sullivan), but back-to-back kills from John Jay clinched a 25-22 decision.

The men scored the first three points in the second set before the Bloodhounds took over. A 5-0 run then closed out a 25-19 score.

John Jay held an early 14-7 lead in the third, before a 10-3 surge from EMU tied things up at 17-17. The Royals earned a small lead at 19-18 before the Bloodhounds flipped ahead at 23-20. The men did not fold, however, fending off a match point before serving for the set at 27-26. But John Jay got three straight points to sneak out with a 29-27 win in the finale.

Hunter Taylor (Ashland, Va./Patrick Henry) landed a team best eight kills on 16 swings. Jacob Durren (Gloucester, Va./Gloucester) and Sean Wright (Glen Allen, Va./Deep Run) each had five kills. Travis Abele (Mechanicsville, Va./Lee-Davis) played as the primary setter with Wyatt Bollinger (Harrisonburg, Va./Eastern Mennonite) missing the match, and Abele totaled 19 assists, five digs and three kills.

The men were solid defensively at the net, led by Durren's four blocks. White had three blocks, including two solo, while Ocampo also had three along with two service aces.

Krystian Surdel topped John Joy with 15 kills and five digs.