Feb. 15, 2020 - The Concordia-Chicago men's volleyball team added to the fine storyline of its early sophomore season, extending its winning streak to five and improving to 7-2 with three-set wins today against host Maranatha Baptist University and North Park University.  

Match One (Maranatha Baptist)
Turning Point: After a dogfight in set one, with CUC squeezing out a 25-23 win, the Cougars thoroughly dominated set two by a 23-9 score and were in control the rest of the way.

Inside the Box Score

• Luke Vozenilek continued on a tear with 12 kills, a .474 attack and three aces.
•  Virgilio Rodriguez was outstanding with eight kills in 14 errorless chances for a .571 attack.
•  Trent Weber handed out 23 assists and also led the defensive effort with 10 digs.

Quick Recap:

•  The first set was a battle, with 13 ties along the way.
•  The Cougars racked up 14 kills in the first set while also capitalizing on seven Sabercats' hitting errors.
•  A 5-0 run helped CUC get control of  set two, with Luke Vozenilek dealing three consecutive aces.
•  Matt Geiser later served up an 8-0 run, helped by three kills by Virgilio Rodriguez.
•  A fast start helped the Cougars to wrap up the match in three as they jumped to an 11-4 lead.
•  Rodriguez led the way late with five kills in the final set as CUC concluded the sweep with a 25-12 win.

Match Two (North Park)
Turning Point: A collective .545 attack in the first set led by Vozenilek kept the Cougars' momentum going against the Vikings, and their 25-13 win in set one would help them turn away more determined Viking efforts in sets two and three.

Inside the Box Score

• Vozenilek terrorized North Park with 17 kills in 32 attempts and a .469 attack.
• Rodriguez reached double digits in kills with 10 while serving up four aces.
• Freshman Brandon Stirn gave a fine defensive effort with a team-high 11 digs.
•  Weber was credited with 35 assists out of CUC's 42 kills.

Quick Recap

• Vozenilek's five consecutive kills in the middle of set one triggered a closing 12-3 run.
• Rodriguez began set two with two aces as part of a 4-0 run.
•  A later 4-0 run, helped by Skylar Vesendaal's ace, gave CUC a 22-14 lead. North PArk would get closer, but Rodriguez's kill closed out a ! 25-19 lead for a 2-0 match lead.
• Keep those fast starts coming! In set three, it was Christopher Livesay who served the first five points, including an ace.
•  The Cougars stretched their lead as high as nine before North Park rallied late. However, a block by Versendaal and Matthew Lams provided the final point as CUC won the set 25-19 and the match 3-0. 
•  The Cougars are now winners of 15 consecutive sets.

Concordia-Chicago (7-2) returns to action on Tuesday night, Feb. 18 when they play their Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference opener at Dominican University against the undefeated (7-0) Stars.