STEVENS POINT, Wis. – The Concordia University Chicago (CUC) men's volleyball team traveled up to Stevens Point, Wis. today for the UWSP Tri, playing two matches. The Cougars swept the V-Hawks of Viterbo University but then fell 3-1 to host University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point. The Cougars are now 6-11 (1-3 NACC).
Match One – Viterbo University
Inside the Box Score
Set One
Leon Gudzovski (Des Plaines, Ill.) put CUC's first point on the board, as the Cougars got out to a hot start. More kills from
Alexander Ford (Skokie, Ill.), Hoffman, Holubek, and Mosher put the Cougars out front 9-4.
The teams traded points back and forth as the Cougars kept a steady lead. Ford recorded a service ace to make the gap six points, 12-6. The V-Hawks worked to get back within four, 16-12, but Holubek and Mosher kept the V-Hawks at bay and rebuilt the lead to six points, 20-14.
A pair of Gudzovski kills sandwiched around a kill by Holubek put Concordia just within reach of the set victory. A kill by Hoffman and a service error by Viterbo gave the Cougars a 25-17 victory in set one.
Set Two
In set two, the Cougars jumped out to an early 5-3 lead.
Viterbo took a point back, but the Cougars went on a 3-0 run to increase their lead to 8-4. CUC continued to answer back and trade points with the V-Hawks. Hoffman, Holubek, Ford, and Mosher extended the Cougars' lead to 15-10.
CUC went on a 4-1 run, followed by a three-point run by Viterbo. The Cougars secured six of the last seven points of the set to win 25-15, going up 2-0 in the match.
Set Three
Set three started off a little tougher for the Cougars, as the V-Hawks kept themselves in it. Despite kills from
Jackson Stella (Hoffman Estates, Ill.), Hoffman, Ford, and Holubek, the teams were tied at 10-all.
Yet the Cougars found their rhythm, scoring six unanswered points, including a service ace by Holubek and kills by Ford, Hoffman, and Mosher.
The V-Hawks answered back however, closing the gap to 17-15. Yet this didn't fluster the Cougars. After each team traded a pair of points, the Holubek hit back-to-back kills to spur CUC to a 24-17 lead. Viterbo scored one last point before
Tristan Caminar (Bolingbrook, Ill.) close the door on the match for the 25-18 win and 3-0 sweep.
Match Two – UW-Stevens Point (UWSP)
Inside the Box Score
- Holubek led the team with 19 kills, while Hoffman registered 12 and Tyrise Armstrong (Grayslake, Ill.) tied his career-high of nine kills.
- Mosher tallied five blocks and 43 assists.
- Both Holubek and Gaetto registered 12 digs, followed closely behind by Mosher with 11.
Set 1
Holubek put the Cougars on the board first to start match two. Gudzovski and Hoffman would then register kills, sandwiched around a block by Hoffman and Ford and a service ace from Holubek, giving the Cougars a slight 5-4 lead.
The Pointers came back with the next four points to retake the lead, 8-5. Ford put a stop to the run and the teams started to trade points, but UWSP was able to go on another run and increase their lead to five points. Holubek and Mosher tried to close the gap, but the Pointers continued to build on their lead, 20-13.
The Cougars never quit, pulling themselves back into the mix with three unanswered points, two kills from Stella and a block by Stella and Gudzovski. However, the Pointers were able to hold on to the lead and take the first set 25-18.
Set Two
In the second set, Holubek once against scored the first point for the Cougars. Another kill by Holubek and one from Hoffman held the score even at 4-4.
The Pointers and Cougars traded points until CUC had a slight 10-9 lead. UWSP would take the next three points for a 12-10 lead, but the Cougars would reclaim the lead in the next three points, 13-12, capped off by a block by Mosher and Ford.
The two teams kept it close until they were tied at 19. Then, the Cougars recorded the next four points to lead 23-19. Kills from Holubek and Hoffman allowed the Cougars to win set two, 25-21 and tie the match at 1-1.
Set Three
The Cougars and Pointers once again traded points and kept the match close early. A big kill from Gudzovski kept the set tied at 11.
The Pointers tried to pull away again, but the Cougars rallied and kills from Hoffman, Armstrong, and Holubek, put the Cougars up, 17-15.
CUC kept the lead for a few points before UWSP hit a stride and went up 23-19. Despite kills from Armstrong and Hoffman late in the set, the Cougars fell 25-22 and the Pointers led the match 2-1.
Set Four
In the final set, the Pointers strode to an early 5-1 lead. Yet kills from Holubek, Hoffman, Ford, and Armstrong and a service ace from
Michael Cardines (Chicago, Ill.) put the Cougars within one, 10-9.
Yet, the Cougars couldn't pull level, and the Pointers increased their lead to 16-12 before Ford stopped UWSP's run.
Mosher and Gudzovski put the Cougars within two, 18-16, but the Pointers were able to put up two more points for a four-point lead. The teams traded points until the end of the match, with the Cougars falling 25-21, and losing the match 3-1.
The Cougars' next match will be Saturday March 8. CUC will return to conference play and face Edgewood College on the road in Madison, Wis. First serve is at 1:00 pm. Coverage can be found at cucougars.com/coverage.
