Men’s volleyball team swept in home matches to Loras and Aurora

OLIVET, Mich. – The Olivet College men's volleyball team lost both matches in a tri-match today at The Cutler Event Center. In a Midwest Collegiate Volleyball League match, the Comets was swept by Loras (Iowa) College before dropping a three-set non-conference match to Aurora (Ill.) University.

THE BASICS
Final Score: Loras def. Olivet 25-15, 25-18, 25-14
Location: The Cutler Event Center; Olivet, Mich.
Records: Olivet 6-13 overall, 0-8 MCVL; Loras 10-10 overall, 3-4 MCVL

HOW IT HAPPENED

• The Comets had an early two-point lead, 3-1 and 4-2, in the first set. The Duhawks then used an 8-2 run to turn a 5-4 deficit into a 12-7 lead. Olivet scored the next points but that would be as close as it would get for the rest of the set.
• Loras led both the second and third sets from start-to-finish.

FOR THE COMETS

• Senior Rhett Pringle topped the team with six kills.
• Sophomore Zach Pringle had five kills with zero attack errors on 13 attempts for a .385 hitting percentage. He also had a match-high eight digs.
• Freshman Tanner Gardenour recorded 18 set assists.

FOR THE DUHAWKS

• Dylan Ross posted a match-high 10 kills.
• Alfredo Lopez dished out a match-leading 20 set assists.
• Blair Anderson finished with a team-high seven digs.

THE BASICS
Final Score: Aurora def. Olivet 25-23, 25-18, 25-16
Location: The Cutler Event Center; Olivet, Mich.
Records: Olivet 6-14 overall, Aurora 10-12 overall

HOW IT HAPPENED

• There were three ties, 3-3, 4-4 and 5-5, to start the first set. The Comets surged ahead 7-5 before the Spartans went on a 3-0 run to take an 8-7 lead. Aurora stretched its advantage to five points, 22-17. Olivet responded with a 5-1 run to close the gap to a single point, 23-22. Back-to-back service errors made the score 24-23. A Spartan kill ended the set in their favor.
• The Comets raced out to a 3-0 lead in the second set. Aurora answered by scoring nine of the next 11 points to take a 9-5 lead. The Spartans eventually led by nine points, 20-11. Olivet scored the next five points to trim its deficit to five points. Aurora out-scored the Comets 5-2 down the stretch to win the set.
• The third set was similar to the second, as Olivet led 3-0. The Comets continued to hold the lead until the Spartans used a 5-0 run to go up 12-8. Olivet was never able to recover from the deficit.

FOR THE COMETS

• Sophomore Brock Pringle, who will celebrate his 20th birthday tomorrow, slammed down a match-high 13 kills.
• Sophomore Trent Robinson was next with 12 kills. He had a team-leading .391 attack percentage.
• Gardenour led Olivet with 28 set assists and 10 digs.

FOR THE SPARTANS

• Justin Elliott topped the team with 10 kills.
• Tyler Korhorn collected 30 set assists.
• Brandon Langys finished with 10 digs.

UP NEXT

• The Comets host Illinois Tech next Thursday at 7 p.m.