Feb. 1, 2004

Box Score

ROMEOVILLE, Ill. - The Lewis University men's volleyball team picked up a key early-season conference victory with a five-game victory over league rival Ohio State. The Flyers (4-5, 2-1 Midwest Intercollegiate Volleyball Association) pulled out a 30-25, 23-30, 30-26, 28-30, 15-12 victory over the visiting Buckeyes (4-3, 0-1 MIVA).

"This was a big win for us, we needed this one," said Lewis head coach Dave Deuser. "This is a big confidence boost for us. We've spent a lot of time in the last few days breaking down film and focusing on details in practice and it paid off today."

One of the biggest concerns for the team in the early going this year has been its blocking. Lewis traditionally has been known for its offense, however with the offense sputtering at times in the team's first few matches blocking has become a crucial point of emphasis.

"We blocked really well today," said Deuser. "We blocked a ton of balls or got touches on a bunch more that helped us prevent runs. We limited their runs to 2-3 points instead of the 5-6 that we've given up in our losses."

The Flyers recorded 17 team blocks, their most this season, and held Ohio State to a .255 hitting percentage for the match.

After splitting the first two games, game 5 came down to a series of momentum swings. Lewis jumped out to a 4-1 lead only to have Ohio State tie the game at 4-all. Setter Brandon Sisk ended OSU's three-point run with a kill off a serve reception.

The team then pushed the score to 10-6 on the strength of kills by Jeff Soler and Fabiano Barreto and a block by Soler and Greg Pochopien. The Buckeyes came roaring back with four straight points and once again tied the game at 10-all. OSU's Adam Pederson had a kill and an ace in the run.

The Buckeyes took the lead at 12-11 on a Mark Peckham service ace, but Lewis responded with four straight points to win the match. OSU's Andy Cole was called for a blocking error that tied the game at 12-all and began the streak. Enrique Escalante recorded an ace for a 13-12 lead before freshman Jared Dayton slammed kills on the next two points to clinch the match. Dayton finished game 5 with four kills on five swings to help seal the Flyers' victory.

Soler paced Lewis with a match-high 22 kills and had four digs and six blocks. Barreto posted 20 kills with nine digs. Dayton provided the best match of his young career, tallying 16 kills, three digs, three blocks and a .375 hitting percentage.

The Buckeyes produced a remarkably balanced attack; all five of their hitters had between 12-14 kills. Mike Wauligman recorded a team-best 14 kills, while Pederson (13 kills), Mark Greaves (12 kills), Scott Spurlock (12 kills) and Cole (12 kills) rounded out Ohio State's attack. Greaves notched a triple-double with 12 kills, 15 digs and 10 blocks. Spurlock led the team with a match-high 13 blocks.

Lewis is on the road over the next two weeks and doesn't return home to Neil Carey Arena until Friday, February 20. The team's next matches will be at the Penn State Tournament with it plays UC-San Diego (Jan. 6) and USC (Jan. 7).