LEBANON, Ill. – McKendree's men's volleyball team is set to travel to West Virgina to take on the University of Charleston and the University of Mount Olive at the UC Invitational. The Bearcats will take on the Golden Eagles of Charleston on Friday, Jan. 16th, at 6 PM CT. McKendree will see the Mount Olive Trojans on Saturday, Jan. 17th, at 1 PM CT.
The Bearcats are entering the weekend with a 0-2 record after two gritty losses to #1UCLA and, then #3, now #2 Long Beach State to start the season. Graduate outside hitter Tyler Tripp is leading the way offensively with 24 kills, hitting at a .304%, and junior setter Nate Flayter has 55 assists. Defensively, redshirt senior Sam Hoskin leads the way with 15 digs while senior middle blocker Rolen Lively and senior opposite Bryce Wetjen both have five blocks leading the defense at the net.
The Charleston Golden Eagles are coming into the weekend with a 1-0 record after taking down Lees-McRae College in three sets. To start the season, sophomore opposite Xander Bomert is leading the offense with 11 kills hitting at a .667%, and sophomore setter Yotam Briger has 21 assists. Sophomore libero Mikolaj Daszkiewicz is the team's defensive anchor in the back court with nine digs, and middle blocker duo junior Erel Bardah and sophomore Braxton Francis each have five blocks leading the defense at the net.
The Trojans of Mount Olive are sporting a 0-1 record, coming off a four-set loss to Penn State. Junior middle blocker Maksim Kazanov is currently the team's offensive leader with 13 kills, hitting at a .524%. Kazanov is followed by senior opposite Matthew Ekberg with 12 kills, hitting at a .458%. Senior setter Jackson Lahey has 33 assists. The back court defense is led by senior opposite Kory Grant with nine digs, followed by Lahey with eight digs. At the net, Ekberg leads with five blocks, followed by junior outside hitter Christos Savvidis with four blocks.
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