GREENEVILLE, Tenn. ---- Josh Bragg recorded 19 kills, 11 digs and a .607 hitting percentage to lead Queens University of Charlotte to a 3-1 victory over host Tusculum University Tuesday afternoon in Independent Volleyball Association action at Pioneer Arena.
The Royals (13-10, 5-1 IVA) complete the season sweep over the Pioneers winning by scores of 25-21, 22-25, 26-24, 25-16.
Bragg's 19 kills came on just 28 attempts with two errors. Teammates Tristan Santoyo and JP Payne accounted for 13 and 10 kills, respectively.
TU's Shaphar Grant posted a season-high hitting percentage of .600 as he accounted for 10 kills in 15 attempts with one error. He also led all players with five blocks including two block solos. Dane Loup led the Pioneers with 11 kills and eight digs, while Caleb Slater added 10 kills, four blocks and a .409 hitting percentage.
Queens setter Daniel Leitao paced the Royals' offense with his 42 assists, while his Tusculum counterpart Lucas Blanco dished out 41 helpers for the home team.
Queens finished the game with a .322 hitting percentage on 59 kills, 22 errors and 115 total attempts. Tusculum hit .233 on the afternoon with 49 kills, 21 errors and 120 attempts for the Pioneers.
Queens hit a sizzling .600 in the opening set to claim a 25-21 win. Payne was perfect in the first set connecting on five kills in five attempts, while Nick Cavallaro and Tristan Santoyo tallied four kills apiece in the first frame.
In the second set, Tusculum never trailed and used a 7-3 run midway in the frame to win 25-22 and tie the match at a set apiece. The Pioneers hit .267 led by Loup's four kills, while the Tusculum defense held the Royals to a .069 hitting percentage and forcing eight errors.
The third set was a war down to the end as the score was tied 19 times with four lead changes. With the score tied 20-20, the Royals went on a 4-1 run including two kills by Bragg as Queens led 24-21. TU scored three straight points including kills by Slater and a block from Grant as the Pioneers evened the set at 24-24. After a Queens timeout, the Royals got a Payne kill and a TU attack error to win the third set 26-24 and take a 2-1 lead in the match.
Queens scored the first four points of the fourth set and would lead wire-to-wire to claim a 25-16 win and secure the match 3-1.
Tusculum returns to action this Friday afternoon when the Pioneers host Alderson Broaddus for an IVA match beginning at 2 p.m. TU defeated the Battlers 3-1 on March 21 in this season's first meeting.
