LISLE, ILL.- The Concordia University Chicago Cougars men's volleyball team traveled to Lisle, Ill. to face off against the Eagles of Benedictine University for a Northern Athletic Collegiate Conference (NACC) weekend matchup. After strong efforts, the Eagles swept the Cougars in all three sets, 3-0.
INSIDE THE BOX
- Jackson Stella (Hoffman Estates, Ill.) led the Cougars offensively with 6.5 points and five kills.
- Leon Gudzovski (Des Plaines, Ill.) followed behind with 5.5 and four kills.
- Alexander Ford (Skokie, Ill.) highlighted his offensive abilities with 4.5 points.
- Tyrise Armstrong (Grayslake, Ill.) contributed to the Cougars offense with three kills and led defensive with five digs.
- Elijah Mosher (Clayton, Ohio) showcased strong efforts with 17 assists and five digs. Van Gaetto (Darien, Ill.) contributed defensively with four digs.
HERE'S WHAT HAPPENED:
SET ONE:
The Eagles earned the first point of the set with a kill and quickly followed with two consecutive points to take an early lead to 3-0. The Cougars countered by firing back three straight points of their own, capitalizing on a service error, adding a service ace and finishing with a kill by Stella. Both teams exchanged points until the Eagles built a four-point lead, 10-6. The Cougars were awarded a point after a service error, but the Eagles continued to extend their advantage to five. Ford attempted to shift momentum for the Cougars with a kill, but the Eagles responded with five consecutive points, to stretch the score to 19-10. The Cougars added another point, yet the Eagles answered each time with a rebuttal. The Cougars finished with a kill by Mosher, but the Eagles secured the final point off an attack error to take the set, 25-16.
SET TWO:
Both teams gained their first points of the set off of attacking errors, tying the score at 1-1. The Eagles then gained momentum with three consecutive points before the Cougars capitalized on a service error to make it 4-2. Following substitutions by the Eagles, both Mosher and Ford each recorded a kill to tie the game. The Eagles regained the lead and created a three-point lead, 9-6. Despite continued efforts from the Cougars, including another point off a service error, the Eagles closed with four straight points, extending their lead to nine. The Eagles dominated the remainder of the set and won, with a final score of 25-16.
SET THREE:
The Eagles were first to start the set with a kill, and the Cougars responded with a point off a service error. The Eagles took an early two-point lead but continued giving up points on service errors, holding a close 5-4 advantage. Starting off with a kill by Armstrong, the Cougars went on a 4-0 run, taking the lead by two with a score of 9-7. The Eagles tied the game 11-11 until the Cougars added two more points to regain the lead. Both teams continued to battle back and forth until the Eagles capitalized on a kill to move ahead by three. A kill by Armstrong and an attack error narrowed the deficit down to one, 21-20. As tensions built up later in the set, the Eagles fought for three crucial points. With
Tate Johnson (Plainfield, Ill.) recording a kill to energize the Cougars, a final service error sealed the match for the Eagles, who claimed the set 25-21 against the Cougars.
WHAT'S NEXT
The team will stay on home court on February 26th to battle against Edgewood University. The matchup will take place at 7:00 PM. Coverage for all things CUC men's volleyball can be found at
cucougars.com/coverage.
