SPRINGFIELD, OHIO – Men's Volleyball wrapped up play at the Jim Coleman Memorial Invitational Saturday. They took on the Randolph Wildcats and the Wittenberg Tigers. The Eagles (1-3) emerged victorious in a 3-2 (22-25, 28-26, 25-22, 23-25, 15-13) battle against the Wildcats (1-3), but fell to the Tigers (6-4) in a 3-1 (25-7, 25-20, 21-25, 25-16) defeat.
MATCH ONE: EDGEWOOD COLLEGE 3, RANDOLPH 2 (22-25, 28-26, 25-22, 23-25, 15-13)
- Offense pushed the Wildcats to an 8-5 edge early in the first frame. The Eagles would claw their way back to a one-point deficit as the teams set the tone for the match. After trading blows and runs, with Randolph leading 22-21, the Wildcats would take advantage of Edgewood College mistakes to land the first blow in the match.
- The two squads exchanged runs to kick off the second frame, but Randolph landed the first solid blow with a 7-2 run for a 15-11 lead. Mistakes by the Wildcats coupled with effective Eagles offense fueled a 7-3 Edgewood College rally to draw even at 18. A late 5-1 Randolph run put them at set point 24-21, but three unanswered Eagles points forced extra points. The Edgewood College took over in bonus time, three kills and an ace evening the match at 1-1.
- Four straight aces from the Wildcats fueled a 5-0 rally and an early 8-5 advantage in set three. Randolph continued to roll as they pieced together a 10-2 follow-up and an 18-7 lead, putting the Eagles in a seemingly insurmountable disadvantage. Edgewood College would not be denied, taking off to the stratosphere with a 15-3 explosion to flip the script with a 22-21 lead. Three straight Eagles points after the Wildcats evened the frame would seal an incredible comeback for a 2-1 lead.
- Four kills and two Edgewood College mistakes put Randolph ahead 6-0 in the fourth set. The Wildcats built up their lead in chunks, holding into a 19-12 edge late. Showcasing their resolve once more, the Eagles stormed back to a 23-23 draw with an 11-4 burst, but Randolph would stay alive with back-to-back points.
- Edgewood College's offense set the tone in the tiebreaker set, three kills anchoring a 4-1 start to the final frame. Four unanswered from the Wildcats left the Eagles behind 9-7 in the set. Edgewood College would finish the set and match strong, rolling to a victory with a 5-1 run.
- The Eagles outhit Randolph .224-to-.120. The Wildcats held the edge in aces 10-to-7.
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Ryder Hill-Zastrow swung for 17 kills with a .368 hitting percentage on 38 attempts.
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Gavin Patterson earned 14 kills and nine digs with a .314 attack percentage.
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Will Gehrke anchored the offense and helped on defense with 32 assists and six digs.
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Jacob Bruns shined as libero with 16 digs.
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Owen Hartjes posted 11 kills in the victory.
- Shamel Smith played well in the loss. He tallied nine kills, five aces, and 12 digs.
- Mats Beentjes led Randolph with 13 kills.
MATCH TWO: WITTENBERG 3, EDGEWOOD COLLEGE 1 (25-7, 25-20, 21-25, 25-16)
- The Tigers outhit the Eagles .438 to -.269 as they put together a commanding opening set for a 1-0 lead.
- Wittenberg continued to roll in the second frame, pushing ahead 11-3. After being down 19-9, Edgewood College came to life with an 11-3 run of their own to close within 22-20. The Tigers piece together three unanswered for a 2-0 margin in the match.
- The squads battled neck and neck early in the third set, but a 5-3 stretch had the Eagles ahead 12-10. A 4-1 answer switched the advantage back to Wittenberg, but a 5-1 run pushed Edgewood College up 18-15. After the Tigers battled back to a 19-19 draw, the Eagles forced a fourth set on a 6-1 run.
- Wittenberg swung momentum back to their favor with a 9-5 start to the fourth frame. The Tigers controlled most of the frame, though Edgewood College cut the lead to 17-14 with three straight points. Wittenberg's offense clinched the match on a 9-2 burst.
- The Tigers outhit the Eagles .323-to-.010.
- Michael Yurk paced all hitters with 14 kills with a .481 hitting percentage on 27 attempts.
- Sam Richardson and Carson Hill teamed up with 19 and 16 assists each. Hill also posted a team-high nine digs.
- Patterson swung for nine kills to lead the Eagles and earned six digs.
- Gehrke had team-highs in assists (22) and blocks (two).
- Bruns hit four service aces.
Jack Mullane tallied eight digs.
BEYOND THE BOX SCORE
- The 60 kills against the Wildcats matched the single-season program record.
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Carsyn Stringfellow's eight kills against Randolph were a personal best.
- Bruns' four aces against Wittenberg set a new personal high watermark, as were
Owen Voigt's seven kills.
- The meetings were the first time Edgewood College met the Wildcats and Tigers in men's volleyball.
UP NEXT
The Eagles will return home to roost Thursday at the Todd Wehr Edgedome. They'll take on the UW-Stevens Point Pointers as nonconference action continues. First serve is scheduled for 7:00 p.m.
