PHILIPPI, W.Va. --- The Tusculum men's volleyball team picked up its first Independent Volleyball Association (IVA) win of the season on Sunday (Mar. 21) afternoon at Alderson Broaddus.
The Pioneers (2-10, 1-4 IVA) won the match by scores of 25-15, 25-15, 23-25, 25-17 over the Battlers (3-5, 0-2 IVA).
Andrew Nielsen and Jaelin Gray led Alderson Broaddus with seven kills, while Yankiel Cruz Resto collected at team-high 19 assists and seven digs. A trio of Battlers landed a pair of service aces: Loic Nanchen, Cruz Resto, and Nielsen. At the net, Nielsen totaled seven blcoks (four solo, three assists).
Hunter Walck finished with a match-high 11 kills and three aces, while Caleb Slater followed with seven kills on a .417 clip and a pair of aces. Dane Loup (.517 hitting percentage) and Tom Kait finished with five kills apiece. Lucas Blanco collected 28 assists and a career-high 11 digs for his second collegiate double-double. Loup also landed a pair of aces and Walck was second-best with eight digs. Shaphar Grant made his biggest impact defensively with three block assists, just ahead of Blanco and Kait with two.
Alderson Broaddus hit .050 as a team with 28 kills and 23 errors in 101 total attempts. Tusculum hit .181 with 42 kills, 25 errors and 94 total attacks. The Pioneers led the Battlers in aces (11-6), assists (39-23), and digs (43-19) while the home team held the 10-to-4 advantage in total blocks. TU's 11 aces are the second-most in program history, just behind last year's meeting at AB.
TU shot out to an 11-3 lead in set one, including runs of four and five points. Both sides traded spurts of three, making the score 15-11. A Battler service error sparked a 10-4 surge by the Pioneers. Slater followed with a kill and, a few points later, Kait landed one. Walck is credited with TU's 22nd point of the opening frame, while Blanco and Grant teamed up for the Pioneers' first block of the contest. Loup clinched the 10-point win with a kill.
Set two finished with an identical 25-15 score, in which Tusculum fired at a .353 rate and held the Battlers to a -.050 average. Despite the eventual outcome, AB took the first two points of the set. Three of the Battlers' nine attack errors came in succinct fashion, handing the Pioneers a lead that was never relented. Loup registered half of his six kills within a span of five points to keep the margin growing. Wozniak notched the last two points with a kill and an ace.
The third set was the most tightly contested, swinging the home team's way by the closest of scores. TU had a 17-11 lead but squandered it after a called timeout by AB. The Battlers took the lead at 21-20, but the set became tied again at 23-all. A Cruz Resto kill staved off the Pioneers' sweep attempt.
Tusculum never trailed in set four after tying it at 1-1 on a Kait and Grant combined block. The Pioneers exploded after AB battled back to tie the frame at 14-all, outscoring the Battlers 11-3 in the final stretch. Loup landed back-to-back aces, forcing an Alderson Broaddus timeout. Two kills by Walck and one from both Grant and Blanco put the match out of reach. Walck closed the book on the Battlers with his last ace.
Tusculum returns to Pioneer Arena for a three-match homestand starting on Friday (Mar. 26). First serve is scheduled for 4 p.m. against IVA foe Queens.
