GREENEVILLE, Tenn. --- The Tusculum men's volleyball team earned a hard-fought victory on Friday (Feb. 9), downing Emmanuel in straight sets.
The Pioneers (2-8) returned to the win column with a sweep over the Lions (1-7) by scores of 26-24, 27-25, 25-22.
Eli Zdonek tallied eight kills in the match to lead Emmanuel. Noah Langelier came off the bench to record a team-best 14 assists, while Arturo Diaz-Dube landed the lone service ace. Both Zdonek and libero Nicklas Eichenberger scooped up six digs. At the net, Lucas Nieves and Greg Bodus contributed to four total blocks.
Deklan Wingo and Colby Landry recorded a match-high 11 kills in the victory. Morgan Makovec finished with seven kills on a .500 hitting clip, followed by Donovan Nye (5), Jaden Bramhall (3), and Tristan Blake (1). Blake dished out 36 assists and tallied a pair of aces, while also leading the defense with eight digs. Both Makovec and Bramhall were credited with three blocks from the middle.
Emmanuel hit .146 as a team with 32 kills and 19 errors on 89 total attempts. Tusculum hit .193 with 38 kills, 21 errors, and 88 total attacks. The Pioneers led the match in assists (37-28), service aces (5-1), and digs (32-25), while the Lions tallied more total blocks (8.5-7).
Tusculum needed overtime to claim the match's first two sets, using a combined 28 ties and nine lead changes in the span.
In set one, neither team had a three-point separation until the Pioneers went on a 3-0 run to lead 18-15. Despite a timeout by the Lions, TU claimed five of the next eight scores to hold a 23-18 edge. Emmanuel rallied, fighting off five set-points. Yet, consecutive errors handed Tusculum the early match lead.
The Pioneers had an early, minute advantage but the Lions battled back to an 8-all tie. TU responded with four of the five scores; however, Emmanuel did more damage to cause a Tusculum pause. After the timeout, neither team got out of a two-score reach of the other. The Lions claimed the first set-point at 24-23, but Wingo took over.
Blake set the tone with an ace to begin the final frame. TU led by as many as five at 16-11 and again at 20-15. Emmanuel rattled off three-straight to threaten a fourth set, but Nye helped to close out the contest, landing the final two Pioneer points.
With a week off, Tusculum breaks up its homestand with a first-time opponent in Thomas More on Friday (Feb. 16). The match between the Saints and Pioneers is scheduled for 7 p.m.
