GREENEVILLE, Tenn. --- The Tusculum University men's volleyball team avenged its season-opening loss to Erskine on Tuesday night (Jan. 17). This marks the first victory for the young TU program over the Flying Fleet.
The Pioneers (2-3) downed the Fleet (1-2) in four sets: 25-19, 25-16, 22-25, 25-15.
Erskine had two players reach double-figures in kills: Jason Sall (16) and Edgerrin Austin (14). Francisco Pomar tallied 38 assists and was one of three teammates to record an ace, joined by Wiktor Ankurowski and Pablo Zamar. Sall rounded out his double-double with a match-high 10 digs, while libero Alex Ruiz contributed eight. Both Aidon Love and Jon Fuller were credited with two total blocks (one solo, one assist).
Three Pioneers racked up double-digit kills. Deklan Wingo and Colby Landry tied with 14 apiece, accompanied by Dane Loup's 10. Shaphar Grant hit .500 with nine kills, while Hunter Walck went 4-for-5 on swings. Jaden Bramhall collected Tusculum's remaining two kills. Bramhall also notched a career-high 43 assists and three service aces. Wingo also landed a trio of aces in the victory and tied his personal-best nine digs to head up the TU defense. He was followed by Landry (7), Loup (6), and Matt Moore (6). At the net, Walck assisted in three blocks, ahead of Bramhall's two.
Erskine hit .152 as a team with 41 kills and 24 errors on 112 total attempts. Tusculum averaged a season-high .261 with 53 kills, 22 errors, and 119 total attacks. The Fleet recorded more total blocks (5-4) and digs (37-36), while the Pioneers collected more aces (7-3) and assists (49-39).
TU led from start to finish across the first two sets, aided by a match-best 18 kills and .419 hitting percentage in the opening frame. A set two .360 clip stretched the Pioneer lead.
Grant went a perfect 4-for-4 in the opener, teeing off the night's match with the first point. Four kills by Landry helped push the advantage to 7-3. Erskine crept back within striking distance, but Loup's solo stuff forced a Fleet stoppage at 17-11. EC was able to close the gap to four behind Sall's late heroics. However, the edge was too great and was quelled by Loup and Landry consecutively.
Wingo was errorless in the second frame on a 4-of-8 performance, jumpstarting the scoring on a Moore assist. Bramhall followed suit with an ace. Erskine was unable to slow down Tusculum's offense, highlighted by consecutive kills by Grant, as TU stretched its lead to eight. Wingo's strikes kept the Fleet at bay, but the biggest blow was the Walck-Bramhall block at 23-15.
Erskine tallied set three's first point, the only time the Fleet scored first throughout the match. EC pulled away (5-1) due to three-straight Tusculum attack errors. Yet, the Pioneers battled back to overtake the lead behind consecutive Wingo aces, breaking a 7-all tie. The Flying Fleet proceeded to score the next six points. Tusculum managed three more ties, but Erskine went on a run to close out the set, including four-straight tallies.
TU held EC to a .062 hitting clip in the night's final set. In the defensive frame, both teams net double-digit digs (13-12, Tusculum), aided by a pair of blocks by Walck. Wingo added six kills and five digs as well. There were only two lead changes in set four, all within the first 10 scores. The Pioneers held fast once the 5-4 edge was achieved. A six-point run escalated the TU lead to 13-5, capped by a Loup ace. Erskine was never able to lower the disadvantage beneath seven points the remainder of the set.
Tusculum goes on the road for six of the next seven matches, beginning with a trip to North Greenville on Thursday (Jan. 19). First serve between the Pioneers and Crusaders is scheduled for 7 p.m.
