The Concordia University Chicago men's volleyball team (3-7) hosted their only tri-match of the season today, March 28, as they welcomed the Milwaukee School of Engineering (8-6) and the University of California, Santa Cruz (5-0).
 
In the first match, the Cougars took on the MSOE Raiders. Each of the three sets went into extra points as CUC battled with the Raiders, who received votes in the last NCAA poll. Although they fought throughout the match, they were not able to secure a win as they lost 26-24, 32-30 and 26-24.
 
Leading the Cougars was sophomore Luke Vozenilek (Westmont, Ill.). The outside hitter recorded 20 kills to help CUC keep the game close with the Raiders. He also contributed a team-high four aces while digging up six balls. Senior Trent Weber (Carol Stream, Ill.) controlled the offense again as he registered 27 assists.
 
On defense, freshman Blake Rosen (Aldie, Va.) had a team-high 16 digs to benefit the Cougars in the back court. Up front, senior Ryan Felbinger (Cicero, Ill.) had a team-high two blocks.
 
Once the Cougars and the Raiders wrapped up their match, Concordia had some time off as MSOE took on the UC Santa Cruz Banana Slugs. The match went to five sets, with the Slugs coming out on top.
 
Shortly after that match concluded, the Cougars got back on the court to take on UCSC. Concordia attempted to keep up with the Slugs, which they were able to do through most of the three sets. However, Santa Cruz managed to pull away from CUC by the end of each, resulting in losses of 25-21, 25-17 and 25-20 for the Cougars.
 
Sitting at the top of the team's offense again was Vozenilek, who notched 12 kills in this one. He also helped the team with one ace and one block. Also adding to the team's efforts again was Weber with 25 assists and Rosen with nine digs. Junior Ricardo Ruiz (Lynwood, Ill.) stood out in the front row on defense with two blocks.
 
The Cougars will have one day off before hitting the court again in River Forest as they host Edgewood College. First serve is scheduled for 7 p.m. A live stream can be found at youtube.com/cucsports.