COLUMBUS, OHIO – The 10th ranked Lewis Flyer men's volleyball team comeback from a 2-0 deficit came up short in a five-set loss at seventh ranked Ohio State in the semifinals of the Midwestern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association Tournament on Wednesday evening at Ohio State.

"We got off to a slow start but the guys settled in in games three and four," Lewis men's volleyball head coach Dan Friend said. "Vander (Nick Vander Zanden (Tinley Park, IL/Andrew)) and Dalen (Dalen Instenes (Racine, WI/William Horlick)) came off the bench to provide some valuable play which helped us push the match to a fifth set.

"Michael Simmons (Aurora, IL/Waubonsie Valley) was a stud for us all night long," Friend continued. "His play kept raising the bar for us constantly."

After a slow start to begin the match the Flyers hit .370 in the final three sets to finish the match with an attack percentage of .148. Ryan Coenen (Franklin, WI/Franklin) led Lewis with 18 kills while Tyler Mitchem (Bolingbrook, Ill./Bolingbrook) and Kyle Bugee (Los Altos, CA/Homestead) added six kills each. Matt Yoshimoto (Ventura, CA/Adolfo Camarillo) finished with his second straight double-double recording 32 assists and 14 digs.

The Flyers used a 6-1 run midway through the third set to take a 17-13 lead after an error by Jake Hanes. The Buckeyes (22-5) came back to tie things at 21 but Lewis was able to extend the match by scoring four of the final five points to win 25-22. The Flyers hit .316 in the set and forced Ohio State to commit eight errors.

The fourth set saw 11 ties and two lead changes as Lewis held off a late run from the Buckeyes to win 25-20 and force the winner take-all fifth set. The Flyers hit .478 in the fourth set and were led by Bugee with four kills while Coenen and Mitchem had three kills apiece.

The fifth set was tied 3-3 before the Buckeyes rattled off four in a row to take a 7-3 advantage after an ace from Hanes. Coenen brought Lewis back to within three at 8-5 after a pair of kills but the Flyers were unable to get any closer as Ohio State closed it out by scoring seven of the last 10 points to win 15-8.

Lewis trailed 7-6 to begin the match but the Buckeyes dominated the rest of the stanza thanks to an 18-3 run to win the opener 25-9. OSU recorded five blocks in the opening set, held the Flyers to a negative .300 hitting percentage while their offense hit .579 in the frame.

Lewis fell behind 9-3 to begin the second set but used a 7-4 run to cut the deficit to 13-10 on a kill from Coenen. The Flyers wouldn't get any closer than four points the rest of the set as Ohio State closed out the stanza by scoring six of the final eight points to win 25-17.

Lewis finishes its season at 19-11 and a fourth place finish in MIVA play.