RIVER FOREST, Ill. --- The Concordia University Chicago men's volleyball team (5-6, 1-1 NACC) hosted Dominican University (2-5, 0-1 NACC) Tuesday night, in a Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference (NACC) matchup.
The red-hot Cougars came into the match against the reigning conference champions, after their 2-0 performance in the weekend in the Cougar Classic Tri. In the six prior matchups, CUC has yet to defeat Dominican. In those meetings, the Cougars have gone 1-18 in sets won.
Tonight, the stars aligned in favor of the Cougars, as CUC shutout Dominican, 3-0.
Inside the Box Score
- Luke Vozenilek led the Cougars offensively with 15 kills
- Tyler Holubeck recorded 12 kills and digs.
- Elijah Mosher notched 28 assists.
- Colby Campbell set a new season high in blocks with eight.
- CUC's 21 block assists in the match were the second most by the team this season.
CUC's high-powered offense led by
Luke Vozenilek erupted in set one. The senior ended the set with four kills and three block assists. The hostile environment of the maroon-out combined with the energized Cougar faithful made it difficult for Dominican to settle in. The Cougars jumped out to an early 8-2 lead, because of a seven-point scoring run.
Following a timeout, Dominican responded with a series of powerful attacks and impressive defensive plays. Outside hitter Tanner Dahmer led the charge for the Stars in the set with four kills, and brought the deficit to two, 16-14.
The remainder of the set featured burst of energy and long rallies. Senior
Tyler Holubek played a key role in the strong defensive efforts of the Cougars. He finished the set with three kills and a block assist.
The early scoring run and five blocks for CUC was enough to win set one, 25-20.
Set two was a carbon copy of the previous set. CUC bolted out to an early 5-1 lead, while the Stars struggled with errors and miscues.
Blake Rosen made a few spectacular digs, but no better than his one-handed attempt on the 10-6 point.
Trialing 12-6, the Stars turned things around. They won eight of the next ten points, and tied the set at 14-14. Carl Iwinski stepped up for Dominican, totaling four kills and a service ace.
The two rivals traded blows down the stretch. Dominican returned the scoring run favor with a five-point stretch of their own. CUC bounced back with big plays from their playmakers, along with the
Elijah Mosher. The freshman setter facilitated the Cougar offense all night, and picked up two kills in the set, along with eleven assists.
With the match tied at 22-22, Holubek smashed home his eighth kill of the night, as CUC pulled ahead. CUC won the next point, but failed to capitalize on their first set-point attempt. The Cougars' capped off the roller coaster of a set with kill from
David Vales. The 25-23 set two victory marked the first time in program history CUC won consecutive sets against Dominican.
Set three saw a desperate Stars team play aggressive and attempt to match the Cougars intensity. Vozeneliek made his reintroduced himself to the Stars with impressive displays of his attack game.
Dominican made one last effort to grab control of the reins, with their 5-1 run in the middle of the set, and tied it at 17-17. Just as any good upset story goes, the Cougars cooked the Stars' defense, en route to winning the set, 25-21. CUC swept Dominican 3-0.
The Cougars have a quick turnaround, as they host Trinity Christian College at 7 p.m. Coverage of the match and everything CUC men's volleyball can be found at cucougars.com.
