OLIVET, Mich. (Duhawks.com) - The Loras men's volleyball team swept its second consecutive MCVL match in as many days over Olivet on Saturday afternoon. The Duhawks hit .400 on the day with nine different players registering at least three kills on the match. Loras was led by sophomore
Jimmy Combs and freshman
Austin Kuchenbecker, who registered a combined 18 kills out of the middle. Defensively, sophomore
Blair Anderson recorded 11 digs and three assists, his fourth game this season with double-digit digs.
POST GAME NOTES - After trading points to begin the match, the Duhawks grabbed the momentum in set one, establishing a 5-2 advantage after a pair of kills from sophomore Jimmy Combs.
- Freshman Alfredo Lopez increased the Loras lead with a kill to make the score 9-5.
- After a Comet timeout, Olivet chipped into the Duhawk lead, trailing 13-12 midway through the frame.
- A kill paired with an ace from sophomore Dylan Ross extended the Loras advantage to 17-14.
- With both teams battling back-and-forth, the Duhawks added to their lead with a kill from freshman Ryan Galvan that ran the lead to 21-17.
- A block from Combs made the score 23-19 in Loras favor late in the set.
- Ross put the final exclamation point on the opening set with his fourth kill, clinching the set victory at 25-19.
- Combs matched Ross kill-for-kill in set one with four. Galvan and Kuchenbecker were right behind Combs and Ross, finishing with three kills in set one.
- In set two, the Duhawks got out to an early lead after a block from Ross and freshman Austin Kuchenbecker forced a Comet timeout with Loras in front 6-4.
- A kill from sophomore Kyle Zacok increased the Loras lead to 9-5.
- With Lopez at the service line, the Duhawks extended their margin, taking a 13-7 lead.
- The Comets showed determined resiliency, cutting the Loras lead to one at the 14-13 mark.
- A kill from freshman Eric Zirzow further opened their lead later in the frame to 17-15.
- Another Combs kill extended the lead to 23-19 late in set two.
- Consecutive kills from freshman Martin Rodriguez and Austin Kuchenbecker closed out the second set in Loras' favor, 25-22.
- The Duhawks opened up an early lead in set three with freshman Martin Rodriguez registering two aces.
- A kill from freshman Jake Chudzik increased the Loras advantage to 12-4 midway through set two.
- Freshman Leo Peters gave the Duhawks a 17-7 lead with his second kill of the set.
- Peters finished the match with a kill for Loras on an assist from freshman Anthony Delgado, winning the third set, 25-16.
- Kuchenbecker registered seven kills and a season-high .700 attack percentage in two sets.
- In three sets, Loras posted 49 team kills, setting a program record for most kills in a three set match.
- The Duhawks hit .400 as a team on the match, setting a program record for hitting percentage.
- Loras improves to 9-12 and 4-7 in the MCVL while Olivet falls to 1-17 and 0-12 in conference play.
FRIEDMAN GROUP PLAYER OF THE GAME
Blair Anderson | Anderson was the steadying force for the Duhawk defense, registering 11 digs and 3 assists in three sets.
UP NEXTThe Duhawks will enjoy their day off in Buffalo, N.Y. which will include a trip to Niagara Falls before they take on the Hilbert Hawks in their next match, at 7 p.m. on Monday night.
