(Fort Wayne, Ind., April 7) – McKendree men's volleyball closed out the regular season with a closely contested three-set loss against the Fort Wayne Mastodons on Saturday night. The Bearcats now have an overall record of 11-14 and finish 6-8 in Midwestern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association action.

Senior Nolan Rueter, senior Jared Wilcox and sophomore Zach Schnittker all put down a team-high seven kills, with Rueter and Wilcox also picking up six digs. Junior libero Zach Thompson and senior setter Pasquale Fiduccia also recorded six digs, while red-shirt freshman Wyatt Dimke earned four total blocks at the net.

The Bearcats built an early 14-8 advantage in the first set, but the Mastodons responded with an 11-3 scoring run, forcing a McKendree timeout. Fort Wayne held on for a 25-21 win, taking the opening set in the process.

Down by two late, the Mastodons strung together the final four points of the second set thanks to McKendree hitting errors to take a 2-0 lead on the Bearcats.

In a must win situation, McKendree got off to a slow start, trailing Fort Wayne 16-11 and only got within two points of the lead the rest of the way. The Mastodons finished the sweep by winning the set 25-20.

The Bearcats will now await their first round MIVA tournament opponent, with all four quarterfinal matches being held on Saturday 14 and hosted by the higher seed.