GREENEVILLE, Tenn. --- The Tusculum men's volleyball team squared off against Limestone on Peter Stewart's Senior Night, with the Pioneers dropping a four-set decision to the Saints. With the loss, TU enters the upcoming Independent Volleyball Association (IVA) Tournament as the No. 4 seed.
The Saints (12-9, 3-3 IVA) won by scores of 25-21, 25-22, 19-25, 25-16 to win over the Pioneers (3-12, 2-6 IVA).
Geraldo Rivera collected a match-high 25 kills on a .395 hitting percentage to lead the visitors. Spencer Saint-Eloi notched 10, followed by Jarrett Malone's 6-for-10 effort. Christos Gkitersos dished out 40 assists with Michael Podgorzak's eight rounding out the column. Matthew Anetrella landed a pair of service aces, while Saint-Eloi headed up the dig category with a match-best nine. Saint-Eloi was also the top defender at the net, collecting three block assists.
Shaun Kampshoff compiled a team-best 13 kills, just ahead of Shaphar Grant (9), Caleb Slater (8), and Dane Loup (8). Slater fired on an even .500 clip and Kampshoff finished with a .320 hitting rate, alongside one of TU's two aces. Lucas Blanco handed out 36 assists, collected the remaining ace, and is credited with a team-high six digs. Loup and Kampshoff were next up with five digs apiece. Grant led the match with five total blocks (one solo, four assists), followed by Blanco's block assist trio.
In his final match at Pioneer Arena, Stewart finished with two digs and two assists in a dual-libero system.
Limestone finished the match with a .327 hitting percentage with 50 kills and 18 attack errors in 98 total attempts. Tusculum totaled 46 kills, 20 errors, and 111 swings for a .234 hitting percentage. The Saints led the Pioneers in assists (48-42), digs (31-27), and aces (4-2), while the teams tied with six total blocks.
Tusculum earned the No. 4 seed in the weekend's (Apr. 16-17) IVA Tournament, hosted by Queens University of Charlotte. The Pioneers will open the event against No. 5 Alderson Broaddus at 1 p.m., with the winner facing top-seeded Lincoln Memorial at 7 p.m. Tournament Central can be found here.
