GREENEVILLE, Tenn. --- The Tusculum men's volleyball team won its sixth-straight contest after defeating Lees-McRae on Friday (Feb. 6) night, tying the record set by last year's squad.
The Pioneers (6-1) battled the Bobcats (2-6) to a fourth set, finishing with a 20-25, 25-21, 25-20, 25-20 decision. This was the first time this season that the Pioneers have needed more than three sets to reach a result, winning 18 of the last 19 sets.
Lees-McRae had two players reach double figures in kills: Davide Nicolini (17) and Austin Beaird (13). Abdirahman Ahmed dished out 42 assists and was one of three Bobcats to land a pair of aces, joined by Ben Fincham and Jadon Ciriacks. Defensively, libero Ben Ratliff-Becher added 10 digs and Evan Harris was a part of six blocks.
Reef Mathis became the first Pioneer this season to reach the 20-kill mark, upping his career-best. His kills and 23.5 points are both tied for eighth-most in a four-set match, while his 46 attack attempts sit fourth. Rounding out the offense were Cooper Sadleir (6), Aiden Roper (5), Morgan Makovec (4), Adam Svendsen (3), and Caleb Hammann (1). Riley Wisniakowski distributed 34 assists, as Makovec landed a pair of aces. Wisniakowski's 12 digs are tied eighth-most in a four-setter and resulted in his second double-double this season. At the net, Hammann's six blocks (two solo, four assists) are tied for the second-most blocks in a four-set match.
Lees-McRae hit .149 as a team with 47 kills and 29 errors on 121 total attempts. Tusculum hit .200 with 39 kills, 19 errors, and 100 total attacks. The Bobcats led the match in assists (46-38) and service aces (7-3), while the Pioneers tallied more digs (36-32) and blocks (14-8). TU's rejections set the four-set record and are tied for the second-most overall.
The first set went the way of Lees-McRae, marking the first set lost by the Pioneers since the season-opener on January 10. The frame featured seven ties and two lead changes, and the Bobcats were aided by three blocks. All of the lead swings happened within the first 10 points, with Tusculum rallying for three ties after the fact, including a 4-0 spurt for the final squaring at 10-10. LMC responded with a 5-0 run that the home team could not come back from.
Set two was one of the most competitive this season for Tusculum, as it saw 15 ties and seven lead changes. The Pioneers had just five kills but were the beneficiaries of a combined 18 service and attack errors by Lees-McRae. The remaining two TU points were an ace by Makovec and a bad set by LMC. The teams were tied for the final time at 19-all before the Pioneers went on a 6-2 run.
The third set had one lead change, as the teams swapped the advantage three points in. It also featured fiery offense. Tusculum hit .400 with 13 kills, while Lees-McRae averaged .308 for 14 strikes. After TU took the lead at 2-1, the Pioneers grew the edge to six (18-12) after a 5-1 spurt. The Bobcats tried to creep back in but a kill and solo block by Mathis clinched the set.
All three ties and the singular lead change occurred before either team reached double-digits in the fourth set. Tusculum used a match-high six blocks to protect home court and move to 3-0 at Pioneer Arena. TU used a three-point rally to force a LMC timeout at 13-9 and the Bobcats spent their final pause in the midst of a 4-0 run (22-16). Lees-McRae battled back, denying three match-points before Roper provided the winning kill.
Tusculum has a quick turnaround, traveling to Belmont Abbey for a 6 p.m. serve on Saturday (Feb. 7). The Crusaders (2-0) are receiving votes in the latest national poll, with both wins coming against Catawba.
