River Forest, Ill. — After more than two weeks away, the Concordia University Chicago men's volleyball team returned home to Geiseman Gymnasium on Friday night to take on rival Concordia University Wisconsin. 

Inside the Box Score

• Junior Luke Vozenilek (Westmont, Ill.) led the team with nine kills and 11 points. He added a solo block and two more assisted blocks. 

• Senior Virgilio Rodriguez (Cicero, Ill.) was right behind him with eight kills and 8.5 points. Both he and Vozenilek added six digs. 

• Juniors Colby Campbell (Brookfield, Ill.) and Tyler Holubek (New Lenox, Ill.) both had three total blocks.

The opening set began with a bang as Campbell and Vozenilek combined for a block to give the Cougars a 1-0 lead. The teams traded points over the first several rallies before a 5-0 run gave the Falcons an 11-5 advantage. 

Following the CUW run, the Cougars found themselves playing from behind for the remainder of the set. They had several successful rallies but weren't ever able to string enough together consecutively to truly get back in the set. 

Their best run came with their backs up against the wall. The Falcons were a point away from securing the set before the Cougars scored four-straight points to make things a little more interesting at 24-18. This run included a pair of kills from Vozenilek as well as one from Holubek. It was as close as they'd get however, as the Falcons closed out the set on the next rally. 

Holubek opened the second set with an ace to again give the Cougars an early advantage. Similar to the first set, the teams kept pace through the first several rallies. A block and kill from sophomore David Vales (Oak Forest, Ill.) on consecutive rallies gave the Cougars a 7-5 edge. 

The Falcons were quick to answer, scoring seven of the next eight points to jump to a 12-8 lead. This proved to be too much for the Cougars, who were unable to score on two or more consecutive rallies for the remainder of the set. A 6-0 Falcon run all but sealed the deal as they took the set 25-14. 

The third set was highly competitive as the Cougars were able to score in bunches. After falling behind early, the Cougars scored on five straight rallies to take a 9-7 lead. A kill from senior Ricardo Ruiz (Lynwood, Ill.) broke the tie before a block from him and Vozenilek gave them some separation. 

It wouldn't be easy though, with CUW putting together a run of their own to go up 14-11. A service ace from junior Matthew Lams (Brookfield, Ill.) once again evened things at 15 before the ensuing three rallies all went to the Falcons.

Following a timeout to talk things over, the Cougars went on a 6-1 run thanks in large part to attack errors on the part of the Falcons. The Falcons pulled as close as one at 22-21, but Vozenilek immediately answered with a kill as the Cougars held on for a 25-22 victory. 

The fourth set lacked the competitive nature of the third, as the Cougars struggled to work their way back from an early deficit. They were never closer than two after the 11-9 mark, but once again showed a great deal of fight down the stretch despite this. They eventually fell 25-16. 

It's the beginning of an action-packed weekend for the team as they'll head to St. Louis, Mo., Saturday morning to compete in the Fontbonne Invitational. They have two games on the schedule for Saturday, with the first coming at 4 p.m. against Augustana College. The night wraps up with a 7 p.m. battle against Loras College. Coverage for the weekend can be found at cucougars.com/coverage.