BRISTOL, Tenn. --- The Tusculum men's volleyball team earned its first win of 2024, pulling off a comeback against in-state foe King on Thursday (Jan. 18) night. TU hit a combined .471 in the final two frames to claim victory.
The Pioneers (1-3) came from behind to smother the Tornado (0-3) by scores of 19-25, 25-20, 28-30, 25-22, 16-14.
Grayson Stoudt led King with 15 kills on a .522 hitting percentage, as Justin Sawyer (12), AJ Drooker (11), and Alex Barkley (10) joined him in double figures. Andrew Haber distributed 50 assists, while Sean Haberthy landed half of the Tornado service aces. Gannon Chinen scooped up a team-best 12 digs. Both Stoudt and Haberthy were credited with three total blocks.
Deklan Wingo finished with a season-high 21 kills on a .405 clip. Colby Landry added 18 kills, followed by Morgan Makovec (13), Kevin Blankenship (10), Jaden Bramhall (5), and Tristan Blake (1). Bramhall went an errorless 5-for-7 on his swings from the middle. Blake dished out a career-high 56 assists as the setter, while Makovec (2) and Bramhall (1) were responsible for the TU aces. Taylor West upped his collegiate-best to 15 digs to lead the Pioneer defense. Both Landry and Blake rounded out their double-doubles with 11 and 10 digs, respectively. Wingo added five rejections (two solo, three assists), joined by Makovec and Bramhall with four total blocks.
King hit .229 as a team with 60 kills and 25 errors on 153 total attempts. Tusculum hit .293 with 68 kills, 24 errors, and 150 total attacks. The Pioneers led the match in assists (62-57), digs, (53-52), and total blocks (11-7.5), while the Tornado recorded more service aces (6-3).
Bramhall and Makovec started the match strong with three kills each in the first frame. King's separation came early, rattling off five-straight scores to lead 6-1. Tusculum closed the gap to one (9-8), but three consecutive aces by the Tornado revamped the home team's lead. The King edge maxed out at seven multiple times to allow KU to earn the match advantage.
Tusculum responded by hitting .357 in set two, led by Wingo's six kills. The Pioneers went on a 5-1 spurt to take a three-point lead at 8-5, capped by consecutive kills by Landry. The teams traded scores until Wingo landed three strikes in a row (16-13). King called a timeout after Bramhall earned an ace at 19-5. TU's edge stayed consistent as Wingo closed out the frame and tied the match.
Set three needed overtime to determine a winner. Defense was the highlight for Tusculum as West dug up eight attempts and four Pioneers had a hand in at least two blocks (Wingo, Makovec, Bramhall, and Blake). Offensively, both Landry and Wingo tallied five kills. TU gained an early lead thanks to a 6-0, including back-to-back Makovec aces. King swung the momentum behind a 7-1 spurt, reclaiming a one-point edge (14-13). No team held more than a two-point advantage over the remainder of the set. The Pioneers fought off multiple set-points, even forcing the Tornado into one, but some late King blocks won out.
Needing a set win to continue the match, Tusculum hit a fiery .452 as Wingo and Makovec combined for 11 of the Pioneers' 17 kills. For the first time on the evening, TU started out 1-0, utilizing a Tornado error. Tusculum gained some cushion with Blake at the service line, upping the advantage to 11-6. With the Pioneers up 21-15, King called for a pause in the action and responded with a 6-1 run to close the gap to one. TU called its own timeout to take three of the final four scores.
Tusculum saved its best for last, hitting a stellar .500 in the shortened fifth set. Wingo and Blankenship each landed four kills, with the latter going 4-for-7. Landry added a 2-for-3 showing in crunch time. Early attack errors by King started TU with a 3-1 advantage. With the deficit reaching three scores (10-7), the Tornado took a timeout and gained some ground. The Pioneers were up 12-9 until a four-point run swung the favor to the home squad. The Tusculum trio closed out the match with their strong attempts to earn TU its first win of the season.
Tusculum returns home to Pioneer Arena to host North Greenville on Tuesday (Jan. 23) at 6 p.m.
