WILBERFORCE & SPRINGFIELD, Ohio – The Indiana Tech men's volleyball team began the 2022 season Thursday with a pair of wins over NCAA opponents, defeating Division I/II Central State University 3-2 (25-18, 23-25, 21-25, 25-17, 15-10) and Division III foe Wittenberg 3-0 (25-16, 25-16, 25-14) in the Buckeye State.
Daynte Stewart had a match-high 21 kills and a .531 hitting percentage to go along with nine digs, five blocks and two assists in the win over the first-year Marauders program. while
Mason Milan had 10 kills, two service aces and seven digs.
Brandon Jones dished out 31 assists while adding six digs, an ace and a block while
Raekwon Rogers had a team-best six blocks.
The two teams traded leads early in the first until a 4-0 run from Tech extended their advantage to 15-9 and forced the hosts to call a timeout, but the lead never dipped under five points again as the Warriors took the opening set. The next two sets would feature back-and-forth action with Central State taking the second thanks to a 4-0 run aided by back-to-back service aces to clinch the win while a 9-3 run from the Marauders gave just enough space to hold off a comeback attempt from Tech to give the hosts a 2-1 lead in the match.
The Warriors came out firing with a 5-1 run to kick off the fourth set before extending their advantage to 15-7 following a 4-0 spurt. Central State never got within six points again as Tech sent the match into a decisive fifth set. The Orange and Black would come out strong with a 5-2 run and never trailed after the fourth serve as they ended the afternoon matinee with a 3-0 run to seal the win.
Milan had a team-best eight kills in the nightcap against the Tigers while
Chase Christiansen and
Ryan Griffel had four kills each and the latter adding five aces and three digs.
Joey Hermes had five digs while
Chandler Davis dished out nine assists.
Tech was just too strong for the hosts in the first set as they rattled off a 7-3 run to start the match and never looked back as they took the early lead. The Tigers showed some fight in the second thanks to a 5-2 spurt to start, but the Warriors continued to chip away at the lead before breaking it open with a 3-0 run to make it 16-11 followed by a 6-0 run to make it a 23-13 advantage en route to the 2-0 lead. The Warriors left no doubt of the victors as they raced ahead to a 5-0 lead before extending the advantage to 13-7. The lead grew to as many as 12 points at 23-11 as the visitors notched the sweep.
Tech (2-0) returns to action on Thursday, January 13 as they start off play in the Crossroads Crossover against regional rival Trine University in Angola, now coached by former Tech assistant Will Dowdy. First serve is set for 6 p.m. from Hershey Hall.
