DUE WEST, S.C. --- The Tusculum men's volleyball team returned to the win column with a sweep of Erskine on Saturday (Mar. 7) night.
The Pioneers (8-6) picked up their fifth all-time victory over the Flying Fleet (5-9) by scores of 25-19, 25-15, 27-25.
True Bauer led the home team with eight kills on a .429 hitting percentage. He was one of only three Flying Fleet to hit in the positive for the match. Ricardo Rivera distributed 24 assists, while Allen Faison and Kellen Prysmiki landed a pair of service aces apiece. Rivera also led the dig column for Erskine with six. At the net, Colin Fahey had a hand in four blocks.
Reef Mathis led the Pioneers with 11 kills on a .368 clip. Morgan Makovec added seven kills on a .667 rate, while Adam Svendsen (7), Greyson Ervin (6), Caleb Hammann (3), and Riley Wisniakowski (3) rounded out the scoring. The latter dished out 27 assists and a match-high three aces. Three Pioneers recorded four digs: Makovec, Svendsen, and Ervin. Defensively, Makovec contributed five blocks (two solo, three assists).
Erskine hit .103 as a team with 30 kills and 22 errors on 78 total attempts. Tusculum hit .329 with 37 kills, 13 errors, and 73 total attacks. The Pioneers led the Flying Fleet in assists (32-28), service aces (10-6), digs (18-17), and total blocks (9.5-6). TU's ace total is tied for second-most in a three-set match, while the blocks are tied for sixth-most.
Tusculum led the entirety of the first set, except for a tie at 1-1. The Pioneers used four aces and seven blocks to hold Erskine to an even hitting percentage. TU used multiple three-point spurts to create separation, with leads reaching six. An ace by Makovec had the visitors up by a 23-17 margin before consecutive points by Erskine. A kill by Mathis righted the ship with a Wisniakowski ace to clinched the 1-0 match advantage.
Once again, a tie at 1-1 was all that Erskine could manage. The second set was all Tusculum as the Pioneers hit .409 with four aces, while holding the Flying Fleet to a -.059 clip. A 9-1 run by TU put the set out of reach for Erskine. Mathis kicked off the spurt with a kill to send Makovec to the service line. He landed an ace before another kill by Mathis. The Flying Fleet had three-straight attack errors, as two more miscues and a Wisniakowski ace rounded out the rally. For the second time in as many sets, a Wisniakowski ace clinched the set win.
The third set was the most competitive with four ties and two lead changes. Tusculum landed 14 kills with three blocks, but Erskine responded with their match-best hitting percentage (.281) with four rejections. The Flying Fleet had an early four-point rally to take their first lead of the match, which they stretched to a seven-point lead at 18-11. The Pioneers started their comeback with a 5-1 spurt to bring the score to 19-16. Erskine came upon set-point up 24-19, but TU went on a 5-0 run to tie the frame behind two unforced errors, a Hammann ace, a Makovec block, and a Svendsen kill. The Flying Fleet once again earned set-point (25-24) but the Pioneers landed back-to-back kills, with the match-winning ace coming from Svendsen.
Tusculum hosts Kentucky State on Tuesday (Mar. 10) in the programs' first-ever meeting. First serve is scheduled for 6 p.m.
